International Velvet
When Caleb Liu arrived at Oxford in October, he found it surprisingly easy to adapt. Although this was the Singaporean PPEist's first time studying in the UK, he quickly found a support system in the Malaysian and Singapore Students' Association, one of the many thriving national societies at the University. Over laksa (spicy noodles in curry), sushi, and terriyaki chicken - just some of the dishes served at the Asian Food Festival - Liu made friends. "Events like these are good," he enthuses. "You can meet people from your own culture and talk about common interests."
International students make up a vibrant community in Oxford, with over 130 nationalities represented. Many MCRs boast a majority of non-British students. Various scholarship schemes bring graduates from Nigeria to Nepal to the University. The students, attracted by the stellar faculty and research facilities, come here for a truly global experience. At undergraduate level the proportion of internationals is less, but still significant, at around ten per cent coming from abroad.
In this mélange of diversity, however, international students must adjust to their surroundings; some find it more difficult than others do. When he arrived in the UK five years ago as an undergraduate at Sussex University, Aymeric Monod-Garaud, now a first-year M.Phil, found pub culture "strange."
"I couldn't understand why people wanted to drink every day," he recalls. Monod-Garaud admits that at Sussex, he had a "hard time mingling with British students, as they weren't very open. They had their own circles and had gone to the same schools." At Oxford he has fitted in quickly, but he attributes this partly to being a postgraduate, where diversity is greater and he can "meet students from all over and learn the best things of every country."
Monod-Garaud, who is of Polish and French extraction, believes that international students should make an effort to meet people, particularly in the first month, as that is when everyone has just arrived and not yet caught up in the demanding workload that is an inevitable result of Oxford's intense eight-week terms. Currently Monod-Garaud lives in private accommodation with a group of American exchange students, one of whom "didn't go out" and eventually became so homesick that she left the University. "You need to be sociable and mingle," he counsels.
Many students find a support system in their colleges, which offer the sense of community they look for. Rhodes scholar Simon "feels at home" in Trinity, where he is involved in athletics and dines at formal hall, which is "excellent." JCR and MCR termcards are packed full of events from fondue nights to college bops - activities that often help dispel feelings of isolation or loneliness. Simon believes that Oxford is "timeless", with an "ahistorical feel" that perhaps does not have a single, central identity. As Simon notes: "The dreaming spires can be breathtaking and uplifting - or piercing, depending on what time of day or year."
The proliferation of national societies at Oxford further testifies to students' desire to develop networks outside their colleges or departments. According to French Society president Theresa d'Aligny, the group was founded last term as "It seemed so odd that there shouldn't be one around in a university were national societies are so successful." D'Aligny and her team have assembled an interesting array of events, from a 'Café Philo' with the Socrates Society, to a quiz evening and a wine tasting session. They are also planning a trip to Lille, this year's 'Capital of Culture'.
Opportunities abound for those in search of support and community, as well as an amazing spectrum of cultural activities. It only takes some initiative to find. As Simon notes, at the end of the day, "Oxford is what you make of it."
3rd Apr 2004