Undergrads leaving home to attend Arab region universities in other countries have specific needs. These range from religious accommodation to maintaining cultural values to ensuring safety concerns. Add the challenge of adapting to an adult daily life, and the total is a big transition.
Students — and parents — can have peace of mind that dorms at Arab region universities are typically designed to meet those needs, beginning with separate dorms for men and women. Talal Nizameddin, dean of student affairs at American University of Beirut, says their student housing provides a mix of the best of Eastern and Western traditions and values.
“At the same time, we understand regional traditions where the family is important and concern for safety is paramount,” says Nizameddin, whose school requires parents sign a curfew waiver policy to ensure freshmen abide school curfews.
Rebecca Munns, spokeswoman for University of Wollongong in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, says that the school’s student housing is located near mosques and there are also prayer facilities on campus.
A new school and a new country are big changes. But there are some things students can do to thrive at life in the dorms.
[Find out how to minimize culture shock at an Arab region university.]
1. Embrace change: Jordanian citizen Yazan Fanous has been living in the dorms at American University of Beirut for four years. At first, he says, it was challenging to understand the Lebanese accent, culture, politics and different lifestyles. That is, until dorm residents and the student housing office took him under their wings.
“Lebanese dorm residents came from different regions in Lebanon, and they did not only describe what goes on in their respective homes and villages, but most of them insisted I visit their homes on the weekends to see all the things they described,” says Fanous, now a resident assistant, whose job is to provide general support for residents. “They basically considered me one of their own, and I could not be more honored.”
2. Learn responsibility: Lebanese American University student Sandra Abdellatef says her move from Syria was “a major change in my lifestyle and habits.” It took her a semester to adapt, affecting her grades and her ability to socialize. Three years on, she says the experience has helped build her personality and make her more responsible.
“It equips you with the right tools to handle and fix any situation,” says Abdellataf. “While at home, as Arabs, we tend to run to our parents to fix our problems.”
Arab region dorms are typically furnished and include equipped kitchens, access to laundry facilities and cleaning services. At her dorm, Abdellataf says there’s no specialized kitchen with healthy meals. Students have to cook their own meals “or rely on fast food.”
University of Wollongong student Ahmad Sleeq says dorm life forces students to become an adult in all aspects and requires them to manage their time, money and relationships, as well as their studies, “which is the main purpose you are here in the first place.”
[Explore how to make the most of studying abroad in the Arab region.]
3. Play well with others: For many students, dorm life will be the first time they’ve ever shared a room, especially with a stranger. Dorms typically house international and local students together. Sleeq initially felt “homesick and helpless” when he moved from Jordan four years ago. But he quickly adapted.
“My first roommate was Korean, who came straight from Korea,” says Sleeq. “He was 35, married and had a son. I learned a lot from him and his culture and was able to realize how important it is to be culturally aware.”
Lebanese American University student Elsa Farah says leaving her Lebanese family in Qatar, where she grew up, was a difficult decision three years ago.
“The hardest part was making friends because I’m a very shy person,” says Farah, who used the school’s website to request the largest sized dorm, which accommodates four roommates, to feel more at home.
Farah changed roommates three times due to personality conflicts, but now calls her new roommates family. She credits dorm life with making her independent and more social and giving her greater self-esteem.
Many schools allow roommates to be requested or changed if necessary. American University of Beirut Student Housing Coordinator Nisrine Abou Fakhr says all students” have the right to choose his or her roommate,” by adding their roommate’s ID number on their application or via email.
[Learn how to get comfortable at a coed Arab university campus.]
4. Spread those social butterfly wings: Though resident assistant Micheal Msharbash, a Jordanian, feels dorm life at the American University in Cairo could be improved by adding coed dorms and visiting hours, he describes the four-year experience as “amazing.” Having met many diverse students in the dorms, he encourages homesick newbies to socialize with fellow residents as much as possible.
“Go back to your room to sleep only,” says Msharbash.
Elise Salem, vice president for student development and enrollment management at Lebanese American University, says their dorms have many bonding activities for students that build a community atmosphere. These range from holiday-themed parties to movie nights to cultural events like Lebanese Nights.
American University of Beirut student Fanous says it is exactly that exposure to other cultures and different ways of thinking that makes dorm life so rich an experience.
“Cherish it! University experience is a simulation of the real world that we are going into once we graduate,” says Fanous. “Make sure you meet a lot of people in college — and the fact that you live in dorms is a great opportunity to do so.”
See the complete rankings of the Best Arab Region Universities.
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Prepare for Dorm Life at an Arab Region University originally appeared on usnews.com
