{"panels":[{"content":{"params":{"text":"

A story about the hardships faced by an international student, as they didn't know how to find housing or work in Canada.<\/p>\n"},"library":"H5P.AdvancedText 1.1","metadata":{"contentType":"Text","license":"U","title":"Untitled Text"},"subContentId":"dc96f45b-453a-4393-86e2-2fed83d21c9e"},"title":"Getting Around by Anonymous"},{"content":{"params":{"text":"

Here are some of the wicked issues I had throughout my first year.<\/p>\n\n

As an international student, I had a lot of challenges at the start of my first semester. I had no idea about Frosh Week, and I had never met a student from my own country who had attended my university before me. As a result, I was unfamiliar with the campus environment and local culture around my university. So, the first issue I had was with finding a place to live because I chose off-campus housing throughout my admissions process. I had no idea how to find a place to rent in Canada or near my institution, and there was no smartphone, laptop, or airbnb available at the time. The Google search engine was not very knowledgeable. Summer students who had previously worked in large cities or in their home cities returned to school and inhabited their offcampus lodging before me. So it was very hard for me to find a new place alone. For ten days, I had to sleep on the couch in the international lounge during the night until I could find a place.<\/p>\n\n

So when other international students came into the international lounge in the morning and asked why I was there, I felt pretty ashamed. So the next morning, I got up early, finished my shower at 5 a.m., and got ready before the other students arrived. I had to do that every day until I found the location. In the meantime, university classes had begun, I had no good place to stay or eat during this period, and the international advisor was not very helpful in this circumstance.<\/p>\n\n

Finally, I got a room with other students, which is about a 20-minute walk away. When I encountered an issue as an international student, I was not afraid and asked inquiries of local students, campus police, janitors, and passers-by, as well as reading all of the notice boards. I did not just freeze there to seek my accomodation.<\/p>\n\n

However, my accomodation was not as excellent as I had hoped. Two of my housemates were not interested in studying, and I was living in the basement with them.<\/p>\n\n

They consumed a variety of drugs and partied with their friends which was quite disturbing. Their dogs were barking all day and night throughout the weekend. As a result, my roommates and I received complaints from our neighbors. Other roommates did not seem to care because they lived upstairs. I informed my landlord of the situation. He only gave them a warning and nothing else. It went on and on, obstructing my studies in the beginning. Later, I realized that those housemates didn't feed the dogs while they were visiting with their girlfriends on the weekend. This happens every weekend. <\/p>\n\n

Eventually, I purchased dog food and provided it to them when there was none left. Because I felt animals should have the same rights as people. But it helps to reduce the noise, it\u2019s good bonding with them and introduces a new culture. I spent more time in the library.<\/p>\n\n

Similarly, I faced problems finding student jobs during my academic year. As a fresher, I was not quite familiar with resumes or cover letters. Besides, we have a restricted amount of time to work during the semester due to immigration laws. It was really hard to find on campus jobs. I still remember I picked a book called Knock 'em Dead Resumes book from the library and studied by myself and with help of my English friend, I was able to produce a resume and cover letter to apply for the jobs. At that time I didn't know that the career service team usually helped with these kinds of issues. But anyway I was able to get a couple of jobs with good preparation. <\/p>\n\n

Finally, on the academic side, I was struggling with a Course called Mathematical physics, which I found quite difficult for me. I didn't have that much higher physics background in my high school. So, I almost failed in the midterm therefore, I reached to prof and explained my situation and he lent me a couple of books. I worked hard in class and relied on him for assistance when I got stuck and later that course was successful for me.<\/p>\n"},"library":"H5P.AdvancedText 1.1","metadata":{"contentType":"Text","license":"U","title":"Untitled Text"},"subContentId":"61542717-14d6-4a6e-9295-9f5f443837c3"},"title":"The Wicked Problem"},{"content":{"params":{"text":"

Yes, I was able to overcome it in some sort of way using the aforementioned approaches. If someone faced a similar situation, please have a look at my wicked problem. <\/p>\n"},"library":"H5P.AdvancedText 1.1","metadata":{"contentType":"Text","license":"U","title":"Untitled Text"},"subContentId":"69b9ee55-9a0b-4d24-be06-f01182c97b5f"},"title":"Finding a Solution"},{"content":{"params":{"text":"

Necessity is the mother of invention.<\/p>\n"},"library":"H5P.AdvancedText 1.1","metadata":{"contentType":"Text","license":"U","title":"Untitled Text"},"subContentId":"2cd2d826-df45-45a9-903c-5cecfe90d16a"},"title":"Final Thoughts"},{"content":{"params":{"text":"

Getting Around<\/em>. (2021, October 7). Liberated Learners. <\/span>https:\/\/wicked.liberatedlearner.ca\/learner\/getting-around\/<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n"},"library":"H5P.AdvancedText 1.1","subContentId":"90fa8018-3108-4806-a0a5-645070537e0f","metadata":{"contentType":"Text","license":"U","title":"Untitled Text"}},"title":"APA Reference"}],"hTag":"h2"}

Getting Around

Liam Peart