Many new international students often wonder what culture shock they are likely to run into when they first immerse themselves in the US. While the experience varies from person to person and from where each person comes from, we have collected some student perspectives below.

Q: How much of modern American culture were you familiar with before arriving to the US

“All throughout my life, I was an avid consumer of American media. Movies, music, TV, anything you can think of”

Q: Can you list some of the things that shocked you the most?

“Well for one, the US has a very rich history that sits on the foundation of its culture today. At the beginning of my time in the US, I’ve offended many people with different things I said because I had no idea what was considered ‘offensive’. However, I learned with time”

“One thing that was definitely shocking is how different the dating scene was here. Things move much faster than in China”

“People aren’t as up front about what they’re thinking about here.”

“Americans talk about mental health way more than I expected”