A List
5/4/05

SON OR DAUGHTER RETURNING FROM STUDY ABROAD? GET READY FOR A SHOCK
SLU OFFERS ADVICE, TIPS ON EASING RE-ENTRY

CANTON -- Your son or daughter just finished studying in another country 
for a semester or a year, and you're so excited to have them return home! 
So, who's that stranger sitting across from you at the dinner table?
	According to St. Lawrence University Director of Off-Campus Programs 
Nancy Pierce, the shock of "re-entry" after foreign study can be rough on 
both college students and their parents. Pierce sends letters to parents 
who are about to welcome their students home, offering helpful information 
and advice on what can be a rocky time.
	If you find yourself not quite knowing how to handle the situation, it 
may help to know that you're not alone. Despite – or perhaps because of – 
daily news reports about international tensions and conflicts, American 
college students are more interested in studying abroad than ever before. The 
numbers of American students studying in another country during their college 
careers has increased some 126 percent since 1991, according to the Institute 
of International Education, and it is estimated that about 170,000 college 
students study abroad annually.
	At St. Lawrence, about 40 percent of students study abroad at some time 
during their undergraduate careers; the University operates or participates 
in programs in 14 countries.
	Pierce says, "Typically, parents are surprised by how much their children 
have grown and changed during their study abroad. Many notice increased 
independence and self-confidence. But, whereas for parents and family the 
homecoming brings feelings of relief and happiness, students themselves have 
very mixed feelings about their return to the U.S. and, later, to campus. 
On the one hand, they've missed family and friends, and have been looking 
forward to coming home to all that is familiar. On the other hand, they know 
they'll miss what they're leaving and they're worried about fitting in again 
at home and at school."
	Some people, Pierce says, call this "re-entry" or "reverse culture shock." 
Others explain it as a continuation of the cultural adjustment that started 
when the students were preparing to leave on the program and will continue 
until they integrate what they have experienced into the new person they have 
become. "It's important that parents – and students – understand that re-entry 
shock is normal and that it is often more powerful than the culture shock 
they experienced when they arrived in the foreign country in which they 
studied," she states.
	Why should coming home be so hard? Pierce says that in order to answer that 
question, parents and students both need understand what "home" means.
	"Besides being a place where you are born or raised and where people behave 
more or less as you do, home is the place where you are known, accepted and 
understood," Pierce says. "Home is a place where routines are predictable; a 
place where there are few surprises; a place where you can relax and be yourself. 
But students often find that they have to adjust to home, and they aren't 
expecting that. Some find things in the U.S. – and on campus – frustrating and 
unsettling."
	Adding to students' anxieties, according to Pierce, is the common fear that 
they will forget the sounds, sights, smells, food, habits and friendships from 
their semester or year abroad. "And life at home and on campus seems unexciting," 
she adds.
	In advising parents about how to deal with re-entry shock in their sons and 
daughters, Pierce says, "Keep in mind that the phases of reverse culture shock 
resemble those of culture shock:  euphoria and excitement initially, followed 
by a period of irritation, frustration and anxiety. They'll need a little extra 
loving care. Listen – really listen – to the stories your son or daughter has. 
Look at the photos – all the photos. Be patient. And enjoy the reunion!"
	For further assistance, Pierce recommends a handbook on the topic created by 
the School for International Training, on the Web at www.sit.edu/studyabroad/parents.

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