Neal Curtis-Duguay Contributing Writer

The Conversation Partners program is aptly named: one signs up to pair up with a conversation partner. The program isn’t as simple as that though, as it is a program designed to help international students refine their understanding of the English language through repetition and practice outside a stressful classroom environment. Once a week, one native-speaking English partner will meet up with an international student to converse and hang around together for approximately an hour. It is not required to be one-on-one, but it is recommended that there is at least one English speaker actively participating.

There are many options for the partners to do together. The two partners can educate each other on their respective home countries; maybe teach each other a few words of their language. Hong Kong students, for example, know the difference between Hong Kong and China and would likely entertain their partner by discussing the difference and the history. Learning these facts that one might otherwise be ignorant to is an eye-opening experience of foreign culture, as it is to teach American society to an international student. The two partners can also do more mundane activities together: work out, eat lunch, go to a movie and discuss it afterwards. Breanna Baker, International Activities Coordinator, says, “It’s an opportunity to form relationships—friendships [with each other].”

Sign up is simple: applications can be picked up and turned in to the International office by the third Friday of each new quarter, when the new “cycle” begins.