Saudi students in US defy stereotypes

Saudi students studying in the United States are defying stereotypes by adjusting quickly to university and community life.
Their presence on American campuses has grown significantly over the past seven years, amounting to 4.5 percent of international students in the country, according to The Arab American News publication.
Saudis rank fifth in the number of international students at universities throughout Michigan. They make up 5 percent of the state’s foreign student body.
They are the beneficiaries of the Saudi Higher Education Ministry’s scholarship program set up in 2006.
Amr Alamri, former president of the Saudi Students Association (SSA) at Wayne State University (WSU), says that one of the goals of the program is to educate Saudis to staff the Kingdom’s 27 universities.
Alamri, who is currently a Ph.D. candidate in industrial engineering at WSU, adds that students who meet the program’s criteria get a full scholarship to a university of their choosing and a monthly allowance for accommodation and transportation.
The Saudi government funds official Saudi associations at universities, in collaboration with the host universities. Their purpose is to help accommodate new Saudi students, assist them with living arrangements and help them assimilate into American college life.
“We pick up new students from the airport, help them find a place to stay, get a cell phone and a credit card,” Alamri said. “They learn the language and the system and in a few months, they help newer students. It’s like a cycle.”
Alamri said Saudi students in Metro Detroit are lucky to live close to a large Arab American community.
“Most students live on campus, but they frequent mosques and restaurants in Dearborn,” he says. “We are lucky to be here. Students in places such as Tennessee are struggling to find a mosque, or somebody to speak Arabic with.”
Alamri, who started attending Wayne State in 2007, adds that Saudis interact and get along with the Arab American community. The only negative aspect is that they might not learn English as quickly as students in other parts of the country because they can rely on communicating with Arabic speakers in their daily lives.
He said Saudis in Dearborn do not stand out because they are diverse-looking and blend in with the local community.
“We have no official representation in the community, other than our association at the university,” Alamri said. “Also, we are all students, so you will not see Saudi doctors and lawyers in Dearborn, as is the case with other Arabs.”
Ibrahem Almarhaby has been studying Near Eastern languages at Wayne State for two semesters. He said that he has not faced discrimination from anybody in the US and the SSA has helped him assimilate into American culture.
He added that there isn’t any tension, based on sect or nationality, between Saudi students and the local Arab American community. “There’s a misconception that certain people do not like each other,” he said.
Almarhaby said he preferred Wayne State because it was an “excellent” internationally recognized school.
“The biggest challenge is the language, but Michigan is a great place for foreign students, especially Arab students,” he said. “I live in Dearborn Heights. The Arab community here is great. Arab Americans are always encouraging and helping us. I am honored to be part of this community.”
Alamri echoed Almarhaby’s sentiment, referring to the community as “tolerant and diverse.”
“We would love to be more involved with the Arab American community, but we are restricted by our student visas and lack of time and resources,” Alamri said. “Most of our activities are limited to the campus.”
Saudi student associations celebrate three occasions on American campuses: Eid Al-Fitr, Eid Al-Adha and Saudi National Day.
The presidents of the associations meet twice a year in Washington, D.C., to address problems and issues facing Saudi students. The Saudi government also funds a yearly career fair that links Saudi students in the US with employers in Saudi Arabia, including schools and US companies.
Alamri said students attend lectures that introduce them to American culture before they leave Saudi Arabia for the US. He added that Saudi Arabia has changed over the past decade, becoming more culturally open.
However, homesickness continues to ail some students. Alamri said that when he was the president of the SSA at Wayne State, a student insisted on meeting him personally. The student had been in Michigan for one day only, but had asked to go back home.
“I took him for a drive and showed him some of the area’s parks and greenery and nice neighborhoods. He agreed to stay and is now doing graduate studies and helping newer students,” Alamri said.
Walid Alomar, the president of the SSA at the University of Michigan, said that culture shock is no longer a major problem for Saudi students, who are already familiar with American customs and way of life from movies and the Internet.
“When students come here, they know what to expect,” he said.