Tel: 646-589-2545 Email: info@straightaprep.com
Tel: 646-589-2545 Email: info@straightaprep.com
Email: info@straightaprep.com
Tel: +1 (646)-982-2428
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Fast Way to Immerse in College Life
Many students were full of longing and yearning for the life of studying abroad before going abroad and imagined their overseas life infinitely beautiful. After I arrived in the United States, I found that dreams and reality were very different, and I couldn't adapt to life abroad, which resulted in the phenomenon of "unacceptable". The more typical ones are not accustomed to eating, living, and inconvenient transportation. If it’s New York, a big city like Sanfan is okay, but it’s a big deal to eat Chinese food in Chinatown. If you go to a large rural village in the Midwest, you can only force yourself to adapt to American food. In addition, the United States is a country built on wheels. All buildings and infrastructure are designed for cars, which is no exaggeration. Except for New York and Chicago, no other city can live without a car. Therefore, it will be difficult for students who have just arrived in the United States without a car to travel. At this time, you can let Laosheng take you grocery shopping. Many schools also provide a free shopping shuttle bus to take everyone to buy food or something a week.
Remind everyone, if you live in a host family, you can communicate with the parents of the host family and express your thoughts. If you happen to be able to cook some meals, you can do it with your host family. In this way, you can not only eat good food but also increase the relationship with the host family and quickly integrate into the local life. If you are in a school apartment or renting a house, you can also try to cook some meals yourself. Cooking materials and seasonings are very easy to buy in Chinatown or some supermarkets in the United States. If the cooking skills are good enough, you can also invite foreign classmates and friends to share your skills, I believe this will help you make some good friends.
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The diligence and hard work of Chinese students in learning can be said to be recognized by the world. Many Chinese students have become accustomed to the domestic exam-oriented education, but are at a loss as to how to discuss freely in American classrooms. The silent and reserved manner of Chinese international students in American classrooms even made some American university professors very uncomfortable and did not know how to adjust their teaching methods.
Remind students that since they have chosen to study in the United States, they must change their class habits. The American classroom attaches great importance to cultivating students' creative thinking and practical ability. In class, you must actively interact with professors and classmates and have the courage to express your views and opinions on issues. In addition, classroom performance is also an important part of the professor's scoring at the end of the semester. To maintain GPA, you must also actively participate in class discussions.
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American schools place more emphasis on self-study. The average American college student needs to spend at least twice the time in class for extracurricular self-study. Undergraduate courses in the United States require each student to take at least 12 credits per semester, that is, 12 class hours per week. The graduate school requires 6-9 credits, plus extracurricular time for self-study. Each student must pay at least 40 credits per week. Hours in the study. But studying and life in the United States are not just about studying, there are extracurricular activities, social activities, travel, daily chores, etc. How to arrange time reasonably is another big challenge for Chinese students. Remind everyone that you must make a good plan, distinguish the priority, and plan your own itinerary every month, every week, and every day according to the syllabus (Syllabus) given by the professor in the first week of school. Because the syllabus will not only include the teacher’s weekly teaching content and quizzes, but also the score ratio, which can help students be more scientific when making timetables.
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It is also important to adapt to the new environment and cultural differences between China and foreign countries. If you want to integrate into the United States as soon as possible, it is necessary to learn more about the differences in daily life and culture between China and the United States. When interacting with locals, it is best to learn more about local cultural traditions and some daily taboos. Many international students often find a very real problem after arriving in the United States. Their English proficiency in China is already quite good, and IELTS and TOEFL have also scored amazingly high. However, when they communicate with local Americans, they find that they have been in the past. Sometimes the vocabulary and terminology learned in books are not used at all. And because the United States is a country of immigrants, many people have accents or dialects of their respective countries or regions, and there are some obstacles in communication. It is recommended that when communicating with local people, try to learn local language expressions.
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The American education system focuses on cultivating students' ability to think independently. In American universities, critical discussions of reading materials are conducted in seminar classes, and critical thinking is required to conduct argumentation and evaluation of various evidence when writing essays.
Critical thinking is a skill that American college students must master, which not only greatly helps their academics but also affects their future jobs. It is also a suggestion for a commodity sales channel. The boss will appreciate the employee who has reached a conclusion after market research, data, and evidence analysis, rather than the employee who has drawn the conclusion directly.
e some obstacles in communication. It is recommended that when communicating with local people, try to learn local language expressions.
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The United States is a country under the rule of law. Not only is there a plethora of laws and regulations, but the handling is also very heavy. For example, in many states, it is illegal to hold a beer bottle, and in other states, it is illegal to hold a beer bottle in a place without a roof. In New York, it is illegal to use the security gate next to the credit card machine to enter the subway station when taking the subway. The laws of the United States are so finely divided, it is illegal to do it with a little carelessness... Therefore, you must understand the laws of this state that are closely related to your own lives.
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Proficiency in the local language is very important for many students. Take reading as an example. Most American classrooms are discussion classes. Professors like to arrange a lot of reading before each class. This is huge pressure for American students, not to mention that English is not a native language and reading speed is slow. Of Chinese students. However, pre-class reading is the basis for participating in class discussion, and discussion is a time when the professor helps students understand and expand their thinking. If you do not study before class, it will be difficult for students to participate in the discussion. Participation in the general discussion will become part of the grade. If you do not speak in the discussion class, the score will of course not be high.
Another major language difficulty for Chinese students is writing. When they first entered the school, each school would require non-native English students to participate in the English level test and grade them. Students need to choose the corresponding level of English class. This kind of English class is a great way for Chinese students to improve their writing. Teachers will spot every grammatical error in the article and make comments. Students can also improve their writing skills by taking courses marked "Writing Intensive" in the elective courses. In this kind of professional class, the professor will usually arrange multiple papers and comment on your essays. The Writing Center in the school will also be a great helper for international students to improve their writing skills. The writing center will have a special counselor to comment on students' articles and put forward suggestions for revision.
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There are two types of universities in the United States, one is a teaching-centered liberal arts college, and the other is a research-centered research university. In the liberal arts college, the small class environment will allow professors and students to have more interaction, and even each student has his own academic advisor.
Introverted students will get higher attention from teachers in a liberal arts colleges. However, in research universities, the job of a professor is to conduct research and expand the breadth and breadth of the academic field. It is actually quite difficult for students studying in research universities to get in touch with professors because professors are very busy, but they are not without opportunities. Here are some practical suggestions for students to seize the opportunity to communicate with the professor:
· Seize the time in class and between classes to ask the professor;
· In the professor's "Office Hour", come to the door with the organized questions;
· Contact the professor via email for less urgent issues;
· Apply for a research assistant who is a professor.
Finally, the opportunity to communicate with the professor is precious. If you can find the answer by searching for information, don’t waste time and opportunity. Idiot professors generally won't answer it.
