Returnees

• Re-entry Adjustment
• Top 10 Immediate Returnee Challenges
• What's Next

Re-entry Adjustment

You may remember the study abroad curve from your pre-departure orientation many months ago.  

Don’t forget that there are still transitions as you are returning to your life in the US.  Just as you may have experienced culture shock in your host country, you could experience reverse culture shock returning home.  It may take days or even weeks to readjust to your life in the US.  Things that were once normal, might seem wrong or frustrating.  You may see your host country as better than home.  

Ten Top Immediate Returnee Challenges

Dr. Bruce La Brack, School of International Studies, University of the Pacific: 

There are lots of reasons to look forward to going home, but there are also a number of psychological, social and cultural aspects which can prove difficult - often because they are unanticipated. The following list was generated by interviewing students like you who have been through the experience and survived nicely. However, they say you should take the process seriously by being realistic and thinking about it and your possible reactions. They offer the following thoughts on reentry for your consideration in the hope they will make your return both more enjoyable and more productive. 

1. Boredom After:  All the newness and stimulation of your time abroad, a return to family, friends, and old routines (however nice and comforting) can seem very dull. It is natural to miss the excitement and challenges which characterize study in a foreign country, but it is up to you to find ways to overcome such negative reactions - remember a bored person is also boring. 
2. “No One Wants to Hear”: One thing you can count on upon your return: no one will be as interested in hearing about your adventures and triumphs as you will be in sharing those experiences. This is not a rejection of you or your achievements, but simply the fact that once they have heard the highlights, any further interest on your audiences’ part is probably unlikely. Be realistic in your expectations of how fascinating your journey is going to be for everyone else. Be brief.
3. You Can't Explain: Even when given a chance to explain all the sights you saw and feelings you had while studying abroad, it is likely to be at least a bit frustrating to relay them coherently. It is very difficult to convey this kind of experience to people who do not have similar frames of reference or travel backgrounds, no matter how sympathetic they are as listeners. You can tell people about your trip, but you may fail to make them understand exactly how or why you felt a particular way. It’s okay.
4. Reverse "Homesickness": Just as you probably missed home for a time after arriving overseas, it is just as natural to experience some reverse homesickness for the people, places, and things that you grew accustomed to as a student overseas. To an extent it can be reduced by writing letters, telephoning, and generally keeping in contact, but feelings of loss are an integral part of international sojourns and must be anticipated and accepted as a natural result of study abroad. 
5. Relationships Have Changed: It is inevitable that when you return you will notice that some relationships with friends and family will have changed. Just as you have altered some of your ideas and attitudes while abroad, the people at home are likely to have experienced some changes. These changes may be positive or negative, but expecting that no change will have occurred is unrealistic. The best preparation is flexibility, openness, minimal preconceptions, and tempered optimism.
6. People See "Wrong": Changes Sometimes people may concentrate on small alterations in your behavior or ideas and seem threatened or upset by them. Others may ascribe “bad” traits to the influence of your time abroad. These incidents may be motivated by jealousy, fear, or feelings of superiority or inferiority. To avoid or minimize them it is necessary to monitor yourself and be aware of the reactions of those around you, especially in the first few weeks following your return. This phase normally passes quickly if you do nothing to confirm their stereotypes. 
7. People Misunderstand: A few people will misinterpret your words or actions in such a way that communication is difficult. For example, what you may have come to think of as humor (particularly sarcasm, banter, etc.) and ways to show affection or establish conversation may not be seen as wit, but aggression or “showing off.” Conversely, a silence that was seen as simply polite overseas might be interpreted at home, incorrectly, as signaling agreement or opposition. New clothing styles or mannerisms may be viewed as provocative, inappropriate, or as an affectation. Continually using references to foreign places or sprinkling foreign language expressions or words into an English conversation is often considered boasting. Be aware of how you may look to others and how your behavior is likely to be interpreted. 
8. Feelings of Alienation: Sometimes the reality of being back “home” is not as natural or enjoyable as the place you had constructed as your mental image. When real daily life is less enjoyable or more demanding than you remembered, it is natural to feel some alienation. Many returnees develop “critical eyes”, a tendency to see faults in the society you never noticed before. Some even become quite critical of everyone and everything for a time. This is no different than when you first left home. Mental comparisons are fine, but keep them to yourself until you regain both your cultural balance and a balanced perspective. 
9. Inability to Apply New Knowledge and Skills: Many returnees are frustrated by the lack of opportunity to apply newly gained social, technical, linguistic, and practical coping skills that appear to be unnecessary or irrelevant at home. To avoid ongoing annoyance: adjust to reality as necessary, change what is possible, be creative, be patient, and above all use the crosscultural adjustment skills you acquired abroad to assist your own reentry. 
10. Loss/Compartmentalization of Experience (Shoeboxing): Being home, coupled with the pressures of job, family, and friends, often combine to make returnees worried that somehow they will “lose” the experience.

What’s Next?

Below are some ways to continue with your intercultural engagement and exploration.

• Study Abroad Ambassadors: apply to help prepare future study abroad students and promote study abroad at Loyola.
• Global Greyhounds: work with incoming international students at Loyola.
• Seek out restaurants or activities around the city that represent your host culture.
• See Baltimore through new eyes – visit museums and cultural sites and do some research on things you don’t know about the city, just like you would when traveling to a new city abroad.
• Organize reunions with friends from abroad.
• Career Center: learn how your study abroad experience can enhance your resume and how to highlight the skills you acquired in an interview.
• Go Abroad Again
  • Teach Abroad Post-Loyola
  • Work Abroad Post-Loyola