Help Little Fluffy Grads + Postdocs Fly The Nest
July 28, 2015 3:24 PM   Subscribe

What can a Professor do to help Grad Students (post-Masters) and Postdocs when they go to another country? What problems did you, as a grad/postdoc, have abroad? What helped? What resources exist to help such people?

My partner is prof. at U Chile and students who earn a masters or doctorate working for her often then get positions abroad. Particularly in the UK and USA. Unfortunately, these young men and women then seem to have quite a hard time of it, and we're wondering how to help.

Brainstorming we've come up with the following issues:
  1. For many, this is their first time away from home. It's quite normal for Chileans to live with parents until married, and about half the population is in Santiago, which is also where the students study (in contrast, in the UK, almost everyone moved to a different town - yay freedom - to go to university).
  2. This is also, usually, their first time living in a different culture. And speaking a different language (one they can read, but don't have much confidence with in conversation).
  3. They're moving from a culture that prioritises being friendly and "nice". That means that in addition to the academic competition any grad/postdoc faces, they are in a less-than-normally welcoming environment (I am not trying to insult anyone here - just trying to explain huge differences in Hofstede "individualism" ratings for the cultures).
  4. They don't have much money.
But we're not sure if those are complete; nor are we sure how to help. Paulina already encorurages independent work in her students (she's tries to be "hands off" but also "always available"). There's also an increasing age difference between us and the students, which shifts the relationship.
posted by andrewcooke to Education (5 answers total) 3 users marked this as a favorite
 
Best answer: I'm in a similar position where I send my students (from Mexico) to do a lab visit or experiments in another country usually the US or UK. I'm sure others will chime in with suggestions, but in my experience it really helps to establish a contact (especially with a latino) who is already there, even before the trip. In my experience, the latino student network is a powerful and useful thing to cultivate. In the days leading up to the trip, I switched from talking to my students in Spanish to English so that they get used to the language.
posted by dhruva at 4:02 PM on July 28, 2015 [1 favorite]


Best answer: Last year I made a new friend from Chile: she spent the year teaching in the US as part of an exchange program. She loved teaching here as the work conditions for teachers are better than in Chile but decided to move back because she missed her family so much. I'd like to second dhruva's suggestion of helping the students tap into a network of fellow ex-pats or peers from South America, etc. There's something nice about being able to commiserate sometimes as well as have one's home culture preserved and celebrated.

Could you arrange for the grad students/post-docs to have "friendship families" in the US, UK, etc.? These families or individuals could help them get set up, plan to meet-up once a month, invite them to holiday meals, etc. I bet there are a number of people associated with the exchange universities who might be interested. Ideally, colleagues help pitch in but there's something to be said for getting to know more people of different backgrounds.

I lived, worked, and studied in Germany for a number of years and was always grateful for people's hospitality, both big and small; in fact, I've stayed in touch with many of those friends, and try to return the favor or pay it forward now. If your partner is interested in this, you could MeMail me and I'll share my more exact location, on the off-chance an old student of hers is heading in my direction.
posted by smorgasbord at 10:32 PM on July 28, 2015 [1 favorite]


Best answer: I was a graduate student in the USA and am now a postdoc in the UK. Both of the labs I have been working in are very international (>50% people from a different country), and I have witnessed (and also experienced) a lot of difficult moves.

My first suggestion is that one of the hardest things can be language, and not being able to adequately express yourself in the language of the country you are moving to. You seem especially concerned about the USA and the UK, so I think the best thing you can do is make sure that your graduates and postdocs speak English as fluently as possible. Fluency in reading and writing doesn't really help when you're trying to communicate with a landlord or with your new colleagues at work. Maybe institute a lab policy where you only speak English? Just getting that fluency of expression can really help the sense of isolation when you move to a new country and can't understand what people are trying to say to you.

If you have a contact at the universities of those countries, it may help to connect them with that person, most importantly if they are also from Chile or another South American country. Academic cultures vary widely between different cultures, so having somebody who knows the new environment well and can help them navigate the new customs can be of great help.

Most universities have formal arrangements like a society for newcomers and visiting international scholars. That can be a great resource for helping them meet new folks from a similar background. Most universities also have a service where they can help with finding accommodation, so that may ease some of the money and culture worries. You have no idea how many times I've met new grad students or postdocs who have no idea that these services exist in the universities, and don't know how to go about contacting these great resources.

Another thing that can be particularly helpful is just letting them know that the culture is going to be different. Labs in the USA and UK are less likely to "look after" a new postdoc. They won't be shown around or chauffeured by a new colleague, they will be expected to do everything themselves and already know how the system works. Tempering their expectations of being taken care of or having things pre-arranged for them may help with the disappointment.
posted by the_wintry_mizzenmast at 12:54 AM on July 29, 2015 [1 favorite]


Response by poster: thanks folks. i guess we were hoping for some kind of miracle solution, but it sounds more like we need to try a bunch of different things (some of them are things we're already doing, but we could do them better).

(i don't know of anyone in germany; the politics of astronomy favour the usa, while personal connections from postdocs are in the uk).
posted by andrewcooke at 3:29 PM on July 29, 2015


Best answer: Here's a fantastic video on grad students and culture shock.

Perhaps knowing that "this too shall pass" might help.
posted by wenat at 6:54 PM on August 1, 2015 [1 favorite]


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