More than 40 new international students have joined CHC this semester. They were among the first to arrive, coming in on August 23, so they could attend special international student orientation prior to joining new and transfer domestic students that weekend.
Twenty-six exchange students from the College’s partner universities in Portugal, Belgium, South Korea, Spain, Denmark and the Czech Republic also arrived at the end of August. In addition to these exchange students, the College welcomed a number of new international undergraduate first-year and transfer students as well as new graduate students and students enrolled in the School of Continuing and Professional Studies, representing countries such as Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, France, Spain, Serbia, Venezuela, Brazil, Sweden, Poland, Bolivia, South Korea and the United Kingdom.
During the two-day international student orientation, students attended specialized information sessions, met their international colleagues from around the world and got acquainted with Chestnut Hill College, Philadelphia and the United States. Resident students were welcomed Wednesday night with a Philadelphia-themed dinner consisting of hoagies, soft pretzels and water ice. The following days included ice breakers, a campus tour, a photo scavenger hunt and a pizza party.
Then, all students attended a packed orientation weekend organized by the Office of Student Life, a reminder that these new international students are an active and present part of the Chestnut Hill College community. As CHC continues to increase its international student population and the campus global community grows, all CHC students can look for opportunities to participate in the globalization of our campus by attending international events on campus, joining student clubs dedicated to enhancing the CHC global community, and pursuing opportunities to study abroad through one of CHC’s partner universities.
Contact Trachanda Garcia, director of global education, at garciat@chc.edu or 215-242-7989, or Michael Griego, global education counselor, at griegom@chc.edu or 215-248-7027, for information about the global happenings at CHC.
- Story and photos by Michael Griego
