Finding familiarity

Have you ever seen a bunch of Korean people in the library?" asked Hyo Kim, a native of South Korea. "They study together all the time. They just go to eat with Koreans, only Koreans."\nScenes like Kim's description are common on IU's campus. From the library's study tables to the dining halls, IU's more than 3,000 international students are most often found associating with one another.\nKim, a senior majoring in communications and culture film studies, said she is troubled by the exclusivity she sees among international students. Yet, she, too, admits to having more Korean and other international friends than Americans. Thanks to a concerted effort, she is overcoming this discrepancy. But although many other international students desire to meet Americans, they continue to spend the bulk of their time with fellow internationals. The phenomenon is a complex one — the large group of foreign students enveloping the lunch table has formed due to a bevy of factors.\nLanguage and Culture\nPeople are attracted to situations that put them at ease, says Sandy Britton, assistant coordinator of IU's Leo R. Dowling International Center.\n"I think that international students feel that they are more comfortable within their own setting or people that speak their own language or have the same culture," she said. "They're going to go where they feel that they are the most comfortable and they can communicate the best."\nThis philosophy rings true with Kim. She transferred to IU after a year and a half in the United States. It was her first visit to America and she had only studied English for one year. The similar culture made it much easier for her to meet fellow Koreans and other Asians.\n"Most Koreans meet each other in class," she said. "If they notice someone Korean in class, they talk to them first."\nThe majority of Koreans, she adds, would feel more comfortable around Japanese or Chinese.\n"I would say the reason for this is all about the culture and appearance," she said.\nAnother important factor is that of common language. Jae Sung Kim, an IU senior born in Korea but raised in Stockholm, Sweden, said he feels lucky that a language barrier has never impeded him as an international student. He's studied English since first grade. He doesn't consider himself the typical international student because a majority of his friends are American. \nHowever, Jae Sung Kim is quick to empathize with those who are not as linguistically distinguished. \n"(As a foreigner) you find comfort in the fact that there are going to be people where you can actually speak comfortably and not feel like an idiot anymore," he said. "A lot of international students feel like idiots in speaking with Americans, and they end up shutting up. So in that case, if there is a fellow Chinese person, they just love the fact that they can talk again." \nHyo Kim said the language barrier deters many international students from making American friends "because they think they would be rejected or ignored." \nThis discourages many international students, but for Hyo Kim, it serves as an incentive. \n"I understand why they think that way, but what I think is that if I want to be better, I have to get hurt and get embarrassed," she said. "That motivates me. I have to get help from American friends, because they are the people who speak English here and I am living their country." \nSimilar circumstances\nSenior Jen Miller has lived most of her life in Indiana, but she knows firsthand what it is like to be an international student. Last year, she studied abroad in Madrid, Spain, and was forced to adapt instantly to a new culture and language, much like the international students at IU.\nFor Miller and many of the other IU students who study abroad each semester, meeting natives is not easy. \n"(The Spaniards) were in their own groups and didn't seem very interested in making friends," said Miller. "For me, I'm not a traditionally shy person, but it was intimidating." \nOn the other hand, meeting Americans was almost effortless.\n"It's easy to make friends with other Americans because you are in the same situation, and you're not pushing any boundaries," said Miller. "Initially, it's just because (the Americans are) familiar in an unfamiliar place."\nSo along with language and culture, international students share another similarity -- common circumstances. Miller understands that this parallel brings IU's international students together. \n"I completely sympathize with international students," she said. "They're in a foreign country -- it's very intimidating to go up to an American. If it's another foreign student, you're in the same boat and basically you have an instant friend -- someone who understands the situation you are in."\nBack to the homeland\nAside from their commonalities, some international students agreed that they group together because they don't feel the need to invest time in temporary friendships. Jae Sung Kim plans to return to Sweden once he graduates and knows other international students with similar goals.\n"Most international students, me included, that come here and just get an education usually go back," he said. "So we don't plan to keep long-lasting friendships with Americans because we know we are going to back to wherever we are from. It's just a lot more clever to make friends with people who are going to end up back in the same country with you, so you can still keep the friendship going, even after college." \nAmerican reaction\nThe American reaction to international students may also have an effect on the way foreign students interact. Hyo Kim felt the sting of stereotypes when she tried to join a campus club. The club contained no other international students, and Hyo thought Americans underestimated her ability and knowledge, simply thinking of her as an admirer of American culture when, in reality, she was well-educated on the subject. \nThough members didn't directly tell Hyo she couldn't join the club, they tacitly forced her out. \n"I went there ignoring what they said," Hyo said. "It was such a painful memory. They kind of black-balled me and didn't even try to let me into the discussion." \nSince then, Hyo hasn't bothered with clubs.\n"... I don't want to get hurt from people," she said.\nAmerican aid\nThe American attitude toward foreign students can have an impact on their integration in the United States, Britton said.\nAmericans can put this welcoming attitude into action on the campus's Leo R. Dowling International Center. The Center supports programs designed for interaction between international students and Americans. Student coffee hours, for example, allow international students to share their culture with Americans and make new friends. Americans do participate in the Center's activities, though not in large numbers. \nJen Miller has seen a disparity in American students interested in helping international students adjust.\n"I do see people making outreach efforts, and those are the people that have studied abroad before because they know the worth of making friends with the native people," she said. "But people who haven't been in that situation generally do not make that same effort."\nFlying with a different flock\nSo whether international students are drawn together by similarities like language, culture, and circumstances, are planning to return to their home country, or perceive a disinterest from Americans, most desire to branch out from their groups and form relationships with American students. \n"Most (international) students ... are coming here, wanting to learn the culture, wanting to learn about Americans, and wanting to be a part of it," Britton said.