DSC international students answer questions about experiences, culture differences
Kassi Gillette
Issue date: 11/16/09 Section: Lifestyles
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International Student Services provides international students with advisers, helps them get scholarships, takes the students on sight-seeing trips, and serves as a central hub for the students to go when they need something or just want to hang out.
Many students come to DSC because it's close to home, has affordable tuition and warmer temperatures, but the international students travel thousands of miles to America to gain knowledge and experience that wouldn't be possible back home.
Q: Why did you choose to go to school in the U.S.?
"I came for a reason: to learn, study and go back and help my people," said Francis Kwaku Dodzi Kassah, a freshman business administration major from Ghana, Africa. "I want to learn about a new culture and lifestyle. Hopefully when I go back I will be able to contribute with my experiences gained in the U.S."
Junior Evamaria Schrick, an English major from Hamburg, Germany, said students from the University of Bremen in Germany that are majoring in English have to study abroad to develop their language.
Since DSC is a partner school with the University of Bremen, studying abroad at DSC was an easy choice.
"I applied for the scholarship because Utah seemed to be very interesting," Schrick said. "The nature, the landscape and the culture is so different here than in Germany, and I wanted to have a totally new experience."
Tia Punnerman, a sophomore elementary education major from Freeport, Bahamas, moved to America in spring 2007. She moved to Utah due to convenience, the environment and because of friends.
Ludzi Mgadla, a sophomore communication major from Johannesburg, South Africa, chose DSC because of the cheap tuition and nearby relatives.
Punnerman traveled to Florida about two to three times a year and has been to more states than her own island, so she is well acquainted with American culture.
"Florida is a Bahimian's second home," Punnerman said.
Q: Would you ever want to make America a permanent home?
"One of my goals is to live in the US," Mgadla said. "There's nothing back home but my family. [South Africa's] not a stable country yet and there's alot of civil war."
Q: How does the food in the U.S. compare to your native foods?
Kassah still has trouble with American food, and that has been the hardest thing to adjust to, he said. Even though Kassah thinks the food here is too sweet and sugary or not spicy enough, he loves Golden Corral.
Punnerman said in the Bahamas spicy food, cajun and Southern fried food is common. She misses fresh seafood, and peas and rice, which is a common dish in the Bahamas.
Q: What have been some difficulties with language?
It took Kassah two or three months for the language barrier to get easier. Kassah's native language is called Ewe and is spoken in four African countries. Kassah also speaks four other African languages.
Q: How does the weather compare?
"Another challenge was adapting to the climate," Kassah said. "Moving to a dry area was painful for the first seven months."
The climate was a major adjustment for Punnerman as well. In the Bahamas, it's usually a consistent 70 degrees throughout the whole year, Punnerman said.
Q: What are some major lifestyle and culture differences?
"In Africa, people take 15 to 20 minutes just to greet people," Kassah said. "It was a big difference when I came [here] because people don't have the time to greet each other."
A major difference between lifestyles that took Kassah, Punnerman and Mgadla some getting used to is greetings.
"It was different when I came because the culture as a whole is more reserved [in the U.S.]," Punnerman said. "People here have blinders and don't greet or pay attention to others. Even if you don't know someone, you say 'hi' or let people know you're thinking about them."
In the Bahamas people care more about others and are friendlier, Punnerman said.
"I really like the mentality of the people," Schrick said. "I met so many friendly and helpful people, which is a different experience from the German stubborness."
In South Africa, they never question authority, look their elders in the eyes or refer to them by first name, Mgadla said.
"Whenever elders are there, you stand up, only ask for help in class after class and silence means respect," Mgadla said.
Q: What has been one of the biggest differences?
"Where I'm from, soccer is like a religion," Kassah said. "Here it's not promoted as much. Everyone goes to soccer events, and there's a real passion for the game in Africa."
Mgadla said the sky has been one of the biggest differences. In South Africa, the whole sky turns orange when the sun sets.
"It's totally different, like I'm in a new world," Mgadla said.
Q: What are your favorite genres of music? Favorite television shows?
Hip hop and R&B are Punnerman's favorite genres of music, and artists like Whitney Houston and Mary J. Blige are some of her favorites.
Some of Mgadla's favorite music artists are Michael Jackson, Blink 182, NOFX, The Fray, Young Jeezy and Lucky Dube. Mgadla likes mostly all types of music in the US, and is trying to learn more about country music.
Schrick also likes hip hop along with house music or techno. She said she loves the music in America.
"I don't have favorite TV shows," Schrick said. "In Germany, I prefer watching political discussions and talk shows in which politicians and other experts are invited to discuss currently important issues."
Schrick dislikes the amount of commercials on television and hasn't watched TV since the first week she came here.
Nancy Grace is one of Punnerman's favorite people. Her favorite TV show is "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit."
Kassah said Denzel Washington is his favorite actor, and "NCIS" is his favorite show.
Q: What do you think about the American government?
"There is a vibrance of democracy in America," Kassah said. "America has an opposite ideology that is different than dictators. If you speak against the government, you could be arrested or prosecuted."
Kassah said in Africa, the governments have control, and people are afraid to speak their mind.
Unlike the country of Ghana, the Bahamas are much like the United States in the aspect of government.
"We pretty much have the same government," Punnerman said. "There's a prime minister, which is like the president, and two opposing parties. [The Bahamas] are equivalent but on a smaller scale."
Many of the international students are happy about Obama's election as president.
"The Bush government was not really in good standing in Germany, primarily because of Bush's foreign policy," Schrick said. "I hope that Obama will implement many of his goals."
Schrick said she was happy when Obama was elected president.
Mgadla said back home they view America as a country that loves war.
"There is always something wrong with the plan that is proposed," Mgadla said. "[The different parties] need to be more democratic about things."
Q: How do you feel about DSC?
"DSC is the best situation I can be in," Punnerman said. "It's a good school. I love my professors that are helpful."
Kassah said DSC is the best school under the sun and loves it here.
Mgadla transferred this summer and had worries about having difficulty fitting in. However, Mgadla has found that he feels at home in St. George.
"I love DSC," Mgadla said. "I think Dixie is where I'm supposed to be."
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