As the Neumann University campus empties out for the Thanksgiving holiday, international students remain. While their American peers pack their bags to head back home for the holiday, foreign students at Neumann don’t get that opportunity due to the constraints of visa restriction, distance and time involved.
The choice not to go back home is more about the restraints than the preference. “I would love to go back, but I cannot. It takes a lot of time and also money,” said Khushi Joshi, a Nursing sophomore from Nepal. She expressed deep worries towards the current issues of visa and deporting. “So, we are kind of scared to go back. What if we cannot come back here again?”
Khushi Joshi, Nursing student from Nepal. By Nguyen Ta
This fear is reasonable, considering the fact that the procedure followed for the student visa is very strict. Joshi remembered the day of the visa interview that took place in Nepal: “There were 97 of us who applied. And only 5 of us got the visa.” That’s the risk if you’re denied reentry into the U.S., it could jeopardize future educational and professional opportunities across other countries in the world.
For the students who stay, big holidays like Thanksgiving can be both exciting and isolating. Sara Cieszko, a Cyber Security senior from Poland, shared her excitement for Thanksgiving: “It was always on my bucket list when I came to the U.S. because that’s what I was experiencing from childhood movies.’’
Sara Cieszko, Cyber Security major at Neumann University. By Nguyen Ta
For her, the American culture of going back home for people living far away is “a pretty big deal and it’s essential for holidays like Thanksgiving.” This meaningful tradition makes people like her miss their hometown and family even more.
Missing important holiday times with family was a challenging experience at first. “It was just overwhelming to be away during the holiday season,” she shared. “I remember a time when I hated Christmas because I was not able to be there with my family.”
Joshi experienced the same feelings when it came to holiday seasons last year, when she stayed on campus. “Imagine while friends are having a great time with their families, you miss yours,” she added, “the food, the music, the atmosphere would also be different in your country.” The sense of being lonely and left out is very much evident.
“I was so excited because I knew that Thanksgiving is near, but then I started thinking that everyone is going back home, and the crowded campus would become deserted, so I’m not that excited anymore,” said Joshi.
As a remedy for this, both of the students shared the same desire for community. “I bet there’re a lot of students here that cannot go home for Thanksgiving and Christmas,” said Cieszko. “I think that we should organize something for them on these special days.”
The plan for the Thanksgiving that Khushi came up with sounded very appealing: “We should all come over a place and start preparing food while talking and sharing stories, and then after that, we sit down to eat and then maybe watch a movie and play board games.”
