Overview
• Goal: Provide an event for International Education
Week to bring together the campus community to reflect
on cultural adaptation and internationalization as
international students and scholars continue to become
a more significant component of the Rice population.
• Topic: Acculturation and adjustment in the U.S. as Rice
internationals through personal experiences (both good
and bad). Essays from 500 to 1000 words.
• Prizes: Cash awards for
places and three
Honorable Mentions; awards given at reception where
winners read excerpts
st
1 ,
nd
2 ,
rd
3
Diverse Participation
from Campus Community
• 43 Entries included F-1 Undergraduate and Graduate
Students, J-1 Exchange Students, and J-1 Research Scholars
• 5 Judges included Center for Asian Studies Associate
Director, University Librarian, Associate Vice Provost for
Academic Affairs, and OISS staff
Matt Stein, International Student Advisor
Essay Samples
F-1 PhD Student in Biochemistry from Argentina
“I greet most Americans with a nod… possibly a
handshake and very rarely a hug. In contrast,
Argentineans kiss on the cheek when we meet…
Have you ever hugged an American?… I am not sure
if it is the lack of practice or the possibility of
lawsuit that renders Americans such awkward
huggers, but I could get rich giving lessons, although
I would rather not risk deportation due to violation
of my F-1 status.”
J-1 Exchange Student from China
“The most exhilarating thing about living in a new
country is that it enables you adopt a totally new
mindset… Before I came here, I got accustomed to
hiding my feelings and always tried not to make any
mistakes. It was not until I met these vigorous
students full of vitality and energy did I realized my
passion towards life… Believe it or not, I’m a girl
who has a long-existing fear for writing since
elementary school. How incredible it is that I’m
taking part in an essay competition now? Maybe
that is just why America is called the land of
dreams.”
Full text of winners’ essays:
oiss.rice.edu/uploadedFiles/Docs/Essay_extracts_winners.pdf