Inspirational articles for students studying in the United States

Studying abroad is the dream of many students. Many people think that going abroad can broaden their horizons and learn more. Indeed, there are many benefits to studying abroad, but when we go out, we must be stronger and more independent when we are not accompanied by our family. It is not easy to succeed in an unfamiliar place. So we have to work harder. Below I have compiled an inspirational article for you about international students studying abroad. You are welcome to read it.

In the early 1990s, I arrived in the United States to study for a master’s degree in education at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania.

At first, I didn’t have a scholarship to study, so I had to work multiple jobs to make ends meet. I worked in the school restaurant, snack bar, Beijing Building Chinese Restaurant, Rongting Chinese Restaurant, school library, security department, etc. I work part-time and teach Chinese to American students. At most, I work five jobs a day.

In the first year after arriving in the United States, I felt that everything seemed dark, helpless, miserable, and painful... Sometimes I stood on campus and looked at the Mercedes vehicles on the highway. Tears welled up in my eyes, I missed home, wanted to go home...

Difficult working life

In the United States, the average foreign student can only work 20 times a week As an hourly worker, I work more than 40 hours, which is more than full-time work. If you work more than 40 hours, you will be paid double wages. I was not aware of this rule, so my boss talked to me and asked me to reduce my hours.

Working in the school cafeteria, the salary is four dollars per hour, mainly washing dishes. In Shanghai, I could only open my mouth for food and stretch my hands for clothes. I couldn't do any housework. At first, I thought it was a painful thing, but then I gradually got used to it. Destiny really changes people.

The management of the restaurant is very strict. You punch in when you go to work and punch in again after get off work. You also punch in when you eat, and the meal time is deducted. But you can eat there for free.

Bucknell University is an aristocratic school. The vast majority of students come from upper-class families, are very wealthy, and spend money like water. The school cafeteria is very wasteful. There are many delicacies that cannot be eaten that day, and they are all thrown away in the evening. All this makes me, a poor student, really feel sorry for me.

Compared to working in a Chinese restaurant, I am much more tiring. I have to do everything and can’t stop for a moment. The boss is hanging in front of your eyes. At noon, the boss provided lunch, which was hot and sour soup with rice. One of my jobs often involves "baking" chickens, because chickens need to be soaked in brine to taste delicious. It's really not a good feeling to think about it...

One time when I was chopping vegetables , I accidentally cut my hand and it was bleeding. I told my boss that I wanted her to find something else to do. My God, I never dreamed that she would take out a bottle of pepper and sprinkle it on my fingers. On the wound, let me continue to work. It was a cold winter... I used pepper as Yunnan Baiyao... The landlady asked me to work for six consecutive hours each time, but she only gave me twenty dollars, which is only three-point-and-three-three dollars per hour!

I also worked as a security guard in the school security department. I like this job very much. Because my working hours are from 11pm to 4am, I wear the orange vest of the security department and hold a walkie-talkie in my hand, which makes me look very proud! The work routine is like this: when I go to work, I patrol the area under my jurisdiction and lock it. Patrol all the doors in the building, patrol them a second time in the middle, and finally patrol them again before the end and open all the doors again. The rest of the time, just follow the instructions from the walkie-talkie. I mainly use this time to read books and do homework.

Our school is divided into four parts and requires four people to complete. American students are very lazy. They work only when they need money and stop working when they have a little money. Especially on weekends, all American students go to parties. Almost every weekend, I did the work of four people by myself without any complaints. The head of the security department was very grateful and offered to write me a letter of recommendation.

Strive for good results for scholarships

I am studying for a master's degree in education. Generally, there are no scholarships. Without scholarships, it is very difficult for a poor student like me.

I went to the department chair, Dean Dunlop, and he said no. I pestered him, pestering him every day.

He called my sponsor, Bick Long, and said: Dealing with Mike is the worst experience of my *** life. Dealing with me is the worst experience of his adult life. It happened!

Out of helplessness and to get rid of the entanglement, he offered me a scholarship and said that he could give me a scholarship, but there was a condition: all your grades this semester must be A's. He thought I worked more than forty hours a week and had no energy to study. It was impossible to get straight A's.

