There are many faces of the American college student. From athletes and greeks, to those from large cities and others from small towns, the American college campus is a melting pot of culture, demographics and ideas.

"When I first got here I had a lot of 'Hi! How are you?' friends," said Kang Ho Park, a 24-year-old K-State student from South Korea. "There are so many 'Ok, see you later' (answers), I thought they were rude and I didn't know if it was me or them."

Entering, assimilating in and understanding American culture was a difficult task for many of K-State's 1,645 international students who were enrolled in Spring 2010, according to the university.

WE TAKE VISA

"I don't think people realize how many regulations there are for international students," said Caitlin Kelly, an adviser in K-State's International Student and Scholar Services office. Kelly referred to benchmarks the U.S. government requires for international students to study and live here.

According to K-State's office of international pre-admissions and recruiting, any prospective international student needs to formally apply to K-State. This includes filling out forms, submitting transcripts and proving the student has the financial means necessary for tuition, not to mention an $80 handling fee.

"Students can apply to many different schools, but they might enroll in a school that sends them their first I-20," said K-State's director of international student services, Sarah Thurston-Gonzalez.

Students need an I-20 to apply for a visa.  They must also schedule an interview at the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate as part of the visa application process.

COMMUNICATION TRIBULATION

According to the university's website, international students applying to K-State will not have to pass a "strict" English proficiency test, unlike at many other schools.

However, a lack of fluency in English can prove to be a struggle for students like Park. Having studied English growing up, he forgot most of it after spending three years in the South Korean army.

"I was so concerned with speaking English perfectly ... that made me hesitate to speak or talk with other people," he said.

The language barrier highlights another struggle international students are forced to tackle. Of K-State's entire international community, university records show that more than half come from China and India, both countries with few native English speakers.

"Sometimes we receive calls from other offices wanting us to call or talk to international students," Kelly said. "We've managed to deal with these issues without a translator. Some people just don't have the patience to wait and deal with international students."

International students who refrain from much interaction with students outside their culture because of a language barrier could miss their best opportunity to work on and improve their English.

"When I came here, I had my cousin and his friends that I would hang out with. I realized that to work on my language I should hang out with other people," said Mohammed Altamimi, a K-State sophomore from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. "Now, days or weeks pass without talking Arabic."

WELCOME TO THE UNITED STATES?

"When I hopped into the plane for America, it was really exciting. I was pumped and curious," Park said.

But Park said he struggled at first living in the U.S. He had roommate issues, experienced loneliness and felt his only friends were other Koreans.

"Before coming here, I thought that all the cities in America look like Chicago, New York, L.A. - really urban cities," he said. "I researched Kansas on Google, and all I got were pictures of Kansas City ... so I thought Manhattan would look like Kansas City."

Park grew up near Seoul, South Korea, a large city of nearly 9.7 million people.

"Many Koreans here ... think K-State is boring," Park said. "A lot of people are coming here from big cities ... they don't have much experience in small towns."

WELCOME TO THE UNITED STATES!

"Friendship here is a lot different than friendship in Korea," Park said.

He said he believed some people had befriended him just because they felt they needed an "international student friend." On top of that, he struggled to meet and engage with domestic students.

"To meet American friends, you have to make an appointment. My Korean friends always come over spontaneously, and which do you think is easier to meet?" he said.

However, students coming to study at K-State are not just encountering a confusing American culture, they are interacting with other international students from dozens of countries. The most recent data from K-State shows these countries include 718 students from China, 231 from India and many more from 99 other countries who were enrolled in the Fall 2009 semester.

Thurston-Gonzalez and her department host orientations, classes and other events in attempts to tackle the problems caused by misunderstandings between international and domestic students.

For Park, that understanding came during a trip he and an American friend took to the East Coast. Park said he was able to see more of the country and spend time with American students. Through the interactions and the trip, he began to better understand.

"(On the trip) I got to know ... how Americans think differently from Koreans," he said.