S1E29: Seattle Colleges Conversations with! International student Handan Karakucuk of Turkey

In this our twenty-ninth (29th) episode, Seattle Colleges host Evan Franulovich interviews International student Handan Karakucuk of Turkey about her experience here at Seattle Colleges  and about life in the United States. 

1:19 - Introducing Handan

2:17 - Differences between Turkey and U.S. education systems

3:23 - Thinking about studying in the U.S.

7:04 - Making friends in Seattle

8:50 - Studying business

10:55 - Housing situation

12:26 - What do you do for fun?

13:50 - The visa process and using an agent

18:02 - English and SCIE (Seattle Colleges Institute of English)

20:35 - Turning 21 and doing stuff in your free time

23:05 - Working on campus

25:40 - Trivia Time!

29:34 - Final advice

Copyright © Seattle Colleges International Programs 2023. All rights reserved. For more information about being an international student at Seattle Colleges, please visit intl.seattlecolleges.edu

The theme music 'Bounce' is an audio file pursuant to the Pixabay License as defined in the Pixabay Terms of Service available at https://http://pixabay.com/service/terms/

Also, connect with us on social media (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok) at
SeattleCollegesIntl

Transcript

Evan Franulovich: 0:05

Welcome to Seattle Colleges International Programs and our show Conversations with! where we talk to people that help you understand how you too, can be an international student in the United States and why Seattle Colleges should be your first choice. We'll talk to students and staff and agents and government folks, all kinds of people about what you can expect when you're getting ready to apply or travel here, what you'll experience while you're with us, and how it can all lead to an amazing life. Don't forget to check out the Seattle Colleges International Programs website at intl.seattlecolleges.edu where you can find a treasure trove of information about the school, the programs here and best of all, fill out and submit your application. Again, that's intl.seattlecolleges.edu. Hey, everybody, it's Evan Franulovich here in Seattle, Washington back at Seattle Central. And I'm here today with Handan from...

Handan: 1:19

Turkey.

Evan Franulovich: 1:19

Turkey! She is our first guest from the country of Turkey. Welcome!

Handan: 1:25

Hi.

Evan Franulovich: 1:26

How are you?

Handan: 1:27

I'm good. How are you?

Evan Franulovich: 1:28

I'm doing great. So how long have you been here?

Handan: 1:34

It's been more than a year.

Evan Franulovich: 1:35

More than a year.

Handan: 1:36

Yeah. I moved on September 2021 and this is my second year at college.

Evan Franulovich: 1:42

Cool. And how's it going?

Handan: 1:44

It's going very well. And this year is much better than last year.

Evan Franulovich: 1:49

Really?

Handan: 1:50

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 1:51

Why?

Handan: 1:51

I mean... of course, it took time to, like, get familiar with the city and college system and everything. But it's going great.

Evan Franulovich: 2:02

It's going smoothly now?

Handan: 2:03

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 2:04

Was the first year complicated? Like were you confused about how classes worked? Or what what made it difficult?

Handan: 2:17

The difference between Turkish education system and here. Like, first of all, we don't have college system in Turkey. And we have a completely different university exam to get into university. And like we don't apply for college.

Evan Franulovich: 2:36

You don't?

Handan: 2:37

Yeah, we don't. It was a difference.

Evan Franulovich: 2:40

Do you just show up to classes, and...

Handan: 2:43

No, I mean... depend on the grade that you get on the exam, you get into a university... which one accept you.

Evan Franulovich: 2:53

Gotcha. So just... so Turkey must have an exam at the end of the high school years. And if you do well, you automatically get to go to university?

Handan: 3:06

You chose like 10 or 12 universities and which one... Like, accepts you, you go there. Like you don't apply, like, individually.

Evan Franulovich: 3:16

Sure. Or... You can do what you did and apply to go to school in the United States.

Handan: 3:22

Yeah, it's an option.

Evan Franulovich: 3:23

So cool. So How long had you been thinking about going to school in another country? And did you only consider the United States or did you think about Australia, Canada...? Or did you know, I want to go to the United States?

