It’s All About the Balance at MacEwan University

Written By: Eyobe Melketsadik and Junchang He

Two international students, Eyobe Melketsadik and Junchang He, described their experience at Grant MacEwan University.

University success is all about striking the right balance between your schooling, personal life, and real world responsibilities. This is even truer for our international students who start from the beginning when they come to Canada. In order to gain the most from the study abroad program, it is vital that international students develop these three pillars that lead to university success. But how do you manage this when you no longer have any of your established, home-country connections? The answer for one student, Junchang He, was something he was able to find right here on the MacEwan University campus.

I first met Junchang while working with the Students’ Association of MacEwan University. As the International Student Partnership Program Coordinator, I helped international students connect with domestic students and eased their transition into life in Canada. Steven always stuck out as someone very eager to get involved and to try new things that were happening on campus.

“Because I was studying here, I thought I should be involved in the Canadian culture to be better able to learn and study or to live in Canada,” says Junchang.

From my own study abroad experience and through watching Junchang over the years at MacEwan University, something became evident. I saw the different paths students choose when living in a new country—the students who remained immersed in their own culture without breaking into their new environment always seemed to have a less fulfilling experience compared to the students putting more into their time abroad.
In watching Junchang, I could see the difference between his University experience and other international students who weren’t taking advantage of the same opportunities. He was getting involved on campus by volunteering for the Student Food Bank; taking part in on-campus activities like the Fall Music Festival; and breaking out of his comfort zone by making friends from different cultures. Because of this, he was more self-sufficient and better able to handle issues that are common to international students, such as culture shock and homesickness. It also gave him the opportunity to take full advantage of the experience of studying abroad and to improve his English; it was a difference that Junchang noticed in himself as well.

“It helped a lot. When I first came I wasn’t able to understand what people were speaking about but once I started to get involved on campus, I felt studying was easier and my English speaking and listening improved a great deal.”

The more Junchang put in, the more he was able to adapt and grow. It was reflected in his maturity and the real world experience he gained from his endeavors on campus. He pursued volunteering so much that he was recognized by the Students’ Association of MacEwan University for his continued commitment to helping on campus. He was given the Spirit of MacEwan Award, awarded to those who exemplify the school creed “…to leave things in his vineyard better than I found them.”

“It taught me a lot of the process on how to help the less fortunate people. Receiving the Spirit of MacEwan Award was really cool. I plan to continue to volunteer and see what I can do to help new international students like me.”

Deciding to study abroad and arriving in a new country is really the easiest step to it all. The real trick is finding a balance between your studies, social life and your real world responsibilities in order to gain the most from your time abroad. Getting involved on campus is one of the best ways to flesh out the experience and is the perfect example to the phrase “you get out of life what you put into it.”