<p>Ok plz do not get offended by this, this is NOT what I(in bold) think but what people have been telling me.</p>
<p>Some of my close friends know that I am taking my Sats and this sept will probably be apply to American Unis/Colleges. The reactions I got was that American people ( I never went to the States so I would not know but they did) was that American people are money grabbing and stiff witht their money and do not like ethnic minorities(I am an ethnic minority) and how really that they are so weird and how knowing how I am as a person, they don’t think I would fit in. </p>
<p>I am sure that they have widely exaggerated this but what do you think about this anyways?</p>
<p>Parts of this are exaggeration and partly true. Depending on where you live, etc, you might find that the people in that particular part of America are money-grubbing and xenophobic. Many people will argue that that’s true in most cases. I’ve heard that Americans are less “community-minded” and “homey” as in other countries but cannot attest to the validity of those statements. However, it seems impossible to me that Americans as a whole are much different as those in any other country.</p>
<p>1) There are lots of international students at most U.S. colleges. I don’t think you will feel too weird. Most schools publish statistics telling you what percentage of their student bodies are from outside the country, so you can check it out before you get here. Same with ethnic minorities. </p>
<p>2) Compared to people from other parts of the world, Americans are widely concerned to be materialistic, but maybe not in the way that your friends think. It doesn’t necessarily mean that American people are selfish; it’s just that a lot of our cultural activity centers on earning money and spending it. I think most cultural anthropologists would agree with me here.</p>
<p>Can you take a trip to the U.S. and see what you think? Your own first-hand observations will probably be worth more than the opinions of the people on this board (including me of course).</p>
<p>Really what you need to do is locate someone belonging to your nationality/ethnic group who has been to school in the states, or, even better, several people. He, she, or they can give you a much better answer to this question than anyone else could.</p>
<p>Lotf’s advice is good. Contact members or officers of the international students’ associations at colleges that interest you. If their e-mails aren’t listed on the colleges’ web sites, admissions can put you in contact with them and others of your nationality. Perspectives of Americans will depend a great deal on what country the students come from. That’s because one’s perspective is shaped by expectations developed from one’s culture.</p>
<p>For instance, behavior that’s regarded as funny and intelligent behavior in the north of the U.S. can be regarded by southerners in the U.S. as snarky, egotistic and rude behavior. Behavior that southerners regrad as polite can be regarded by northeners as passive and not too bright.</p>
<p>It’s a matter of perspective and expectations.</p>
<p>I, having never been to the US, don’t really know how Americans are (in mass numbers - but I’ve met a few occasionally over the years). But I think that people should be given the benifit of the doubt. If you ever go there, go open-minded; without any preconceived notions. Don’t let people’s gossip get the better of you.
As someone already said, go to someone who knows what they’re talking about and see what that person as to say about it.</p>