Life as An International Student at F&ES
written by Maggie Yuan Yao
As a first year MEM student at F&ES, I enjoyed my time here in this diverse and dynamic community. This year, we have 79 international students representing 42 countries. We get to know each other very well starting from the international student orientation week, which happens before the orientation for our whole class.
There are also plenty of social and cultural activities at F&ES during the academic year. Every Friday evening, we gather at TGIF (Thank God I’m A Forester) and hang out with our classmates. There is also an international TGIF during the semester featuring all the cultures and food around the world. We come together and celebrate the diversity of our community, language, tradition, and culture. Here is a photo from the 2017 International TGIF:
After International TGIF, we celebrated Halloween with the FES and New Haven community. For many of the international students, it is our first time celebrating Halloween in the United States and we had so much fun learning about American culture and dressing up!
If you enjoy more in-depth conversations, there are many other groups and events at FES as well. For Thanksgiving celebration, all the international students at F&ES are invited to have dinner with a local family or faculty member. Many others celebrated “Friendsgiving” together with potluck and bonfire chat.
The many different SIGs (Student Interest Groups) are great places to further your academic interest, meet people with similar interest, and have professional conversations. Also, F&ES has a new lunch series for international students where we can discuss our concerns and needs. The EQUID (Equity, Inclusion, and Diversity) committee, working to nurture a culture of open-mindedness and respect at F&ES, is another great resource for international students. I’m glad to be a part of this diverse community at FES and hope you can be a part of it!
