Returning Home After Finding Another:

Re-entry & Culture Shock

What we define as home can be complicated. For many of us, home sparks the image of one place that we return to throughout our lives. This can spark positive or negative associations depending on our experiences. While this resonates with many, oftentimes those of us who travel, live abroad, or just move to new places throughout our lives come to learn that home is not fixed. Home is often moving, changing, growing, as are the people and communities we associate with it.

Today we say “until next time” to many of our international students. Some of you are returning home, others are staying, and we are saying the difficult goodbyes that come with farewells from our semester exchange students. Wherever you are in your journey here at Maryville, we have been lucky to have you.

As you take this next step in your journey, here are some things to keep in mind as you return to your country of origin, country of residence, or return home with a new perspective.

Congratulations! You’ve just had the experience of a lifetime. Maybe you feel the same, but chances are that you have changed a bit throughout this experience. You might notice upon re-entering your country that you see things from a different light. You might feel a shock of leaving the home you’ve come to know. If you find yourself feeling out of place, struggling with culture changes, and missing the new home you’ve just departed, you’re not alone! Many students experience this.

Here are some challenges and strategies you can incorporate to help overcome potential difficulties as you readjust:

Acknowledgement: Culture shock is normal! Your perspective has changed, and struggling with the loss or re-familiarization of things that used to be part of your everyday life is expected. Give yourself time and practice patience with yourself as you adjust!
Apply your lessons learned from Studying Abroad! Thankfully, you already have proven experience in cultural adjustment (add that to your resume). What strategies did you use while traveling that you can implement here? Take some time to brainstorm them. Some examples include:

Open-mindedness to new perspectives, challenges, and opportunities.
Seek out new opportunities where you can. You built up this skill while traveling. Now make it a habit in your home country too! You might discover new things.
Expand your social circle. Don’t isolate yourself! Build and maintain your social support system. Find people with shared experiences. Is there an international student club at your university you can work with? Could you join an English language club? Or start one?
Take time to reflect: Write a journal, look through photos, make a vision board, or simply schedule some time to reflect on the journey you’ve been on. Putting things into perspective might just help clarify what you are struggling with and why.
Suspend Judgement: You might find your beliefs have changed. You practiced withholding judgment when interacting with new cultures. If you’re struggling, you might try this! Would you react the same way to someone else’s culture? Pause and give yourself time to process before judging.

Communicating your study abroad experience: How do you summarize months of connections, interactions, new experiences, and learning moments when someone asks “how was it?”. If I had time to do a cultural showcase, I might get in some key moments. But, even that only shares part of a country’s cultures and histories. For me, I’ve found it impossible. I can’t. And I especially cannot describe it in one short statement. My study, travel, and work abroad experiences have helped change who I am and how I interact with the world. I recommend this strategy: share moments. There are memories and moments my friends understand that my family or teachers won’t, and that is okay. Share a lesson you learned or a moment you experienced depending on who you are talking with. This helps you stay true to yourself while also keeping some of the best memories for you. With practice, you can answer substantially without oversharing.