Stepping onto Wriston Quadrangle, where many Summer@Brown students choose to relax, a visitor is likely to hear strains of Italian, shouts of Turkish and murmurs of Mandarin mingling with the chatter of English.
The diverse course selection and pre-college programs that Brown offers not only attract high school students from around the country, but also students from around the globe. Turkey, China and Hong Kong are the most represented foreign countries among the program's population, according to John Caron, associate dean for summer session. Over 300 international students are participating in University summer programs this year, a number that is steady year to year.
Seventy-four of these students chose to enroll in four-week intensive English courses, though the majority of international students take more traditional pre-college courses.
Pietro tre Volta, a student from Italy, said he originally chose to study at Brown this summer because he was interested in attending college in the U.S. in the future. "Leadership Institute was amazing," he said, of the two-week course he took.
Most international students hear about Summer@Brown online or through word-of-mouth.
Alessandro Rapana, another student from Italy, said, "One of my friends told me that he was here three years ago and that it was great."
"I think it (Summer@Brown) supports the academic plan on internationalization by increasing opportunities," Caron said of the Plan for Academic Enrichment, also noting that the international Summer@Brown students will raise the visibility of the University when students go back home and share their experiences.
Volta mentioned that Brown is known in Italy mainly for its membership in the Ivy League, and Rapana originally heard about the University from the television show "The O.C."
Hazal Sabah, a Turkish student, said many of the Turkish students attending the program knew each other before. "Only the private schools who give an English education" promoted the program to its students, she said.
"Because we have so many Turkish students in the program, I have found that those students maintain their friendships from home. I have not seen as much integration of those students (with) all participants of the program," said summer resident adviser Liana Nisimova '12.
Exposure to international students also helps to broaden the perspectives of the American students. "The international students on my floor contributed a lot to discussions about their culture," Nisimova said. "Most of the girls became friends by the end of the program. I think it's cool that some of my residents can maintain contact with people abroad."
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