To most students who are international in the world studying at Averett, the move to college life in the United States can at times be an uphill task. International students are unique in their challenges that are presented by immigration documents to cultural adaptation. Luckily, the International Student Services Office strives to ensure that international students feel that they are supported at all the stages of the process.
Director of International Student Services and Cultural Awareness, Tammy Jackson is at the center of helping the international students in the mandatory filings and the provision of personal assistance. She examines passports and visas and assists students to remain legal.
Nonetheless, the role of Jackson goes beyond government reporting. During my interview with her, she explained, “I am only trying to be available to any problem that might arise or a question that may be asked by the students. I prefer to make it a safe place to discuss anything.”
Besides the immigration duties, Jackson also helps the students to acquire Social Security documentation, file applications to obtain the optional practical training (OPT) and liaise with the Registrar Office to ensure graduation eligibility. She also assists the international students to transfer to other institutions when needed.
Another factor of international student success is academic success that is directly provided by the school. In the case of struggling students, Ms. Jackson collaborates with the Student Success Centre and the academic support services to refer the students to the tutoring services and English language learning materials. She said, “we do our best to ensure students possess the means with which to succeed.”
In addition to academics and paperwork, International Student Services promotes inclusion and cultural celebration. International Education Week, International Men’s Day and International Women’s Day are some of the events sponsored by the office. Ms. Jackson is also part of the International Life Club as well as the African Caribbean Student Association where she assists in setting up of various programs that will showcase different cultures of the various international students found here on campus. A group of African dancers was recently brought to Afro-Caribbean Student Association (ACSA) and Black Student Union (BSU) as part of its cultural programming.
Supporting international students on the other hand is the most fulfilling aspect of her job to Ms. Jackson. She said “When I 1st saw this job advertisement and applied, I was more interested in the government reporting piece of it but when I got here, I saw that international students weren’t supported and I so wanted to offer them that support.”
International Student Services works to make sure that, in addition to being able to meet the requirements of the international student population, Averett University accepts the international student as being part of the campus community by offering special advising and cultural programming and personal mentorship services.