Handan: 3:39

Actually, I knew that. I'm wanna go to United States and it was my dream, but it was just a dream. Like, it will be great if I study in the US. But then at the last year of high school, my parents said, "Just go."

Evan Franulovich: 3:54

They were really supportive?

Handan: 3:55

If you want, you can go. Yeah, they supported me a lot. And I appreciate that.

Evan Franulovich: 3:59

Yeah, for sure.

Handan: 4:00

Yeah. And I applied Seattle College, and I applied just here.

Evan Franulovich: 4:05

Only this school?

Handan: 4:06

Then you accepted me. Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 4:08

Wow. So well, how did you hear about Seattle Colleges?

Handan: 4:15

Actually, like my uncle lives here. So I told like, knowing someone will be good. But I liked opportunities here, the big companies that provide like, many opportunities for people and for their employees.

Evan Franulovich: 4:32

Right.

Handan: 4:32

Yeah. This is why I chose Seattle. And Seattle College is... the most popular one.

Evan Franulovich: 4:39

It's great, yeah.

Handan: 4:40

Yeah, it' great. I do the research on Google.

Evan Franulovich: 4:43

You did?

Handan: 4:44

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 4:44

Tell me what kind of research did you do?

Handan: 4:49

I checked a lot your website and I saw your Instagram account and Twitter.

Evan Franulovich: 4:56

And those were helpful? They gave you information that helped you feel comfortable?

Handan: 5:00

Yeah, of course it was. And like the majority of the international students, like encouraged me to apply here. And I said, I won't... I won't feel not confident like...

Evan Franulovich: 5:15

Did you... did you know anybody from Turkey who had already gone to Seattle Colleges?

Handan: 5:21

No.

Evan Franulovich: 5:21

And did you correspond or talk to anybody before you came?

Handan: 5:25

Actually, I could find someone from Facebook and we texted before we came here. And after we came in, we met in person, We became friends.

Evan Franulovich: 5:35

That's so cool.

Handan: 5:36

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 5:37

How did you find them? You just like did a search for Seattle Colleges? Or how did you find them?

Handan: 5:43

Actually, there's a, like, group on Facebook for Turkish people who lives in Seattle.

Evan Franulovich: 5:50

Interesting.

Handan: 5:50

I get into that group.

Evan Franulovich: 5:53

And someone in that group is a student here?

Handan: 5:56

Was.

Evan Franulovich: 5:57

Was a student here.

Handan: 5:58

Yeah, was a student.

Evan Franulovich: 5:58

That's such a great idea. So for our audience, if you're out there, thinking about Seattle Colleges, you could do what she did, and get into a Facebook group or some social media group. Ask around about us. That's so cool.

Handan: 6:13

And I think like every group of people has a group on Facebook, like, I'm sure for Spanish people, for Italian people... I'm sure that we'll have the group.

Evan Franulovich: 6:26

Oh, we did an interview with one of the Mongolian students and she was talking about there's quite an extensive group of Mongolian students that, you know, from all over the United States, so yeah, okay, cool. How many students do we have from Turkey here at Seattle Colleges, do you know?

Handan: 6:45

I know around five or six.

Evan Franulovich: 6:48

That's correct, yeah. Five or six. That's kind of... Have you met them all?

Handan: 6:52

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 6:53

You have?

Handan: 6:55

I have just two that I haven't met yet, but I know them.

Evan Franulovich: 6:59

Do you guys hang out, are you friends? Do you go...?

Handan: 7:02

Yeah, yeah, sometimes.

Evan Franulovich: 7:04

Cool. And are you making friends with students, all the other international students? Is it easy to make friends?

Handan: 7:12

Yeah, it is. Like, everyone is very friendly and... everyone tries to make friends.

Evan Franulovich: 7:19

Sure. But what about domestic students? Do you mix with the domestic students as well? Or do you just...

Handan: 7:27

Actually, like I can be friends with domestic students better...

