PIESL Conversational Partners Program Open to Students, Faculty, Staff

Huskers participated at the 2021 PIESL Conversational Partners Program kick-off, where they were matched with an international student as a conversational partner. // Office of Global Strategies
Huskers participated at the 2021 PIESL Conversational Partners Program kick-off, where they were matched with an international student as a conversational partner. // Office of Global Strategies

By Mia Azizah | Office of Global Studies

Students, faculty members and staff are invited to participate in the Programs in English as a Second Language (PIESL) Conversational Partners program. The registration deadline is January 28.

The cross-cultural partnership program aims to connect international students and Nebraska community members through a semester-long conversational group. Through the program, international students will understand the American cultures, and in return, volunteers will have the opportunity to learn about another country, tradition and cross-cultural competent communications.

Each international student will be matched with a volunteer who is a native or fluent English speaker. The match will be based on students’ majors and interests. Depending on the number of applicants, volunteers may be matched with more than one international student.

The program was established to foster a global community on campus by providing international students to adjust to their new life and offering opportunities for all students, especially domestic students, to develop cross-cultural understanding and global perspectives.

The program’s contribution to the university’s comprehensive internationalization efforts is aligned with the Forward Together global strategy of expanding international learning experiences and building awareness of global engagement at the university level.

After the application deadline, the program coordinator will send an initial introduction email. Then participants will be responsible for communicating details of their meetings for the rest of the semester. Meeting two to four times a month is recommended.

To learn more, visit the Programs in English as a Second Language website.

More details at: https://www.unl.edu/piesl/piesl-conversational-partner-program