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Our third featured alumna is Sammi Xu, Class of 2017. Below, she shares her experience of adapting to college life at National University Singapore as an international student.
“I am currently taking foundational courses for the bachelor of business (BBA) such as finance and operation management along with other compulsory courses and I joined NUS Student Union International Relation Committee. The first year was pretty rough because the classes are just as intense as IB, but people are much more competitive. Also, I thought that the environment would be more international student friendly and that people would be more welcoming. This doesn’t sound really positive but I personally feel like local students prefer to make friends with other local students because they have more things in common.”
Sometimes, when things are more difficult, Sammi Xu even wishes that she attended a different school. “I chose NSU because I thought that I wouldn’t be able to adapt to the American culture, but I overlooked the fact that I went to AISG for 2 years and that helped shaped my personality. I feel very foreign here at NSU. The way they treat studying and academics are very different than the way I thought it would be. I thought that after going to university, it would be more about trying new things and figuring out what I want to do in the future instead of trying to get A+ in everything thing. But it’s the opposite. That’s why I wish that I went to Carnegie Melon since that might be a better fit for me because I feel like the overall atmosphere there encourages students to try new things.”
After one year of adapting, Sammi Xu is more used to the lifestyle, and her international school experience gave her the chance to be friends with other international students and a broader perspective. “My experience [made it] harder for me to blend in with the local students, but it made it easier for me to blend in with the international students. Compared to local students who didn’t go to international schools, I have more insights into the world and made friends who are from different countries. If I met someone who’s from a different country, I’d probably know something about where they’re from. Also, when we have to share our opinions in business classes, many people that haven’t been to China before would make assumptions about the country instead of doing research on it. As an international student who has been in China and other countries, I know that is not true. So when it comes to answering questions in class, my experience gave me a broader horizon.”
If you are, or know, an AISG alum who you think we should feature here, please contact Amanda D and Antonette L (07cavalcantaa@aisgz.org / 07liaoa@aisgz.org).
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