At the university

For international students gaining admit to the University of Southern California, the passport verification (PPV) is the first official activity on campus. We roamed about the campus holding a map, trying to find the venue for the PPV. It was time to think how we would get to classes held at various locations across the campus on time. We had a brief presentation about the various services available for international students as a prelude to the PPV. Finally, I was getting my student ID card.

The prestigious Viterbi school of Engineering at USC held an orientation for the graduate students on 7th of January. The programme was cheerfully presented by a lady named Caroline who worked for the Graduate and Professional Programs office at the university. She had a graceful liveliness about her. The conversations with the faculty followed by the students is what I enjoyed the most. They provided some interesting insight into life at the University. It was amusing how they made an informative session quite enjoyable as well.

The palatable lunch arranged for us consisted of a lot of greens and fruits. As an ice breaker, we played a game in which we were all given papers with certain attributes written on them, like ‘does not have a Facebook profile’, ‘has a pet’, ‘rode a horse’, ‘sent a hand-written letter in the last year’ etc, to name a few. We had to talk to new people and get their signature in the appropriate box. I was thus introduced to people of different nationalities. The winner was chosen through a lucky draw from those who got a signature in all the boxes.

We had another session in a classroom, in the afternoon. It was more on the serious side, where we touched upon what it meant to be part of the university now, the cultural differences between the Americans and others and a few other aspects. We were divided into groups based on similar thinking traits and then mused on how different personalities dealt with different problems. I was glad I earned some chocolates for answering questions in the class!

On the 8th of January, we attended a bigger orientation, which encompassed all the new graduate students who enrolled this term. We were now familiar with the general guidelines with respect to the university libraries, the health center, transportation and our biggest concern here, which is safety! The Department of Public Safety (DPS) has taken measures to curtail crime and make students’ life safe. The tram service and campus cruiser provided by the university would be very helpful for students who have classes extending after dusk.

The campus tour after the event gave us a good idea about what is situated where in the campus. Also, a 15$ coupon for lunch is what delighted us the most. We made sure we utilised it to the maximum, choosing our menu such that hardly a few cents would be wasted. I took another campus tour along with my friends after lunch. We ventured towards the sports complex. I watched a live tennis match for the first time! We also took a peek into the bookstore, which housed paraphernalia associated with the university and some books and notes for our courses.

Late in the evening on 9th, I and a roommate went to an unofficial orientation by seniors who constitute the Association of Indian Students. We were again exposed to safety concerns and received some advice about not falling for scams. International students were easy prey for illicit activities. We used the campus cruiser, which translates to calling a cab to get home after dark, free of cost! We were rather excited after using this efficient facility.

There are more activities lined up for new students as part of the ‘welcome week’ starting tomorrow and we are keenly looking ahead to it!