Evan Franulovich: 7:32

Better?

Handan: 7:34

Yeah, better.

Evan Franulovich: 7:35

more easily?

Handan: 7:35

Yeah. It was surprising for me, but like with domestic students, and I have like more American friends that international.

Evan Franulovich: 7:44

Oh, that's interesting. I talked to an international student the other day, and most of their friends that they hang out with were international students. They don't really know too many domestic students. So you have kind of a different experience. That's cool.

Handan: 7:57

Yeah, I feel like, I don't know. I feel like... more confident and more comfortable with American students.

Evan Franulovich: 8:04

Interesting.

Handan: 8:05

And they try to know me, and they're saying you're the first Turkish friend of mine. So I want to know, yeah, I want to know your culture.

Evan Franulovich: 8:13

Right. Right. Yeah, I think people have heard of Turkey.

Handan: 8:17

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 8:18

I don't know that many Americans know exactly where it is. I mean, well they definitely can't speak Turkish. It's not very common around here, so... How big is the community within Seattle? Are there a lot of I mean, is there a Turkish community center?

Handan: 8:37

They are mostly in Bellevue.

Evan Franulovich: 8:38

Mostly in Bellevue, okay.

Handan: 8:40

Yeah. But they're like...

Evan Franulovich: 8:44

...quite a few?

Handan: 8:44

Yeah, quite a few.

Evan Franulovich: 8:46

And that's not really why you're here anyway but it's nice to have support if you need it. All right. So you are... tell me what you're studying again?

Handan: 8:55

International business.

Evan Franulovich: 8:56

International business. And what do you want to do with a degree like international business? Do you want to start your own company? What do you want to do with that degree?

Handan: 9:07

Actually, it is my option to like run of my business. And I want transfer to UW after I complete my degree to Foster School, hopefully, and after I complete my studies, probably like, I want to work with a big company, then maybe do my own business.

Evan Franulovich: 9:30

Sounds good. And Would would you want to open that business in Turkey then? Or would you plan to go back to Turkey and start your own company or do you think you'll stick around the United States? What's your plan?

Handan: 9:41

Actually, I would like to stay here but like, I want to make connection between Turkey and U.S. and also I want to support my country and I want to like use my information and studies for my country, and I want to be supportive for them.

Evan Franulovich: 9:59

Cool. All right, so you've been at Seattle Colleges for a year. So that means you have about a year left before you graduate? Do you know which quarter you're gonna graduate?

Handan: 10:10

Yeah, probably I will apply to UW in this winter.

Evan Franulovich: 10:14

Okay, so this winter, you'll start your application. Did you... Did you get a Transfer Admission Guarantee when you applied to Seattle Colleges? Did you write down where you plan to transfer afterwards after you got your associate's degree?

Handan: 10:32

Yeah, I could find where can I transfer in website so like, I was knowing that I want to go UW before I came here.

Evan Franulovich: 10:43

Right. And are you planning to go to the Seattle campus, the Bothell campus, the Tacoma campus...?

Handan: 10:49

Seattle campus.

Evan Franulovich: 10:50

It's real close. Do you live in that area?

Handan: 10:53

It's close. Its close with light trail. It makes it... very fast to travel...

Evan Franulovich: 10:58

Nice, for sure. From here it's five minutes, maybe, at the most... it's really convenient. So let's talk about your housing. I asked where... you said you're close by, but do you have an apartment, do you do homestay? You obviously aren't living in the dorms here.

Handan: 11:14

I live in my own apartment in Northgate.

Evan Franulovich: 11:17

Gotcha.

Handan: 11:18

Yeah. And I live alone. And I'm...

Evan Franulovich: 11:21

For now.

Handan: 11:22

For now, yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 11:23

So you took... before the interview began, I was talking with her and she said that her brother was just accepted to Seattle Colleges.

Handan: 11:32

Yeah, and he's coming here for Fall quarter.

Evan Franulovich: 11:36

So cool. And is he nervous?

