Working in a university, which caterers mainly to international students coming from all corners of the globe, is always challenging and presents many cultural challenges to staff and faculty. The way students learn in their home countries is very often different to the way education is offered here in North America. Students have to adapt not only to new ways of learning, but also learning in a language which isn’t their mother tongue. Then there is life outside the university – the scenery, ways of doing simple everyday tasks, and the culture is also different. 

Culture shock is the experience a person undergoes when moving from one’s home country to another foreign country. In this sense I am not referring to the tourists, but to people who have moved for extended periods of times for reasons such as immigration, study, or work. If one is moving from a culture that is very different to the new one, there is usually a sense of disorientation, unfamiliarity and certain transitions that one feels. 

At first everything is new and exciting. This is called the honeymoon phase – a period of romanticism and fascination with the locals. Memories of home and family are still fresh in the mind. Then reality slowly settles in and one becomes aware of the differences between the cultures. One can experience homesickness, difficulties with the language, general frustration and depression often set in at this stage (negotiation phase).

After a while one becomes accustomed to the new culture, has made friends and formed a social group – probably with people in the same situation and one begins to find a sense of equilibrium again. One begins to develop a more balanced point of view with regards to the new culture (adjustment phase). Once a person is completely comfortable in the host country that person will start participating in local communities. The person is more relaxed and confident and better able to cope with life and tend to develop a sense of belonging (adaption phase).