After a decade of studying, working, and contributing to US higher education, Tianyu Shen has returned to China – a move that mirrors what many Chinese students who studied in America have experienced. As so many countries are revising their policies about who may come and how long they may stay, this recounting of Tianyu’s experience is particularly poignant.
Many of you know Tianyu, the affable, talented Data Analyst who did some amazing work during his time at Intead as a STEM OPT student. Like so many international students, Tianyu’s initial inclination to study abroad was rooted in adventure. His initial thought more than a decade ago: Let’s go to New Zealand! And, like so many others from China, his parents redirected him to the US.
So that was 2015, and at the time, IIE was reporting that US universities were experiencing the highest growth rate in 35 years, with China as the key driver. At the time, the influx of Chinese students in particular helped many US universities launch new academic degree programs that benefited American students as well as international cohorts. Now, in hindsight, analysts point to how the revenue generated by the growth in international students from 2010-2020 gave many institutions the capacity to invest in infrastructure and academic advances that created huge opportunities for the entire campus.
Now, there’s a very different narrative being played out in the US and globally. We wonder where Tianyu’s parents would advise him to go for study abroad if he were starting his journey today.
We think you’ll enjoy his observations about Hollywood movies, and comparisons of Boston, MA to Lincoln, NE.
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Because Tianyu’s experience mirrors that of so many students sitting in US classrooms and working OPT jobs right now, we asked him to take you through his student journey. What is it really like to come to the US still needing to learn English while seeking an adventure? When does the mindset turn toward career? And what did the OPT experience really deliver?
Today, Tianyu offers his perspective on the formative time he spent learning English in Boston and as an international undergrad studying in Nebraska, where he says he spent some of the happiest years of his life. An overview of his more career-focused years as a grad student will come in our next post. Be sure to check back for that. Read on now for his unvarnished take as a recent international student. And please, share with those who are shaping the American higher ed system today…