Handan: 11:40

No, actually, because I, I mentioned my experience to him. And I'm trying to make him comfortable.

Evan Franulovich: 11:47

Sure, of course. So then he'll get to move in with you... How great is that? That'll make life easy. So great. And he's going to study computers...?

Handan: 11:56

Science, yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 11:57

Yeah. This is a good place for that. Lots of great companies. Does he already program computers? Does he know how to code?

Handan: 12:07

Yeah, he knows and he took some courses. Like maybe four years?

Evan Franulovich: 12:12

Oh okay. Wow.

Handan: 12:14

And he knows a lot about it.

Evan Franulovich: 12:16

That's great.

Handan: 12:17

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 12:18

So you'll have... your uncle's already here, you said?

Handan: 12:21

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 12:22

And then you'll have your brother here. That's great. You'll have your family here.

Handan: 12:25

Yeah, my family.

Evan Franulovich: 12:26

Cool. So what do you do for fun around here? You know, a lot of students come from overseas, they start their time here and they don't really know much about Seattle so getting started, like, what kinds of things do you do? And what would you recommend to international students that are arriving here?

Handan: 12:43

Actually, if you're under 21, don't expect too much fun.

Evan Franulovich: 12:48

No bars.

Handan: 12:49

Yeah. No bars, or like, no more fun. But you can visit great museums, and you can't go to coffee shops and like, you can go to tourists stops.

Evan Franulovich: 13:04

What's your favorite museum? Which one have you been to you like?

Handan: 13:08

Mopop museum.

Evan Franulovich: 13:09

Oh, yeah, really?

Handan: 13:10

Near the Space Needle.

Evan Franulovich: 13:11

You know, I've never been to that museum.

Handan: 13:13

Really?

Evan Franulovich: 13:13

Isn't that crazy? I've been to the Seattle Art Museum. Have you been to the Seattle Art Museum?

Handan: 13:18

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 13:19

So nice.

Handan: 13:20

Yeah, It's very nice.

Evan Franulovich: 13:21

Yeah, that's cool. There are a lot of good museums in the area. There's a... someone told me that in Tacoma they have a car museum, where you can go and see... Have you been to that?

Handan: 13:31

No, I haven't.

Evan Franulovich: 13:33

But I see it as I drive down the freeway. I can see it off there. And it looks pretty cool.

Handan: 13:38

Yeah. And there's a plane museum as well.

Evan Franulovich: 13:40

Oh Really? I didn't know that.

Handan: 13:42

And... I don't know the name exactly, but... like a museum where you can see the planes.

Evan Franulovich: 13:48

Well, this is a community that has a lot of aviation companies in it like Boeing is here so that makes a lot of sense, I guess. Well, cool. Let's go back a little bit to when you were applying. So you applied, you got accepted, which was great, and then you had to go do a visa interview. You had to go get your visa. Most of the students that listen to this program or that communicate with us, always ask about that process. So, maybe you can share your experience. How long did it take for you to get your appointment? And then from the time you got your appointment, how long before you able to go into the embassy? How long was your interview? What did they ask you, those kinds of things?

Handan: 14:32

I think I waited for like five months for my appointment. Yeah, I...

Evan Franulovich: 14:38

Five months?

Handan: 14:39

Yeah, I got my... I applied for an appointment on like, maybe January, and it was on June.

Evan Franulovich: 14:48

Geez, that is a long time.

Handan: 14:49

Yeah, that's a long time and my recommendation is get your appointment right now.

Evan Franulovich: 14:54

Get it early. Yeah.

Handan: 14:56

Yeah, get it like much earlier so you can have time to like get your files and to prepare for the appointment. But it was pretty easy for me. And they asked for like a couple of questions like, why will you leave? And which state and which... are you going and what will you study? Then they just said, you will get your password with mail. And that's okay. You can go.

Evan Franulovich: 15:20

That was it?

Handan: 15:21

It was pretty easy, yeah. I was so nervous, but like it took maybe 10 minutes, but check the files that you need to bring with you very well.