After getting this promise, I studied hard and spent all my time after working on studying, sleeping only a few hours a day. Finally, my hard work paid off, and I finally got a scholarship starting from the second semester with straight A’s.

Master’s students can apply for mid-term internship from the school during the summer vacation of the first academic year. I found a job in a hotel in Pinehurst, North Carolina, where my sponsor lived, and applied to the department chair. He said no because he was not professional enough. I majored in education, which has nothing to do with hotels. But I told him that my major is education, but my minor is Japanese, and Pinehurst is the center of golf in the world, and many Japanese tourists live there. The department chair was speechless after what he said, so he had no choice but to sign my application form.

Choosing a career or studying?

When I was studying at Bucknell University for a year, I suddenly found a job opportunity that I liked. Toyota Motor Company in Detroit was recruiting a general manager. Assistant manager and translator in Japanese and English. I sent my resume to apply for this position.

The president of Toyota in Detroit immediately became very interested and called me on the phone in Japanese. I immediately asked my secretary to buy a ticket for me and send it to me, asking me to fly there for an interview. After the meeting, we hit it off immediately, offered me an annual salary of US$30,000, and asked me to go to work immediately. However, I am in a bit of a dilemma. Go ahead, I haven’t completed my studies yet, and I have to make up credits while working and studying part-time to get a degree; don’t go, it’s so hard to find a good job, it would be a pity to give up!

Me When I was hesitating about whether to accept the job, Christmas came and I drove from Pennsylvania to North Carolina to visit my sponsor.

A year ago, I spent $475 to buy a lively beige second-hand Pontiac car produced by General Motors from an American student. She served me without complaint for a whole year, but she died heroically while I was on my way to see my guarantor, Bi Ke. I saw thick smoke billowing from behind the car, and I drove off the highway toward a nearby residential area. I stopped the car in front of an American house and knocked on the door. An old man opened the door. I explained the situation to him, and he turned around and came out with a bucket of water and poured it on the back of the car where the smoke was coming from... …the fire went out. The old man invited me to his home, let me use his home phone to call my guarantor, and invited me to dinner - Americans are very hospitable!

A few hours later, Bike arrived. , he said that he had called the towing company and they would come and tow my "martyr" away. They agreed that they would not charge me any money and I would give the car to them.

After arriving at the guarantor’s house, I talked to him about Toyota Motor Company’s intention to hire me. He told me not to go and wanted me to finish my studies before going to work.

Bike took me to meet Billy Armfield, the president of Macfield Company. Macfield is a large Fortune 500 multinational company in the United States, specializing in yarn processing and production. After hearing my story, Billy admired me very much and said to me: Bike is right, you should go back to school to complete your studies first, and then talk about work. In order to allow me to study with peace of mind, Billy promised to give me a job as an export manager with an annual salary of US$38,000 after I completed my studies. He also said that you can make a decision after comparing them at that time. Everyone has feelings. Billy was so good to me, what else do I need to compare?

When I returned to my guarantor Bike’s house that day, he wrote a letter for me personally, My employment contract with Toyota was terminated, but I was unwilling to sign the resignation letter.

Billy heard that my "horse" had been "sacrificed" and offered to lend me money to buy a car of my choice. I thought to myself that the president, Billy, personally lent me the money for the car. It would be too difficult to carry it if I didn’t buy it. At the same time, I plan to pay back the money as soon as possible. I don't like borrowing other people's money. I picked a gray second-hand Mercury Lynx made by the American Ford Company, spent $1,500, and happily drove back to Bucknell University.

After graduation, I entered the mainstream society in the United States

After two years of hard work, I finally graduated! I got my master’s degree! My GPA grade point average for the two years I was in school is the average. The score is 3.8/4.0, which is 95 points in percentage terms, which is the highest score in the school. Let me add here: the grades of American universities are calculated based on GPA, with a full score of four points. The quality of a student's grades is measured by GPA.

After the exam, I left Bucknell University and drove to Macfield Company to take up a job. I didn’t even have time to attend the graduation ceremony, and the graduation photos in my square cap and gown were not taken. It’s a pity when I think about it now!

Since then, I have started a white-collar life in the United States...