IMP mentors greeted an arriving first-year student at Wayland Arch on Sept. 3. Credit: Brown University

Nearly 200 international first-years attend pre-orientation

Upperclassmen wearing tees the color of orange sherbet welcomed nearly 200 new students and their families to the International Mentoring Program this week.
By TAB staff  |  September 3, 2009  |  Email to a friend

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The streets around campus swelled with cars and taxis Thursday morning, Sept. 3, as more than 180 first-year and transfer international students (and a handful of U.S. citizens who live abroad) arrived to begin four years of study at Brown.

Reflecting the University’s increased commitment to extending its global reach, 14 percent of the 1,485 members of the class of 2013 come from outside the United States, up from 11 percent last year.

Parents stood watching with a mixture of pride and anxiety as sons and daughters picked up nametags in preparation for meeting their mentor from IMP – the International Mentoring Program.

: The student-run program is designed to help international students acclimate to life in the United States. It continues throughout the year as first-years make their cultural transition.

This year’s pre-orientation events included a variety of activities and seminars for students and their parents, including information sessions focusing on passport and immigration issues. Students attended a two-hour “cultural immersion” program at which mentors acted out common interpersonal situations the new arrivals may encounter. On the recreational side, there were trips downtown and to the Providence Place Mall, and an apple pie social.