Wajd Abuzaid, BMSc’24, and Shagun Singh, BHSc’24, remember what it was like to arrive in a new country.
The two Western master’s students have been friends since Grade 9, when they met at Saunders Secondary School. Abuzaid was brand-new to Canada. Singh immigrated when she was eight years old.
The pair have been close ever since. Their love of connecting with people led them to summer roles as international orientation assistants, where they’ve brainstormed and planned programming to extend a warm welcome to Western’s new international students.
“We want to help because we’ve been through the experience of coming to a new country. This was the perfect opportunity,” Singh said.
They’ve both volunteered at Western International for more than two years and speak multiple languages.
“We know what international students are looking for, what questions they ask, what events they’ll like,” Abuzaid said.
Nearly 2,000 international students and their parents and supporters are expected to arrive on campus in late August and early September. They’ll be greeted by a month-long orientation program, starting Aug. 26, full of events to help adjust to a new school and home.
Western International sets up a Welcome Centre, a one-stop-shop for any services or on-campus departments international students may need to reach.
The personal connections built through orientation activities are a vital part of starting a journey at Western, said Lily Cho, vice-provost and associate vice-president (international). Whether students are new to Canada or have some experience already at a Canadian high school or Canadian university, they are encouraged to attend.
“Orientation helps set the tone for why these kinds of experiences and events are so crucial for helping our students thrive. We know that a lot of academic success, and success more broadly, is about having robust communities,” she said.
“This is something we are very proud to offer. Western continues to be an extraordinary place to offer our students an experience that is second to none.”
Orientation extended
The new approach this year aims to support international students with their unique needs – layering immigration requirements and sometimes a new language on top of the transition to university – and ensure all activities aren’t concentrated in the first week of September, a busy period of adjustment when families may still be in town.
It starts with online modules that can be completed before international students arrive at Western.
Then, the schedule of in-person activities, everything from a Mustangs football game to a welcome lunch for international students and families to a clinic with information about setting up a social insurance number.
The opportunities to learn about Western and connect with others will continue all through September, including celebration meals to welcome new students, a special edition of the Global Cafe (a weekly cultural and social event) and workshops with tips on adjusting to life in London, Ont.
The same orientation programming – open to undergraduate and graduate students, post-doctoral positions and even visiting researchers – will be repeated in January and May at the beginning of each new term, since international students begin their studies – especially graduate programs – in the fall, winter and summer terms.
“We’re helping you settle, not just at Western, but in a new city, in Canada – with a new culture, new language, new everything,” Abuzaid said.
There’s a broad range of ages and experiences among international students, including those who have already been living in Canada to attend high school.
Western International has programs designed to suit everyone.
“A lot of students, especially graduate students, come with their families and partners. We have spousal program where they can help the spouses integrate with Western and London,” Singh said.
A team of immigration advisors also offers support, sitting down with each arriving student one-on-one to discuss any questions. Most of the time, navigating study permits and other immigration services is “the scariest part,” Singh said.
The university’s team of immigration advisors have a “deep care” for students, Cho added.
“It’s so admirable and I think it distinguishes Western,” she said.
‘So many friendships’
So, too, do the international students arriving on campus.
“If we want to bring more of Western to the world, and the world to Western, so much of that starts with celebrating and recognizing this incredible diversity of perspectives and experiences that our students are bringing to our classrooms, campus and residences,” Cho said.
Abuzaid and Singh said their work with international students has helped open them up to fresh, new ideas – and encouraged discovery of the city they’ve called home for years.
“We are very tight, all of us, volunteers and international students. We make plans, we go out and explore. We wouldn’t think about it if the international students didn’t push us,” Abuzaid said.
In return, they’re exposing international students to the best parts of Western, recording an “Amazing Race” series that features key campus landmarks like the Cronyn Observatory and Boundary Layer Wind Tunnel Laboratory.
Western International has become a big part of campus life for Abuzaid, now entering a biochemistry graduate program, and Singh, pursuing a master’s of applied health sciences in advanced health care practice.
They both encourage Western students – whether they’ve come to university from Canada or another country – to participate in international programs throughout the year, such as Global Cafe, holiday celebrations or the peer guide program.
“We’ve seen so many friendships come out of that,” Singh said.
It’s all part of the Western experience, Cho said.
“The academic piece is really important – you want to go to class and do all the readings – but so are the relationships you build, the communities you develop while you’re here.”