Evan Franulovich: 15:31

Yeah, make sure that you have every document that they're going to require. Yeah. And we have a list of those documents on our website if you're preparing to go. Did anyone help you? Like did you use an agent to get to the U.S?

Handan: 15:46

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 15:46

You did, okay. And did they help you prepare for your interview?

Handan: 15:49

Yeah, of course, they helped with the every step of the application. And...

Evan Franulovich: 15:54

Oh, that's cool.

Handan: 15:55

Yeah, I think they made the connection between the college and me. And, yeah, they helped a lot. And it makes easier for me.

Evan Franulovich: 16:08

So different agents work in different ways. Did your agent charge you for those services? Or are those services free? So how does that work?

Handan: 16:10

Actually, it was quite low amount and, like, they said if you get accept from college, we will pay back.

Evan Franulovich: 16:28

Okay. Nice. That's great.

Handan: 16:31

It's almost no charge.

Evan Franulovich: 16:33

Almost no charge, okay. So in... are there are a lot of agents to choose from?

Handan: 16:39

I found, like, couple of agents, and I choose the one that make connection with you.

Evan Franulovich: 16:49

Okay, cool. Well, that's really great. So if you're out there listening, if you're in Turkey, you can find an agent to help you with the process to get your application in, to help get prepared for your visa interview. That's really great. So it didn't take too long. You got it right away. That was really good. And then what was your process of getting ready to come to the United States? Like what kinds of things did you need to do in order to get ready to come to school here?

Handan: 17:20

Actually, like, my visa appointment was after the university exam so like, just in case, I continued to study on it, and I keep going to school and getting my classes and studying for that exam in Turkey. And I tried to, like, study hard. I don't know if I could... I kept studying. But I didn't... mistake, because like, I needed to focus on English and on reading and on the... like, on the teaching here.

Evan Franulovich: 17:58

Sure.

Handan: 17:59

Yeah, because it's... different. Of course,

Evan Franulovich: 18:02

Well let me ask you about your English. When you were in Turkey, did you take your IELTS test or your TOFEL test? Or did you take it once you arrived?

Handan: 18:12

I took it when I arrived.

Evan Franulovich: 18:14

Oh, Okay.

Handan: 18:15

And the proficiency test.

Evan Franulovich: 18:18

The English proficiency test. And how did you do? Did you have to go to SCIE first, before you can take college classes, or was your English level high enough that you just got to begin English classes... or... college classes?

Handan: 18:32

I got SCIE classes last year.

Evan Franulovich: 18:34

Oh, Okay.

Handan: 18:34

And I graduated from.

Evan Franulovich: 18:37

Okay, so what level did you begin at - four or

Handan: 18:40

When I came, there were six levels, and I was at four, five? then it changed to five

Evan Franulovich: 18:49

To five, yeah.

Handan: 18:50

Yeah. And I studied for three quarters.

Evan Franulovich: 18:54

Okay. And when you were in your last two quarters, that would have been levels four and five or five and six, depending... Were you able to take college classes at the same time?

Handan: 19:05

Yeah. Yeah. I could take five credits college classes at like, fifth level and on sixth level, I got I think, two.

Evan Franulovich: 19:19

What did you take, what class did you take?

Handan: 19:20

Math.

Evan Franulovich: 19:21

Oh, you took a math class?

Handan: 19:22

Yeah, I took two math classes.

Evan Franulovich: 19:25

And were they difficult math classes?

Handan: 19:28

It wasn't.

Evan Franulovich: 19:29

It wasn't difficult.

Handan: 19:30

Yeah, it wasn't like... I I wanted to start from the beginning to improve the math and English, because like my ... Turkish is easy. Okay. I know, but like, what about the English so like, I choose something is easy for math. But I tried to focus on the terms in English.

Evan Franulovich: 19:53

Gotcha. Smart. That sounds like a good plan. And now you are just taking college classes, you've graduated from that, and so how many classes do you take each quarter? Usually?

