Alone, jet-lagged and often unfamiliar with the culture and language, international students at Texas A&M University-Kingsville (TAMUK) are given a one-day crash course orientation to familiarize themselves with campus. As this is often not enough time to help students feel comfortable living in a new place, the Office of International Studies & Programs created the Javelinas United Mentoring Program (JUMP).
JUMP is a new program on campus that partners first semester international students with students who have been attending TAMUK for at least one year; these students can be domestic or other international students. The program “is designed to help international students connect with American students, experience American traditions and customs, and develop friendships that will last,” according to the program’s webpage.
In 2018, the Office of International Studies was given the task of hosting the onsite orientation for incoming international students. This orientation lasts one day and is usually held one week prior to the first day of school. At this orientation, students are given all required information regarding university regulations.
However, as students often step off flights that were 10 hours long or more, they arrive to orientation disoriented and tired making it harder to understand the important information, especially since they are not familiar with the language and accents in America. The Office of International Studies noticed that the one-day orientation did not completely prepare international students.
“It (orientation) has some impact [and] helps some people, but not the best. So, what we did is that we expanded our new international orientation… into pre-arrival international orientation that targets students who are still in their home country who have been admitted then we contact them immediately… we want to make them feel like they are already a member of this community,” the Director of the Office of International Studies Peter Li said.
Along with pre-arrival orientation, the office also added post-arrival orientation. JUMP is part of the post-arrival orientation as its objective is to connect new international students with someone who is familiar with TAMUK culture and can help them adjust.
“With JUMP it is volunteer based; the mentors are volunteers. But, it will be a good way for both the mentors and mentees to benefit from each other. They will learn from their country and vice versa,” said Veronica DeLeon, an international student advisor and JUMP coordinator.
Li believes both parties benefit as they each get to learn about different languages, customs and become more aware of cultures outside of their own.
Mentors and mentees are chosen and partnered together based on their JUMP applications which asks for preferences such as what gender and major you would like your partner to be. Partners meet on a weekly basis for a minimum of one hour. At their meetings, students are encouraged to talk about TAMUK traditions and learn more about the community. Each week, DeLeon sends out topic suggestions to get the conversations between mentors and mentees started.
Students who are interested in becoming a mentor or mentee can apply to JUMP at any time. All that is required is to fill out the application, which can be found at https://www.tamuk.edu/oisss/JUMP.html.