International Student Success: Going Beyond the Classroom

Think back (or look forward) to your days as a college student — what do you remember most? Many of your initial thoughts probably involved activities outside the four walls of a classroom. But, we often restrict the definition of college “success” to GPA or grades, which neglects the interconnected experiences of the collegiate journey. The average college student spends about 15 hours per week in the classroom. What are they doing with the rest of their time? If it’s sitting inside alone instead of being actively engaged with the social and cultural surroundings, then the collegiate journey will not reach its potential. This is the predicament many international students face: they want to be involved but do not have anyone guiding them along the way; thus, feelings of loneliness and unmet expectations fester.

With that in mind, last fall, FISH members enjoyed a trip to the New York Stock Exchange that tied all these facets of success together into an exclusive, engaging experience.

Led by a 30-year veteran of the stock exchange, FISH members spent the day learning about finance, stock markets, and global business. The students certainly received the VIP treatment as the tour guide provided them with a background on the origination of the NYSE and an introduction to stock trading and investing operations — all from a beautiful perch overlooking the trading floor. In addition, the students were educated on how the progression of technology reduced a third of the workforce on the floor, yet tripled the volume of business being done.

After their crash course on the evolution of the stock exchange, the students were given an exclusive tour of the trading floor and got to see the brokers in action. While doing so, the students also enjoyed a live broadcast of the CNBC show “Squawk on the Street,” standing just a few feet away from the cameras and hosts.

The students also saw and took photos of the iconic opening bell, which was famously rung in September 2014 by Jack Ma and Alibaba during the largest IPO in history.

Lastly, the students took pictures with the “Charging Bull” to commemorate the day and all that they learned.

The future of student success will not be confined to a classroom.

This experience highlights the importance of getting international students more engaged outside of the classroom, which will translate to greater involvement in the classroom. We find that many schools are only focused on improving the classroom experience for international students, failing to realize the importance of everything going on outside the classroom. If a student is not happy with what’s going on outside of the classroom, then their effort and engagement in the classroom will suffer. Again, just think about your own experience in college.

As a member of our online community, FISH members receive the opportunity to thrive outside of the classroom. We cultivate friendships and host exclusive trips and events like NYSE throughout the year. It is our belief that shared, hands-on experiential learning is essential to international student development.

At FISH Institute, we embrace international student success as a series of interconnected experiences: the people you meet, the culture you absorb, the knowledge you attain, the work you do…just to name a few. Join our community and together we can drive international student success in America forward.

To view photos from our trip to the New York Stock Exchange, please view our Flickr. To learn more about FISH and how we can assist your international students, visit our website. You can also email us at info@fishinstitute.co. Together, we can make the international student experience better.