Handan: 20:07

Three classes. It makes 12 or 15 credits.

Evan Franulovich: 20:12

And that's a pretty manageable load? You have free time?

Handan: 20:16

It changes. Like... But I tried to like, take my own personal time.

Evan Franulovich: 20:22

Sure. To go to those museums.

Handan: 20:26

Yeah or just like spend time with my friends or like... go shopping or just going to coffee shops.

Evan Franulovich: 20:35

Well, when do you turn 21? Soon?

Handan: 20:39

June 2024.

Evan Franulovich: 20:41

Oh, so you still have a little time...

Handan: 20:43

More than a year.

Evan Franulovich: 20:44

Sad.

Handan: 20:45

But it will be fun after 21.

Evan Franulovich: 20:47

You're not missing a lot, just so you know. I mean, it's not as big a deal... Of course, that's easy for me to say.

Handan: 20:53

But like, I know Turkish students like, expecting much fun. Because like, they say,"It's U.S. It must be fun." They came here. but like, I'm not 21.

Evan Franulovich: 21:05

It is fun. It's just not in the bars fun. Do you hike? Do you go out and enjoy nature? Do you do anything like that?

Handan: 21:12

Yeah, of course, I go to parks and I do hiking.

Evan Franulovich: 21:16

Oh nice. Like, have you been to any of the national parks? Like did you go to Mount Rainier or like the Olympics? Have you done any of that?

Handan: 21:25

Those places are, like, far from me.

Evan Franulovich: 21:29

So you don't have a car?

Handan: 21:30

Yeah, I don't have a car.

Evan Franulovich: 21:33

No friends with a car?

Handan: 21:35

I have, but like, we couldn't go, just...

Evan Franulovich: 21:39

You say "Hey, let's go to Mount Rainier you're driving."

Handan: 21:44

Yeah, I'm gonna say that.

Evan Franulovich: 21:46

You should say that, then you get to go. Yeah, it's really great. We also have activities that are put on by the student leadership for international programs. So we just went to tubing. We went up in the snow and by where they snowboard and ski. It was really fun.

Handan: 22:07

Yeah, I saw your posts and... It seems fun.

Evan Franulovich: 22:11

But you didn't go. Next time...

Handan: 22:14

For next time. I don't like cold.

Evan Franulovich: 22:17

Oh, you don't like cold.

Handan: 22:18

I don't like cold and snow. I'm more like... warmer days.

Evan Franulovich: 22:27

Well, so you... so you obviously don't live in the mountains of Turkey.

Handan: 22:31

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 22:31

You live in the warm part of Turkey.

Handan: 22:35

Actually, in my city, we we have all four seasons.

Evan Franulovich: 22:38

You do?

Handan: 22:39

Yeah, we have.

Evan Franulovich: 22:40

All right.

Handan: 22:41

Like in the whole of Turkey.

Evan Franulovich: 22:43

How far away are you from Istanbul?

Handan: 22:47

It takes maybe ten hours by driving, but it...

Evan Franulovich: 22:50

Ten hours?

Handan: 22:51

By driving. It takes one hour by flight.

Evan Franulovich: 22:56

Okay. Wow. So, so which city are you from?

Handan: 23:00

Çorum. It's near to Ankara, which is the capital city.

Evan Franulovich: 23:05

Gotcha. Nice. All right. I was going to ask you about working on campus. One of the questions we get a lot from students that are coming here is like, "Will I be able to get a job on campus?" And you just recently got a job on campus. Can you tell the... can you tell our listeners about applying for the job and what you're doing and...

Handan: 23:34

We are in the same office...... and I'm so glad for that.

Evan Franulovich: 23:36

We are! So great. Yeah.

Handan: 23:39

Yeah. This is my first on campus job and I knew that from Instagram. Then I like...

Evan Franulovich: 23:50

Oh, they advertised the job on Instagram?

Handan: 23:52

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 23:52

Gotcha.

