Santa Clara University

Culture shock is the psychological shock of having to adjust to new surroundings and a new culture which may be dramatically different from your own. Gone are all the familiar signs of home and the thousand and one automatic responses you used to be able to count on to help you meet situations of daily life. Climate, food, landscapes, people and their ways--all will seem strange to you. Your English may not serve you as well as you expected. You may feel, to an unexpected degree, the pressures of studying, exams, term papers and what you may consider the fast tempo of life in the U.S.

Symptoms of Culture Shock

You may feel isolated and frustrated. You may be excessively homesick. You may feel hostile toward the U.S. as the cause of your discomfort. Minor irritations may make you inordinately angry. You may become very dependent on fellow nationals also at the university. Of course, these friendships are important and extremely supportive. However, if you make friends exclusively from among other students from your country, you will deny yourself one of the main benefits of this educational experience: meeting and interacting with and making friends of students from the U.S. You may have deep doubts about the wisdom of your coming to the U.S. There may be academic anxieties. You may feel real reluctance to speak English or to associate with people from the U.S.

Coping with Culture Shock

Maintain your perspective. Remember that thousands of foreign students have come to study at universities and colleges in the U.S., and they survived. Evaluate your expectations. Your reactions to the U.S. are products both of the way things are and the way you expected them to be. Keep an open mind. People in the U.S. may do or say things that people at home would not. Try to understand that people here are acting according to their own set of values, born of a culture different from yours. Avoid evaluating U.S. behavior by the standards of your own country. Do not withdraw. Withdrawing to immerse yourself in your studies is not a good solution. You must face things. Seek help. If you continue to have personal adjustment problems, talk to the Foreign Student Advisor or to someone in the Counseling Center at the university.

Reverse Culture Shock

Keep in mind that you may experience another case of culture shock when your studies or research are completed and you return home. Some people find these adjustments even more painful and difficult than those they faced when they first arrived in the U.S.-- partly because they do not at all expect them. Be aware that re-entry anxieties exist and seek counseling, or at least an informal conversation with the Foreign Student Advisor, before you depart for home.

Studying in the United States

There is quite a degree of informality between students and professors. Free discussions and critical questions are encouraged by most faculty members. Professors have regular office hours during which they are available to discuss problems related to their courses. Use this time also to get acquainted with your instructor. Class participation is critical and is sometimes considered in determining your grade. Therefore, you should not hesitate to ask questions and participate in class. Since we are in the quarter system, the pace is fast. Tests are frequently given, usually starting the second week of classes. Thus, it is imperative to keep up with the work. The way the final grade is determined will differ slightly with each instructor. Factors usually considered are midterms, quizzes, homework, class participation and projects. The professor should inform the class in the first few lectures and the grading policy. If you are unsure, ASK! Instructors here generally speak fast. If you do not understand or find it hard to keep up with him/her, inform him/her of your difficulty.

From Pre-Departure Orientation Handbook, USIA, Washington, D.C., 1984, p. 99-105.

For more information on adjusting to a new environment, please drop-in during our office hours to pick up an information packet.

The counseling center at SCU provides workshops to address culture shock.