Preparing for life in America

We often hear about academic aspects of the American educational system - the great variety of courses that students can take or the friendly relations between professors and students. However, we know very little about the lifestyles of the students there.

Students who study in America are engaged in certain activities or have certain habits that are different from students in other countries, especially an Asian country like Thailand. If you plan to study in America or to travel there for the summer, knowing these norms in advance is useful.

First, if you totally hate them, you still have time to change your mind and study elsewhere. Second, if you are confident you can handle them, you have time to prepare yourself against culture shock. Here's a list of all the "in" things American students do nowadays:

Facebook

Facebook.com is a networking website that helps people keep up with their friends. Facebook has 30 million registered users so far and is the seventh most visited website in the US. Since this network originally allowed only American students to register, its members are still mostly based in the US. Nevertheless, Facebook is now open to everyone in the world.

So, what's so special about this site? It has become so popular because people get to see their friends' photographs, their community-service projects and the like, or can locate and message friends they haven't seen in a while. I am sure many also use it to find dates.

AIM

In Thailand, teenagers chat via MSN or QQ, but in America students use AIM, an instant messaging service developed by AOL, a leading web service company in America. The negative side of AIM is that quite a number of students use it during lectures, which explains why some professors are thinking of banning laptops in classrooms altogether.

Family Guy or the Simpsons

These animated TV series describe the average American family life in a hysterically funny manner, in fact, they are so funny, and sometimes obnoxiously so, that they've become a nation-wide favourite.

Plus 15

Most colleges in the US require first-year students to sign up for a meal plan. The "Plus 15" plan entitles you to 15 meals a week, "Plus 10" offers 10 meals a week, etc. Students, who have to pay the total cost of the meal plan at the beginning of the term, can dine at anytime during the term. These plans were developed to stop students from skipping meals because they've run out of money. However, the buffets offering cheese burgers, pizza, roast chicken, steaks and French fries also add on those kilos, so be careful when you sign up for the Plus 15!

General Tsao Chicken

No one knows who General Tsao was and which war he fought in, but he is probably the most famous Chinese military general known in America. You can see his name in literally every Chinese restaurant menu across the country. Basic General Tsao Chicken comprises of fried chicken, onion and bell peppers covered with brown sauce. Surprisingly, General Tsao Chicken tastes almost the same in every Chinese restaurant, at least it does to me.

Ice cream in the snow

We eat ice cream to cool down in Bangkok, but why would anyone want to have this cold dessert in the freezing weather? The reason is simple - it's the best thing every town has to offer. College students normally can't stand the Plus 15 meals for too long, so they turn to Ben & Jerry's ice cream or the amazingly yummy Arches' frozen yoghurt which can be found in almost every college town in America.

Gym

When they are registering for courses, students also have to pay the facilities fee, which enables them to use the college gym, swimming pool, tennis court, baseball field and other such facilities during the term. Equipment and tools in these gyms are generally of high quality and properly maintained. In my college, the University of Virginia, most of the gym facilitators are friendly students.

Football and basketball

My university football team may not be one of the top-ten in America, but I have this undying urge to join the other sixty thousand students, parents, alumni and fans to cheer them along during the American football season. Americans are crazy about football and basketball. In early spring, when the weather is still rather cold, we march to the stadium and scream our lungs out for our team. (Note: American football is referred to as "football" which is different from "soccer " - the game those Man U guys play.)

Fraternity and Sorority

These are students' societies established for different purposes depending on their members. Some are business fraternities, while some are community services sororities, etc. Fraternities are generally for male members and sororities for females. However, many societies have gone co-ed nowadays. Though not all colleges in America have fraternities and sororities, these societies form an important feature of the American college system called the Greek Life. The Greek connection comes from their names, which are usually made up of Greek letters like Zeta Theta Alpha (ZTA). However, these Greek Life groups are often associated with drinking and partying.

Essays, essays and more essays

Most colleges in America have a broad range of academic requirements, which normally consist of sciences, social sciences, language, historical studies, and humanities. This means that even though you despise writing so much that you've opted for a Maths major, you will still have to write essays for your other classes, such as European art history or Islamic philosophy. In fact, you may even have to write 20-page reports for physics or chemistry. So, practice your essay writing, even if it is in a form of blogging.

By Veerapat Keeratiwutthikul

Economics and Finance (McIntire School of Commerce)

Rising 3rd year, University of Virginia