Handan: 23:53

Yeah, then I applied with my resume and my cover letter. Then you wanna make an interview with me.

Evan Franulovich: 24:05

That's right.

Handan: 24:05

Then I get accepted.

Evan Franulovich: 24:06

Yeah, that's true.

Handan: 24:06

Then I get my social security number. It was a easy process.

Evan Franulovich: 24:11

Was it? How long did it take for you to... Once you applied for it, how long did it take to get your social security number?

Handan: 24:19

Two weeks.

Evan Franulovich: 24:19

Oh, it was only two weeks.

Handan: 24:20

Yeah, it was two weeks.

Evan Franulovich: 24:21

Oh, that is very fast.

Handan: 24:22

Yeah and I didn't wait in SSN office. They just called me and got my documents... Be careful about your documents. I forgot my passport.

Evan Franulovich: 24:34

Oh, no.

Handan: 24:35

Then I go back to my apartment then got back... went back.

Evan Franulovich: 24:40

Yeah. Always carry that passport, for sure.

Handan: 24:42

Of course.

Evan Franulovich: 24:43

That's funny. And then you just started and then how many hours a week will you be working?

Handan: 24:50

Like 14 to 15.

Evan Franulovich: 24:52

Okay, so yeah. So it's part time, which is great because that works with your class schedule. Perfect. And what are you going to be doing?

Handan: 25:01

I'm a social media assistant and I'm trying to create content for this social media accounts, and I do posts and like I tried to follow the events at college and what's coming next.

Evan Franulovich: 25:18

Right. So if you're out there listening and you see some Instagram posts, it could be that you're the one posting it. That's cool!

Handan: 25:25

Yeah. Yeah, I'm managing the Seattle Colleges International Programs account so you can follow us.

Evan Franulovich: 25:32

Right? Yeah, we have Facebook, Tik, Tok, Instagram, YouTube... Like, that's most of them. And if you're in China, we're now getting started with WeChat.

So... [Chinese: 25:43

If you have WeChat] you can get on WeChat. That's cool. Oh, do you hear that? That means it's Trivia Time! Are you ready? So what we do is we ask five questions. And if you answer all the questions correctly, you are a superstar. And if you miss any questions, it's okay, we won't bother you too much. But couple small questions for you. Question

number one: 26:11

What is the average class size here at Seattle Colleges? How many students?

Handan: 26:20

28?

Evan Franulovich: 26:21

Okay, that's a little high.

Handan: 26:23

Like 20 - 25?

Evan Franulovich: 26:26

Yeah, that's good. Yeah, about 20 - 25. We will accept that answer. That's a good answer. Good. Yeah. All right. One of the cool things about coming to school at a community college is the smaller class sizes. You know, if you go to an English class in, say, the big universities, there can be hundreds of people and here it's very small. So, nice. Good answer. All right, very good. Second question: How much is the application fee for Seattle Colleges?

Handan: 26:58

I almost forget that. I think it was $40 - $50?

Evan Franulovich: 27:04

$50. Good job. Yeah, the application fee is$50. Nice. Good job. All right. Very good. Tell us how many quarters are there at Seattle Colleges?

Handan: 27:16

Four.

Evan Franulovich: 27:17

That's correct! Good. Fourth question: What is the name of our what is the mascot for Seattle Central? What animal?

Handan: 27:29

Tiger.

Evan Franulovich: 27:29

It's the tiger! Very good. Last question? Who is your favorite actor?

Handan: 27:37

Hmm. Okay, I'm gonna say Leonardo DiCaprio.

Evan Franulovich: 27:44

Oh, Leonardo. Which movie? Which movies of his is your favorite? Don't say Titanic.

Handan: 27:53

I was gonna say it.

Evan Franulovich: 27:55

You were?

Handan: 27:56

Yeah, I was gonna say that. Then you said, "Don't say it."

Evan Franulovich: 27:59

Because I couldn't... I didn't like'Titanic' because I thought it was like, so terrible. But that was your favorite?

Handan: 28:08

It was the first one that came to my mind.

