International Students In America

Introduction

Who We Are?

• A huge group of students from Mainland China
• Age around 19 to 22 years old
• Alone while parents back in China
• Studying or Pursuing our BA degree
• In Universities or Liberal Arts Colleges
• Self-paid tuition or Receiving student financial 
• In the United States of America

We are 留学生 (Liu Xue Sheng).

Liu Xue Sheng is the Chinese vocabulary for us. It literally means a student studying in a foreign place. The word in general can describe any group of students who go abroad in any foreign country to study. China has liuxuesheng since late Qing Dynasty. But word's meaning has changed drascitally in the past decades due to the political situation at different times. Politically, we are the first generation who can decide whether to go abroad or not so freely than any other generation.

Why I Choose This Topic?
The reason I choose this topic is very simple. I myself am a part of this group at this time in the history of China. Though I can not represent my group fully, my thinking and observation can provide some first-hand insight of the topic. I want to make us visible. We are such a huge group of students in the US that you might find it hard to believe. However we are not the mainstream. Maybe not even belong to the minor group. We are "international students" in campus. I hope those people who do not know or do not realize the existence of us find my website informative.

Why America?
America is our dream. The land of freedom. As a generation of 90s, we grow up in a very western culture. Chinese market began to open under the leadership of Leng Xiaopin in 1990s. Huge mount of western culture came in, especially for all the big cities in China. When I was small, I watch Disney movies and comic books. Girls have Barbie dolls. We go to Mc Donalds and KFCs very often. And we celebrate holidays like Halloweens and Christmas and Valentine's Days. The school taught us American values and western culture were so popular that started to change family values. The idea of going to American some time in the future is so natural to think of and feels like we meant to be in the United States some time in my life. And New York is like the place I meant to be. This is our American dream.

A Brief History of Chinese Liuxuesheng 1

Generally Chinese Liuxuesheng can be into five main geranations.

The first group was between 1872 to 1900, which is the late Qing Dynasty period. They were  a group of very young kids that the government sent them out to America to study. They stayed with well-educated families in Springfield and went to Yale. They mainly studied practical skills like Engineering, Mining, Shipping, Public Transportation, and Mailing.  Later after they went back to China, they developed revolutions which ended Fedualism. 

(the photo before they went to America)

                           
                                         (the photo after they went)


The second group was between 1900 to 1927. Besides America, students also went to Japan and France to study. Instead of practical skills, they studied humanities, economics and management. Communist Party of China was also founded among during this time period. 

A Brief History of Chinese Liuxuesheng 2

The third generation was from 1927 to 1940. They mainly went to America and Europe to study high technology. Among them, there were Yang Zhengning, studied in the University of Chicago, who received the Nobel prize in physics; scientist Qian Xuesen, studied in California Institute of Technology, contributed on missile space programs for both China and America. Qian Sanqiang, who was a nuclear physicist, went to France. Qian Weichang, who also went to Caltech as physicist and Li Zhengdao, who received Nobel prize in physics, went to Columbia University. 

(photo shown :  Qian Xuesen, Qian Sanqiang, Qian Weichang, Li Zhengdao and Yang Zhengning)

The fourth generation was from 1949 to 1965. People's Republic of China was founded in 1949. This period of liuxuesheng mainly went to Soviet Union and East Europe to study. The group was mainly leaders of China who were important for the development of the new China. Leaders like our former president Jiang Zemin, Li Peng, etc.

                 

The fifth generation, which was after 1978 till today.
This is the mania of studying abroad. The whole number of liuxuesheng after 1978 is 10 times more than all the four generations before. It is the studying of all kinds, including PhDs, Masters Degrees, BA degrees and high schools.

Chinese Women in America's Women's College

There were also some excellent and famous Chinese women went to America's Women's College. Women's college education was only accessible for daughters in wealthy and powerful families. The daughters needed to be well-educated ladies both elegant and smart.

