Many universities have understood the likelihood of such student adjustment problems and have set up psychological counseling centers for international and native students alike. While some of the anxieties faced by international students are legitimate, they should at all costs avoid being consumed by their fears. To take a particular example, international students have been subjected to greater scrutiny in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks on the World Trade Center. While government agencies claim that they are only performing “random” security tests at airports and national borders, there are grounds to believe that foreigners are viewed with undue suspicion. International students from European countries might be relatively free, riding the advantage of their white skin (Poyrazli & Grahame, 2007, p.29). But the situation for most others is not so pleasant. The best approach to this problem would be to take it in one’s stride. After all, the security checks are done to protect people from terrorist acts. The international student, by way of cooperating with law enforcement officers and security personnel, can help prevent acts of terror. The student should also keep in mind that another terror attack on U.S. or U.K. soil will only escalate the security measures, making his/her life more restricted eventually. Hence, the issue of security checks should be taken in its proper spirit and should not be equated with racism or Xenophobia, which will only add to mental distress and unwanted psychological anxiety. There are other ways in which international students can address their social and cultural adjustment problems. For example,
“a student mentoring or peer network program is a possible means to address students’ need for social support. This program could be offered in two different but complementary ways. Before arrival, students could be matched with another international student, preferably from their own country or a similar culture. Thus, the enrolled student could share information about housing, transportation, registration, campus life and so on with the incoming student. After arrival, a peer program that matches a native student with an international student for a few hours every other week would help facilitate familiarity with the new culture. This would promote greater psychosocial and academic achievement among international students and also increase the retention rate of these students for the institution”. (Poyrazli & Grahame, 2007, p.30)
A less well known difficulty faced by an international student’s life is making ends meet through the course of their stay in the foreign country. Many international students take up part-time jobs in local restaurants and supermarkets to provide for their tuition, rent, food and other expenses. Even the law in the U.S., U.K., and Australia allows them the right to seek such employment as long as their student visas remain valid. While their earnings will not meet all of these expenses, they will certainly supplement the money sent by their parents/guardians or other patrons. It can be extremely taxing for an undergraduate student to do full justice to their course curriculum while also keeping a 4 hour job in the evenings. There are no hard and fast solutions to deal with the problem of keeping afloat. While the students’ primary priority should be to attain academic excellence, the idea of striving to be independent is also an admirable practice. Hence, a careful balance should be struck, where the student will ensure that academic performance does not get undermined by their evening jobs. The part time jobs in restaurants and supermarkets are only the mainstream opportunities for international students. (Hsieh, 2007, p.391)
Students can explore other opportunities for work such as Teacher Assistant programs (which are usually offered to Ph.D. students), proof reading jobs, taking tuitions for high school students, etc, which will be physically less exhausting, while also helping them earn money. The University can also chip in and help international students get temporary housing facilities on their arrival in campus. For example, “On-campus housing services could provide temporary housing for students until they find a place to live. Another solution is for the international students’ office to develop a Host Family Program composed of families in the community or the staff/ faculty. Families could be asked to host one international student for a few days during the year.” (Koehne, 2005, p.105)