As the end of summer draws near, the Fall 2022 cohort of Global UGRADs has already begun to arrive in the U.S. With over 100 students in the program this semester, this means they collectively have well over 100 bags, so today we’re going to learn a little bit about what they will be bringing with them!
Even with limited space in their suitcases, Global UGRAD students make the most of it by bringing items ranging from things that remind them of home or have importance to them, to items they will use to showcase their home country’s culture to their new friends and university community.
These items can take a variety of different forms. Many students will bring articles of traditional clothing, such as Kaung Myat, who will be studying at the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, Texas. He is packing some traditional clothing from his home country of Myanmar and can’t wait to show it off to his new friends here in the United States. Alongside his clothes, he is also bringing a handmade phone bag – this way he’ll have a piece of his home with him wherever he goes – as well as antique coins that will pique the interest of everyone at his university.
Arsenij Tereshkovich, who hails from Belarus and will be attending the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, emphasizes his preference for minimalism when traveling. Still, he will be packing a few items that have special symbolic importance to him. The national White-Red-White flag symbolizes his Belarusian identity, while his copy of the World Atlas symbolizes his passion and identity as a geographer.
Every Global UGRAD participant has a unique story and background, and every semester this is clearly demonstrated in the intriguing things they bring with them on their journey to the United States. We can’t wait to welcome them all throughout the coming weeks! And of course, even though their bags will be full of meaningful items from their homes, hopefully, they will have room in their luggage when they return for anything they will acquire in the U.S.!