That extra mile

Maria Modayil knows very well about the challenge to journey from the familiar to the foreign to capture a goal. She’s trekked more than 8,100 miles in pursuit of it.

A native of Kuwait, Modayil earned her bachelor’s degree in audiology and speech-language pathology in India, then secured an F-1 Student Visa to attend Baylor University in Texas. With a master’s degree in speech language pathology in hand, Modayil arrived at Ohio University, where she is pursuing a doctoral degree in the Graduate College’s Individual Interdisciplinary Program.

Modayil is one of 1,363 international undergraduate and graduate students at OHIO.* Most students are from China, India, and Saudi Arabia, with the balance being from more than 100 countries.

She says landing at Baylor University came with a “big culture shock.”

“I remember [students] asking whether I rode camels or had electricity back home,” says Modayil, who speaks English, Arabic, and Malayalam, a native Indian language.

New beginnings

The universal struggles of life at college—homesickness, being physically far away from home, the expectations of academia—are often amplified for international students. Add to this list challenges with English proficiency and a teaching style different from your culture, and the challenges become more intense.

“International students may come from a perspective where you never question a professor, or there is no expectation [for students] to have their own opinions,” says Diane Cahill, interim director of International Student and Faculty Services (ISFS). “Making that switch can be really hard.”

For Trinidad & Tobago native and rising sophomore Aleah Cumberbatch, making that academic journey was even more of a leap. She graduated early from her high school to move to Athens with her mother, who’d been named an OHIO Fulbright Scholar.

“Not only was I making the transition from high school to college as a 16-year-old, but doing it in a different country,” says Cumberbatch. 

You are welcome here

Domestic students are usually a relatively short car ride away from Athens. For international students, getting to OHIO’s brick streets can be an intense undertaking—from the admissions process to visa interviews to the actual journey itself.

“I’m amazed by how brave they are,” says Andy Ray, director of International Graduate Student Services. “Imagine you’re 18 years old, going to live the next four years in a different country. You get on a 13-hour flight, land, go through customs, get your bags, and have to figure out where you’re going. [Then] just imagine if English is your second language.”

To encourage an easier transition, ISFS is broadening its scope beyond processing student visas and now offers walk-in advising, social gatherings, more outreach via social media, and group trips to cultural places. It’s also conducting an audit of all services available to international students and hosting focus groups, Cahill says.

“We want to make sure this is a welcoming and inclusive campus,” she notes.

Hitting their stride

Today, Modayil and Cumberbatch are thriving. Modayil serves as president of Graduate Student Senate and Cumberbatch has been selected as a Margaret Boyd Scholar and provides public relations support for the International Student Union. Cahill says they join myriad international students enjoying success that came from the grit they’ve demonstrated.

“I’m amazed at the accomplishments…of our international students,” Cahill says. “They really do want to be here, and they had to step that much further to come.”

*Total as of fall 2017

Feature photograph: Bobcats from around the globe make the International Street Festival a staple amidst myriad community events that take place spring semester. Photo by Kaitlin Owens, BSVC ’17