Wenzhou students in Kean

By Brittany Fuentes | Published November 8, 2023

Kean Wenzhou students studying abroad at the Union campus are offered new experiences that can help prepare them for their futures.

With 125 new Wenzhou students on campus this semester, the decision to study in the Union campus has significantly increased with hopes that it can open up opportunities for them in the future.

Some students have goals of studying in the United States and going to graduate school or getting a job in the United States after graduation. They’re looking for a different experience and want to meet other people because it can make them more employable. It can also help them get to graduate school and reach their goals.

Jessica Goldsmith Barzilay, executive director for the Center for International Studies at Kean, works with partners at Wenzhou Kean University (WKU) in a joint process with the Center for International Studies in Wenzhou to make this achievable for the students.

“Our exchange program is really for an exchange of ideas and an exchange of culture. We believe strongly that the world changes when we learn from each other and learn how we can work together,” Barzilay said.

Barzilay is interested in making sure international students are able to participate in the events that occur on campus. They have set up a student worker from Wenzhou and a student from Union with the job of initiating engagement between international students, getting them involved in social events all semester long.

They are planning events for the international students such as a trip to the United Nations.The University President hosted Wenzhou students for a celebration of the Autumn moon festival with a barbecue on Tuesday, Oct. 10.

The students from Wenzhou chose English names for themselves for convenience purposes as it can be difficult for others to pronounce their names. They chose their names in different ways, some chose their names from movie characters they like while others found names that sounded similar to their own and stuck with them.

Jingyu Wu, whose English name is Brandon, a junior public relations major who chose to study at Kean because it’s an affordable school and provides him with a brand new experience. He can learn to live independently and learn to do things he had never tried before in China.

It also provides the students with a diverse student body, which they do not get to witness or experience in the Wenzhou campus that is inhabited by a majority of Chinese students. 

It’s a different lifestyle than the one they come from and it’s one they need to adapt to. It was a strange experience for them when they first arrived, but as the semester progresses they are adapting and coming out of their comfort zone.

“I made this decision easily, I just thought I should at least use one semester to come to Kean USA to seewhat it’s like,” said Kaixin Zhu, a junior public relations major, whose English name is Cory.

This program allows students to go out into the world and create change because they are able to make friendships with different people and they can make different countries work together. 

In WKU, there are diverse professors but all the students are Chinese, so students use English in class. Outside of class, they only speak Chinese among their classmates. 

As they study on the Union campus, they are more inclined to practice their English to be able to communicate with other students on campus and to get around.

“I prefer the classes here because they are active and I can meet many foreign students and make foreign friends. ” said Xiayu Chu, a junior public relations major whose English name is Cheyenne. “I think it’s interesting that it’s the first time I go abroad by myself.”

The differences between two countries are always being emphasized, but with this program there can begin to be a celebration between the countries. Students can learn the similarities that are present between them and they can celebrate the differences, giving them a wider perspective.

“In the future when we are doing a master’s degree, we will be familiar with this and it will be easier for us to adapt to the environment and the lifestyle. ” said Wu. “We can learn a lot of skills and I think it’s more important that we start here.”

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