Code of Conduct on Foreign Campuses

In the fall of every year, much like migrating birds making their summer sojourn across the oceans and continents, the annual ritual of students winging their way across the world, seeking educational opportunities in foreign lands takes place. Indian students throng the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Germany, France, Switzerland, Singapore and several others, seeking academic opportunities that are unavailable in their own countries.

The cross-cultural experience can be fraught with landmines, as the Kaavya Viswanathan episode in the US and episodes in Australia involving Indian students have illustrated. Students from India who wish to study in foreign countries need to understand and appreciate the differences in culture and academic systems, and attune themselves so that their educational and living experience is pleasant and enjoyable – both for themselves as well as for the host community in the foreign country. Broadly then, the areas where students should spend time and effort in understanding are academic, social and legal.

ACADEMIC

Plagiarism: The dictionary meaning of ‘plagiarism’ is `the use of another person’s intellectual property – words, ideas, plots – without acknowledging their ownership and attempting to pass them off as your own.’ This is one of the areas that is of prime concern to overseas educational systems and is often overlooked by Indian students. The Indian educational system does not place as much premium on originality as foreign ones. Students in India are expected to memorise vast quantities of text, and regurgitate the same in their exams. Analysis and application are notable by their absence. Thousands of students in India rely on cheap, quick-fix solutions offered by `exam guides’ which condense the curriculum into bytes that students can reproduce in the exams and score high marks. It is understandable, therefore, that sometimes students from India look for quick fixes after they go to foreign universities. Understandable, but not excusable.

Students should take the trouble to appreciate the educational system and values that are acceptable, and in fact, desirable in their host countries. The honour system prevalent in American educational systems, for instance, is something that international students wishing to study in the US, have to understand thoroughly.

Intellectual honesty is imperative in all advanced countries’ educational institutions. The unfortunate case of Kaavya Vishwanathan, the teenage author of ‘How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild, and Got a Life’ comes to mind. With allegations about plagiarism flying thick and fast soon after publication of the book, the unfortunate Indian-American at Harvard University became famous for ‘How Kaavya Viswanathan got rich, got caught, and got ruined’. A cautionary tale on the aftermath of plagiarism, if ever there was one!

Class participation: Indian classrooms are notoriously overcrowded and individual attention is rare, except in exclusive private schools. Participation and class discussion is, therefore, unusual and occasional in most Indian classrooms. In developed countries, on the other hand, class participation and discussion is vital and valued, and marks are awarded for it.

Students must learn not to be afraid to ask questions pertaining to the subject. Questions and a curious mind are the hallmarks of an intelligent person, so students shed their inhibitions and not be afraid to ask ‘stupid questions.’

Seeking knowledge: One of the differences between the Indian educational system and the system prevalent in developed countries is that the latter have enabling systems – they teach students to seek knowledge on their own. While the Indian education system spoon-feeds students, developed countries teach students to find their own intellectual and academic nourishment.

Extra-curricular activities: Foreign institutions believe in a well-rounded educational experience, and campuses abroad offer a wide variety of opportunities for personal enrichment and enhancement, so students from India should make the time to explore and benefit from the opportunities outside of the classroom.

Friendly and informal faculty: Faculty members and officials at most educational institutions tend to be relatively more informal and relaxed than in India – in fact, several of them ask students to address them by name. Students should not construe this as licence to be familiar with faculty, or as an indication of laxity. When it comes to academics and rules, the same faculty will be extremely strict and stringent.

SOCIAL ETIQUETTE

Interaction with peers and social gatherings: The cultural divide between India and other countries translates into occasional awkward and embarrassing moments for students. They should learn to respect the private space of their peers and classmates – for example, while it is acceptable in India to ask a new acquaintance about exam scores, scholarship amounts, how much one’s parents earn and so on, such questions are considered inappropriate in Western countries until one knows the other person well. It is also in poor taste to speak in your native tongue to a smaller audience when you are in a mixed group, all of whom don’t understand your language. Speaking and laughing loudly or poking fun at other people is incorrect.

Students should also be careful with language – it is politically incorrect to refer to African American or African people as `negroes’ or people with the epicanthic eye fold as `Chinks’ and so on.

Eating, dressing, drinking and gaming: Most Indians eat with their fingers – nothing wrong with that – but they have to adapt, and be adept at using cutlery when in foreign lands. Table etiquette is not usually part of our upbringing, and students sometimes overlook the importance of etiquette and consideration when eating with others. Making negative comments about the local food and eating habits is inappropriate.

Students should try and blend in with the rest of the community, including in appearance. Ethnic clothes and jewellery should be reserved for special occasions.

Students abroad, especially those who have gone for Bachelor-level programmes, should be wary of trying alcohol, since they can get addicted and their education can suffer as a consequence. Drugs are to be strictly avoided – whatever the age. Make it a policy to simply and firmly say `No.’ Instances of students getting addicted to online gaming, to the detriment of their education have surfaced. As with liquor, it is prudent not to start on diversions like online gaming at all.

Preconceived notions: Stereotypes abound in movies and TV shows. Don’t go by movie and TV stereotypes of different cultures – they are mostly poorly researched and should not be used to understand foreign cultures. Students should respect foreign cultures, however, different they may be from your own.

Relationships: Students should stay focused on their mission in going to a foreign country and should not get derailed by romantic involvements and infatuations. Another cultural difference is that young people in many foreign countries don’t marry the first person they get romantically attracted to – so even if they are `going steady,’ students should be realistic and try not let such entanglements ruin their focus.

LEGAL

Stay in legal status: Students are admitted to foreign countries on specified student visas, which come with conditions on how long they can reside in the host country. Students should be very careful with their legal status and make sure there is absolutely no violation of their status.

Work ONLY as permitted by your visa status: An overwhelming percentage of students going to foreign countries to study look to embellish their CVs and resumes with some amount of work experience in those countries. Students are permitted to work part-time on campus during term-time and full-time during vacation by some countries. Moreover, the work should be related to their field of study and should be properly authorised. Students should be careful to accept work only as per their status.

Apply for CPT/ OPT well in advance: Many foreign countries allow international students to undertake practical training immediately after graduation, and in some cases, during vacations too. Students should attend orientation programmes for foreign students and familiarise themselves with the procedures for employment, and apply in good time for authorisation.

High alert: Most foreign campuses are safe and are equipped to deal with eventualities, so students can be fairly relaxed. However, whenever students step outside their campuses, they should be on high alert and take all precautions to ensure their safety and well-being.

Your rights: It is natural for students in foreign lands to feel reticent about lodging complaints in cases of harassment, molestation, discrimination and other such offences. Students should take all necessary steps to report such offences and not ignore or downplay them. However, they should be able to differentiate between light-hearted, harmless fun and serious offences.

The Indian government has consular offices in most countries where students go for higher education. It is worth the effort to register with the foreign mission office and keep the phone numbers of the local Indian consular office handy. This website provides country-wise information: http://india.gov.in/overseas/indian_missions.php