By Chang Liu | Focus/Design Editor
As Baylor strives to recruit more international students as part of its Baylor in Deeds strategic plan, part of that process includes ensuring international students adjust and transition to life in America.
Baylor’s First Year International Program includes GBL 1205 Transition to the U.S. University and Transition to the U.S. University Workshops. All undergraduate students with F-1 visas need to choose one to complete, according to Matthew Piech, a lecturer in the Global Gateway Program.
“Previously, they could select to participate, but this semester they’re actually being required as part of their new students experience,” Piech said.
GBL 1205 is a two-credit hour course that helps students learn about living on campus, multicultural issues and study skills. Karachi, Pakistan, freshman Zain Altaf said the course was useful because it taught him how to access important resources on Baylor’s website.
“What it’s like to be a student in the United States, what professors are like, how classes are organized, how to stay healthy, how to find a balance in one’s time, how to manage one’s time [are] just a variety of different topics that we hope that students, once they go through and learn a little bit, they’re gonna feel more comfortable, more knowledgeable,” Piech said.
Currently, only international students can take this course. Piech said GBL 1205 focuses more on vocabulary and language development.
“Sometimes, being in class with native English speakers, the teacher will use vocabulary or jargon that domestic students understand but international students may not, and that can add to the challenges of learning,” Piech said. “Hopefully, we can be the faculty that is accustomed to working with international students and care more about their typical needs.”
For students who don’t take GBL 1205, Transition to the U.S. University Workshops is another option. Students should complete six of eight workshops in the fall semester, though workshops do not count for credit hours. Baylor lecturer Debra Wainscott said everyone chose to take the transition class this semester instead of choosing the workshops.
“For this semester, the plan was have workshops, but in the end everyone took [the] transition class, so we don’t need to offer the workshop,” Wainscott said. “But in the future, we will keep this plan to do both [the transition class and workshops].”
