For many international students, the three weeks before the start of the new semester were something really special. With a mixture of anticipation and nervousness, roughly 250 international Bachelor’s and Master’s students, together with exchange students from partner universities, took part in the International Office’s Welcome Weeks from 20 September to 10 October. After one and a half years, it was finally possible for this key phase of starting studies to take place on campus again – naturally in compliance with a hygiene concept.
Approximately 130 international degree-seeking students, 80 exchange students and 40 buddies, who support the international students during the arrival phase, signed up for the diverse programme. Degree-seeking students complete their entire Bachelor’s or Master’s degree at HAW Hamburg, while exchange students stay for one or two semesters. This time, the group of degree-seeking students also included international students in higher semesters who hadn’t had the chance to take part in on-campus welcome weeks due to the pandemic. Some of them weren’t even able to come to Germany until this semester, even though they are already in their third semester of study. It was important that they also had the chance to make new friends and finally settle into their study location.
In order to offer as many participants as possible a place, the Incoming Students Team intentionally planned for three weeks. The programme included classic ‘meet and greet’ events, information events and faculty tours, as well as cultural highlights such as the Museum for Hamburg History and a visit to ‘Dialog im Dunkeln’ (Dialogue in the dark). Student groups were also invited to introduce themselves to the international students and motivate them to volunteer. The evening and weekend events such as bowling, climbing, exploring the Lüneburger Heide and the trip to the Wildpark Schwarze Berge were also highlights. To show the students a bit of the region around Hamburg, the WeBuddy team organised outings to Kiel and Lüneburg. Here are a few impressions from the students:
‘Meet and greet is a magical solution to all the classic problems that someone has when they are new in a city: making friends, getting to know the city and having lots of fun. Thanks very much to the tutors.’ – Azad, Iraq
‘The trip to Lüneburg, Dialog im Dunkeln and the trip to Schwarze Berge Wildpark was really cool. I enjoyed meeting with so many people from different ethnicities and backgrounds and exchanging experiences and ideas.’ – Laila, Dominican Republic
The International Office’s regular intercultural programmes also started up again during the Welcome Weeks: the Culture Cafe, the Language Tandem Programme and the Spanish Language Café, which is new, met with great interest from both international and German students. These programmes are led mostly by student assistants and, like the Welcome Weeks, are funded through the German Academic Exchange Service’s STIBET Programme.
Niloofar Honarmand, a student from Iran and a regular guest at our events, gave us especially extensive feedback, which we were very happy to hear. She wrote:
‘The Welcome Weeks helped me realise that whatever I’ve been going through since I moved to Germany is also what other international students have been experiencing. Through Culture Cafe events, I met students from different backgrounds. […] After numerous discussions with these people, I can now more easily deal with culture shock or living away from my family. […] The event of meeting organisations was a fruitful experience since it summarised hours’ worth of research in websites into one hour. It helped me learn about the various opportunities there are to get involved in voluntary work. […] It might sound cliché to list “meeting fellow students” as one of the greatest benefits of the Welcome Weeks. However, you don’t fully realise the immense impact of socialising on mental health unless you experience a few days alone as an international newcomer. International students need the support, especially in their first weeks, not only to get familiar with the new environment and campuses, but also to find people in similar situations to interact with. The Welcome Weeks’ programme also increases the sense of solidarity between students, enabling them to define themselves as a cooperative team, as well as strong independent individuals who will not refrain from supporting future students like themselves.’
We are very pleased about the successful welcome phase and wish all of our international students a good start in the lecture period!
Authors: Jasmin Scholz and Teresa Schaubs
More information about the intercultural activities of the International Office can be found here:
https://www.haw-hamburg.de/en/international/intercultural-programmes/
