Graduation
Graduation is a time to celebrate your success at Kent State.  Graduation ceremonies are held at the end of the fall semester in December, at the end of the spring semester in May and at the end of the summer session in August.

The Registrar publishes specific graduation dates in the Schedule of Classes.

Students scheduled to graduate often buy invitations in the University Bookstore to invite their friends to the ceremony.  They also purchase for a small fee a graduation cap and gown to wear at this traditional ceremony.   The Bookstore  is on the main floor of the Student Center.

Your first step should be to visit the official United States Postal Service Website for information on moving households.  The site has information on planning for the move, packing items, etc. Also get a Mover's Guide from the Post Office.

• Plan ahead.
• You do not have to take everything with you.
• Compare several different companies on the basis of cost, services, liability and insurance.
• Shipping items overseas by ocean takes longer than by air, but is considerably less expensive.
If you are moving within the United States or Canada, it is more economical to do it yourself than pay a commercial mover.

• Collect all loaned out items, such as books, sports equipment, records, as well as items at repair shops, and the cleaners.
• Inventory your belongings. When you undertake this inventory determine which items can you leave here, give away, sell or donate.
• Advertise immediately if you wish to sell items such as a car, furniture, and clothes.
• Appliances are expensive to ship, and your home country may use a different electrical voltage
• Do you want your shipment delivered directly to your residence in your home country, or can you pick it up in the port or airport?
• Ask the airlines about regulations on the weight and size of suitcases, excess baggage, air freight and costs.  Telephone the airlines to determine the baggage allowance; not only to your final destination, but also to any other countries you will travel through on your trip.
• Complete a change of address card at the Post Office or on-line at least one month before your move.  The Post Office will forward first class mail to an international address for one year.
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If you need to have your passport renewed contact your own embassy or consulate.  ISSS can provide you with the addresses of the nearest consulates.  The following website has a list of Foreign Consular Offices in the United States whichcan be accessed to determine passport requirements: 
Electronic Embassy.

The University Health Service Travel Clinic also has this information, and offers immunizations at a reasonable cost for students, faculty and staff.  The Health Center does not provide immunizations for children.

The Portage County Health Department has an immunization service and can provide service for children: Portage County Administration Building on the third floor, 449 South Meridan Street, Ravenna, Ohio, Telephone: 330 - 296 - 9919.  The Health Department can be reached via the Portage Area Transit Authority Bus.  The cost of the immunizations will be less than at the university's health center.  The Health Department Clinic is open on Wednesday.

Certification of Immunization
You may need to have certified proof of immunization shots for your travels recorded on the World Health Organization's International Certificate of Vaccination.  Request this when you receive you immunizations.

It may be more convenient to buy airplane tickets at a travel agency.  Travel agents do charge a fee for their services, but can help you find low fares.  You should purchase your ticket at least 21 days in advance of your travel.  When purchasing tickets ask about fares for infants.  You may not have to pay a full fare.

• Review moving company websites for general information about their services.
• Obtain informational literature and obtain estimates on moving costs, including insurance and other details from at least three moving companies.  Ask about the conditions of each estimate, for example is it guaranteed not to exceed a certain amount?
• Ask each company's Motor Carrier number and call the U.S. Department of Transportation (202-358-7000) to find out if they are properly registered and insured.
• Ask your moving company for a copy of Your Mover's Rights and Responsibilities.  Also visit the United States Department of Transportation website.
• Do not sign a contract until you have read all literature and documents carefully, ask questions, and be sure you understand the details in the contract.

North American Van Lines  provides moving service in the U.S. and Canada. Other companies are listed in the telephone directory under Trailer Renting and Leasing.

Stop your automobile insurance coverage.

The regulations governing the export of computers are contained in the U.S. Export Administration Regulations published by the Bureau of Industry and Security  http://www.bxa.doc.gov/   of the Department of Commerce.  For more information regarding license requirements and procedures, call the Bureau of Export Administration, Exporter Counseling Services, P.O. Box 273, Washington, DC  20044, Tel.: 202/482-4811.  When you telephone, be prepared to give the name of the manufacturer, model number, and technical specifications of your computer. The best times to call are 8:30 - 9:30 am and  5 - 7 pm.

Make sure you have an inventory of the items you are shipping home.

Have a list of important telephone numbers.

If you are renting an apartment, advise your landlord of your departure date and forwarding address at least 2 - 4 weeks in advance.  Review your obligations for cleaning the apartment with the landlord.   Arrange a date for an inspection and the return of your security deposit.

Inform your local and long distance telephone company, utilities and cable television company of the date you want services discontinued and your account closed; otherwise, other people will be able to use those services at your expense.

Close all local accounts including stores, and bank and checking accounts, if you are leaving the country.

Pay any fines or bills you have on campus so your diploma and transcripts can be released.

