My first semester here at Baruch was very interesting. I had come straight from graduating high school two months earlier and had no idea what to expect. My high school was in Brooklyn, small campus about 1000 kids, not very diverse and I was very used to just fitting in. Flash forward to my first week at Baruch and I was sort of blown away. In the elevators there were people speaking all of these languages I'd never heard before, which turned out to be Russian, German, Korean, Chinese,etc. Even with class introductions, looking around the room and hearing each student's story about their background was fascinating. It made me want to know more and get to know everyone.
One day my professor decided for us to work in groups on a hefty project. One of my group members, a Korean girl, never really spoke up or gave her input she would just agree with what everyone else said. Finally I asked her privately why she never really gave her opinion on things. She told me that she'd just come from Korea and its different there from America. In most Asian countries its better to go with the group than to be an individual - it promotes harmony. So instead of ruffling feathers she was following what her culture taught her which was to promote harmony. It was a very interesting conversation, but I learned alot about her and about a culture I knew nothing about prior.
Yes, I felt a bit culture shocked coming to this school but now after four years, I feel so diverse and worldy. Worldy may be a stretch but you get the jist. Baruch is definitely a mind opener.
Yes, Baruch is certainly a diverse school. The student body represents over 150 countries so I think "worldly" is appropriate!
ReplyDeleteI also came from a high school that was predominantly Black and Indian. I definitely agree that Baruch is an extremely diverse school and it was a huge transition for me to see so many different people from different backgrounds in one school.
ReplyDeleteI love the diversity of baruch. I never had that at my other school. It was you were either white, black or hispanic and I went to school in the south. At baruch, I dont have to worry about people classifying me as a certain race and I love it.
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