What ISAB Means to Me

Who you are, where you come from and how you identify, can be one or many aspects that make up your identity. We are constantly changing based on our environments and reactions to it. With that said, being surrounded by a new and constantly changing and engaging environment, like you are when you are studying or living in a foreign country provides an unparalleled space for growth. Nearing the end of my time studying abroad in Bologna, Italy, I realized I wasn’t ready to be stagnant. I wasn’t willing to go back to what was normal or comfortable or familiar. Around that same time the ISAB application came out and I decided to go for it, even though I thought they would be looking for more international students. I realized that going abroad was great and fun but if I couldn’t apply that to my everyday life then it would just be a chuck of time, a singular experience, separated from my regular life. Instead, I wanted it to shape the way that I’ve chosen to live my life, and ISAB has helped make that possible. Through ISAB I have been able to get to know the incredible board members from all sorts of different places I’ve never been to. Hearing about their cultures and their different ways of thinking has challenged me to question my own.

Most importantly, it provides an opportunity to provide a better experience for international students who are coming to UCSB. This is really important to me for a few main reasons. The countries that have hosted me and pushed me to learn were indispensable in my personal growth and also left me with impressions of what people from those countries are like. I hope UCSB gives international students a positive perspective of what it means to live in California, and being on the board allows and encourages me to conduct research and find out the ways that is and isn’t true.

According to Sage Journals, “discrimination, homesickness, fear, guilt, perceived hatred, and stress due to change (cultural shock)” are all key contributing factors and stresses on international students. We aim to diminish the effects these contributing factors have on international students at UCSB. Our research also allows us to better address issues on this campus. Most importantly ISAB is an avenue for change, our close relation and categorization within OISS helps us contact faculty and staff, speak at meetings and advocate change in Associated Students. Through research, cross-cultural communication and understanding ISAB allows for domestic and international students to play a part in making UCSB students better “global gauchos” and provide invaluable opportunities to all who are open to them!

Works Cited 

Sandhu, D. S., & Asrabadi, B. R. (1994). Development of an Acculturative Stress Scale for                International Students: Preliminary Findings. Psychological Reports, 75(1), 435–448.https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1994.75.1.435