Leave your forwarding address with:

• The Registrar’s Office
• The Office of International Student and Scholar Services
• Your faculty advisor, friends and department
• The Alumni Office

Make arrangements with the Registrar's Office to have your diploma sent to you at your new address, if you do not receive it before departing.

Return department keys, if any.

Ask how early you should arrive before your flight. Remember that all carry-on packages, purses, and bags are subject to search.  Confirm your flight at least 72 hours prior to departure.

Make arrangements for transportation to the airport. Arrive at least two hours early for your flight, and earlier if you have a lot of baggage.

Do not forget to stop by our office so we can wish you a safe journey and success in your future career!

Leave your house or apartment key with the agent or landlord.

Most of us are familiar with culture shock.  Culture shock is the sense of confusion and disorientation that most of us experience when we arrive in a new culture. International students have been warned about culture shock.  They know that it is a normal and an understandable reaction to a new and strange environment, and to the loss of the familiar.

They know that culture shock was a passing condition and, in most cases, not cause for serious concern.  These students soon began to function normally in the academic setting, participate in campus activities, make friends, and adopt some American values.   A process of growth and creative change had begun that may make it difficult for the international student to fit into his or her society upon completing studies in the United States.

In many ways, readjusting to your home country may be much more traumatic than the changes you experienced during your first weeks and months in the United States.  While in the U.S., most students think fondly, and perhaps longingly, of home, of their relatives, of familiar food and landscapes.  It may come as a great shock when these once familiar things just do not "feel right" after spending several years in the United States.  They may feel just as lonely and forlorn among their friends and relatives as they did when they first went abroad.

Research indicates that this "re-entry shock" is a much more upsetting experience for most international students than culture shock.  This is because returning international students have often not been told that there is a possibility that they may experience problems with re-entry.  They do not anticipate the sense of disorientation and the feelings of frustration and dissatisfaction that characterize re-entry shock and are taken by surprise when they occur.

In the United States, international students often define their own identities in comparison and contrast to their perceptions of Americans.  The temporary "emigrant" experience has most likely created a strong and lasting bond with the university, the community, and among international and American students.  Leaving familiar places and friends is always a painful experience.  This sense of loss is intensified by the inevitable failure of old friends back home to understand fully the experiences and ideas that the returnees are trying to tell them about.  Though they may listen politely, it must be very hard for them to picture what it is like to live abroad, to study at an American university, and to return as a changed person.

Another cause of re-entry shock may be a certain sense of letdown after the intense experience of studying abroad.  The student has successfully completed his or her program and is returning with a degree.  All goals have been reached, like any other graduate; the student is now confronted with the necessity of setting new goals, defining new objectives, looking for a job and contributing to society.  The feelings of anxiety and uncertainty that always accompany a period of such difficult changes and readjustments are compounded by the abrupt change of environment, the need to readapt to the home culture, traditional values, different lifestyle, and family structure that may now seem restrictive to the returned student.

Returning students may have to deal with what is called the "Frozen Image Syndrome."  While studying abroad, they had to change and become independent.  At home, family, friends and co-workers expect them to be the same young person who left a few years ago.  This frozen image can be particularly difficult in cultures where young men and women are expected to live at home, and where individual initiative is discouraged or perhaps frowned upon. Financial or other expectations may be placed on the recent graduates that are very hard to fulfill.

These are potential complications that should be thought about before the student leaves the United States so that he or she is prepared to face them and has a strategy for dealing with them.  It is important for international students to understand that re-entry shock is a normal reaction to the experience of cultural transplantation.  Feeling "blue" about being home is not something to feel guilty about.  It does not mean that one is ungrateful or unloving of family and friends.  It is a predictable reaction; it can be dealt with, and it will pass.

When international graduates begin a career in their home countries, they may find that much of what they learned in the United States is not directly applicable to their professional lives in their native country.  People may interact differently; they may place more value on social norms than on efficiency or the "bottom line."  The returnee's "American" inquisitiveness, critical insights and suggestions for improvement maybe viewed as disrespectful and pushy.  In some professions, materials and equipment that international students came to regard as absolutely essential for their work in the United States may not be available.

There are many potential sources of frustration when going home.  It is crucial for all returning international students to evaluate their experience in the United States, to assess the changes within themselves that may have taken place, and to try to predict how these changes may affect their re-entry into their home countries.

There are a few preparatory measures that every foreign graduate should consider taking before returning home.  They are:

• Stay in touch with Kent State, your professors and fellow students.
• Join professional organizations.
• Subscribe to relevant journals.
• Think about the re-entry process and how you, others and your country may have changed.
• Be aware of the effects of travel on an individual's health (adults and children), from change of dietary habits and water, sleep patterns, and required immunizations.  Consult the DeWeese Health Center for more information.