Email: lchen9@nd.edu
Why did you opt to serve as a Senior Fellow for Internationalization?
As an international student, I understand the challenges the international community face in order to thrive on this campus, especially if it is your first time arriving in this country. It'd certainly be easier for me had someone who knew both the campus and my situation well stepped in and helped. On the other hand, it certainly is important for the ND community to learn more about multiculturalism and to be more inclusive of people coming from different cultural backgrounds from around the world. I want to be such a person that connects the ND that I know with people coming from similar situations as I did, leveraging resources from NDI. Senior fellow for Internationalization is an excellent fit for that.
Talk about your international experiences and why they are important. How have they served you (academically, personally, professionally, etc).
During my sophomore year, I had the pleasure to study abroad in SUSTech, which is a university in southern China for a semester. Although I am a native Mandarin speaker, I still took a while to adjust to the educational and cultural environment there. I am proud of myself for adapting to and being successful at SUSTech with the help of NDI, as I got to understand the challenges and appreciate the gains of the ND studying abroad program through this international academic experience. On campus, I am involved with various student organizations: AAA, the Chinese Cultural Society, CSSA, and SIBC. I was also a Chinese tutor at the CSLC. I had great fun participating in multicultural events, such as Asian Allure and Show Some Skin. They constantly challenge me to advocate for multicultural equity and to become a better representation of the ND community. I participated in the Global Professional Experience as a summer intern at a data analysis startup based in Beijing. As part of the Silicon Valley Semester program, I worked at a tech education company founded by international alums of ND. I got to know amazing professionals through these valuable experiences.
Why do you think it's important to focus on internationalization at the University of Notre Dame?
ND is becoming a more diverse place day by day. The Senior Fellow For Internationalization program is the fuel for such positive change. It aims to address the community's needs for multicultural equity and awareness directly via student representatives that come from different countries or cultural backgrounds. To cultivate and sustain an inclusive environment, the school needs clear insight into how it is doing on internationalization as a guideline to become a more powerful global force for good.