Evan Franulovich: 28:11

Okay, it's the first one. Yeah, Leonardo DiCaprio. He's a good actor.

Handan: 28:16

He is.

Evan Franulovich: 28:17

Great. Do you watch a lot of movies?

Handan: 28:20

Sometimes.

Evan Franulovich: 28:20

Yeah. Have you seen many here? Do you go to the movie theaters in Seattle?

Handan: 28:25

I went for once. The name was long, but they just got like many Oscar awards. So...

Evan Franulovich: 28:33

Oh, really? Recently?

Handan: 28:35

Recently.

Evan Franulovich: 28:36

Hmmm... Was it the 'Everything Everywhere, All

Handan: 28:38

Yeah. At Once'?

Evan Franulovich: 28:40

Did you like that movie?

Handan: 28:42

Actually, it was like very different. A very different kind of movie. And like, I don't know. I don't know how I felt about it.

Evan Franulovich: 28:53

It's strange movie, for sure.

Handan: 28:55

Yeah, it was strange.

Evan Franulovich: 28:56

I liked it. I thought it was good. Best Film? I don't know. Maybe?

Handan: 29:02

I don't think so. To be honest.

Evan Franulovich: 29:04

Yeah, I saw other films I liked better but... No, it was good. It was pretty strange, though, for sure. Well, we're getting ready to wrap up. I always like to give you the opportunity to give some advice, or to maybe say what you think students in Turkey or anywhere in the region- could be Europe or even in the Middle East - Like if they're thinking of coming to school here at Seattle Colleges or just the United States in general, what advice would you give them?

Handan: 29:34

My first advice will be if you don't have a code system in your country, research a lot and learn very well. Learn how to decide to come to classes and how to make a plan schedule. Otherwise like an unplanned schedule will be a problem for the rest of the quarter and I don't know, in my country, we must do like, professors teach us, teachers teach us, and then we are just waiting for the information to come. But here, it's the opposite. You need to reach the information and you must learn through your research and out of class studies. So, like...

Evan Franulovich: 30:24

So what are the teachers for?

Handan: 30:26

To reach the information.

Evan Franulovich: 30:28

Oh, Okay. They facilitate then.

Handan: 30:30

Yeah, they're just giving hints, and they are giving tips about the topic and how it is, but like you do most of the study out of class.

Evan Franulovich: 30:42

Yeah, that's true. That's absolutely true.

Handan: 30:45

But I think it's better.

Evan Franulovich: 30:47

Do you like it?

Handan: 30:47

For learning. Yeah, I love this system. But I'm just saying that be prepared for this. Yeah. And, yeah, reach the information and learn it yourself.

Evan Franulovich: 30:57

Cool. I like that. I taught when I was in China for a while. And I noticed that a lot of the students there are used to that kind of a system where they're just waiting for you to give them information. And that's not how I ran my class and kind of freaked them out a little bit. They didn't know what to do with it. Some of them... Some of them adjusted very easily and quickly and others had a very difficult time with that style. That's for sure. That's a good one. Nice. I like that. Well, great. Well, thanks for being on the show. We really appreciate it. We want to increase the number of Turkish students here, or anybody from that part of the world. So come visit, you can hang out with them. You can hit the bars when you turn 21.

Handan: 31:43

Ok.

Evan Franulovich: 31:44

All right. Well, thanks so much.

Handan: 31:45

Yeah.

Evan Franulovich: 31:46

Bye bye. Conversations with! is painstakingly crafted for you by the Seattle Colleges International Programs department and supported by the lovely folks here on our campus. This show is produced and edited by me Evan Franulovich. We welcome your emails and questions about coming to Seattle Colleges. Please reach out to us via our website, or just give us a rating and a review on Apple podcasts as this helps others discover the show. Also, don't forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok, or YouTube at SeattleCollegesIntl. That's SeattleCollegesIntl. And be sure to check out all of the shows here on Conversations with! Thanks for listening and we'll see you next week.