The Soong Sisters (Song Ailing, Song Qingling, Song Meiling) and their husbands were significant political figures of early 20th century of China. The Soong sisters all went to Wesleyan College and the youngest Song Meiling later went to Wellesley College.

      (Song Meiling and Jiang Jieshi)    

                                    (Song Qingling and Sun Zhongshan)

Bing Xin, who was a famous writer and poet in China, went to Wellesley College and studied literature. 

Reference :
http://www.wesleyancollege.edu/about/soongsisters.cfm
http://www.wesleyancollege.edu/academics/library/archives/chinaroom.cfm
http://www.wellesley.edu/msc/chiangkaishek
http://www.wellesley.edu/admission/why/womenleaders

Documentary of Chinese Students in America

Relationships

Before we came to America, most of us get to know the style of American love and romance through media. It is a kind of mutual equal and respect relationship in marriage we admire. But the fact is not what we thought. Duh. A Chinese female student actually summarized her and her friends' experience dating with American males and shared online. She said dance party, dorm party, clubbing are the common places to know different guys. So do school events, classes, libraries and gyms. However, the way of dealing relationships is very different.
There are one night stand, booty call, friends with benefits, date, in a relationship, in an open relationship. Some Chinese students like the American ways but some still prefer the Chinese way, which is in a relationship or you don't.

Relationships for us are just hard to maintain even though the couple is in the same school. Not to mention long distance relationships which most of us had this experience. The thing is, sometimes we do not know whether it is just lonely that we need somebody because studying and living in a foreign country or it is actually real love. And if it is real love, even when sharing similar values, there are practical issues will just break us down. For example, if we are in the same class year, the plan after college is important. What if the couple do not have a same plan? Most of us break up at this point because it involves commitment and sacrifice and college students are just not ready for that. Usually students change after college environment because they enter the real society and become real adults. The growth is crucial and if the couple is not on the same page together, the relationship becomes shaky. Say, if one needs to stay in America and one needs to go back to China. Also, if one goes to work after graduation and one continues to pursue a master degree. Remember, most of us want to end long distance relationship after college and try to be in a same city. And sometimes it is the whole visa situation causes the break up. The whole practical thing just make us not that confident in relationships. Of course there are couples who worked this our. But most just choose to love without commitment because things change quickly in America and commitment is just too heavy and cruel for those who want but can not get. A fun fact that I remember that statistically, East coast sides have more single female and California has more single male working in engineering and computer science industry. Relationships also suffer even if we go back to China.

We need love. Sometimes we do feel lonely and need someone to care. We want stable and mature relationships. But this is just hard. Thus we learn to love and cherish ourselves more. 

Identity

What makes us Chinese? What is American exactly?

Identity was not an issue at all before we came to US. In fact, we know nothing about identity and identity crisis. Even though we have 56 shaoshuminzu in China, most of us belonged to Han. We are taught that no matter what minzu we come from, we are Chinese. And foreigners are Lao Wai. literally meaning people from outside. But identity conflict became very obvious right start from the first year studying in US. All of a sudden, we are foreigners, and international students. I did not know the deep meaning of international students until my junior year that I somehow feel like we are actually not even belong to the minor group but "International Student". Our school has a huge diversity and we have students from 75 countries. Moreover, what we find shocking is that, there are actually different groups people even we are all Chinese. There are ABCs, American born Chinese. There are adopted Chinese girls raised by American families. There are Chinese from Malaysia. They all call themselves Chinese so what is the difference between us and them? The funny thing is, as a generation of 90s, we grew up with huge amount of western cultures. Thank you for the globalization and capitalism. If culture experience does not split us apart, it is actually the politics and law. We are not American citizens and we share different political views. Some of us become even more Chinese in a foreign country when they realized the Chinese traditions are the only thing that can make them feel like Chinese. But the ABCs and adopted girls faced a tougher situation on identity crisis. My personal suggestion for them is, when in America, say you are an American and when you are in China, say you are a Chinese.