Umeå University starts Host Programme for international students
NEWS
On Thursday, a kickoff will be held for Umeå University’s Host Programme for international students. Approximately 150 participants - hosts and international students – will meet for the first time.
– The initiative has received a great response and above all, it is very pleasing to see the large number of hosts that have signed up, says Kristina Sehlin MacNeil, organiser of the Host Programme and Project Manager for International Information and Marketing at Umeå University.
Hosts and guests will get acquainted with each other during the first meeting, and will be provided with food, music and entertainment. After the first meeting, the hosts are responsible to arrange an additional meeting with the students.
As a host, one is asked meet two international students on two occasions during a term. The first meeting is organised by the university and the second meeting is arranged by the hosts themselves. They can invite students home for dinner, meet at a café in town, or show them their favourite place in Umeå. If the hosts and students get along well together, they are encouraged to meet on additional occasions, but neither students nor hosts have any obligation to further engagement. A host can be an employee or student at Umeå University or Umeå Municipality. Hosts can have families or be single persons. All who have showed interest in the host programme have been welcome to participate.
– It’s about both giving our international students a positive experience during their stay in Umeå and creating an engagement for international and cultural exchange among the Umeå University faculty, staff and students, says Kristina Sehlin MacNeil.
The first meeting will be held on Thursday 11 October at 4:30 pm at the Caelum cafeteria in the Chemical-Biological Centre, Umeå University. The media is welcome to attend the meeting.
Contact Person: Kristina Sehlin MacNeil, Project Manager for International Information and Marketing, Information Office at Umeå University Phone: +46 (0)90-786 95 97 Mobile: +46 (0)70 456 5720 E-mail: kristina.sehlin-macneil@adm.umu.se
