Ferhan Alesi-Sarikaya

Encouraging interest in intercultural competence is a prime target for SIETAR Turk in the coming year, including the introduction of resources and courses in University programs. On December 9^th, as a member of the incipient SIETAR Turk group, I had the opportunity to provide an introductory presentation on intercultural issues at Yeditepe University in Istanbul.

Since the audience was made of university students, I focused my presentation especially on topics such as  stressful experiences of foreign students at various stages of their sojourn, on culture shock and its symptoms, as well as on re-entry shock. This gave me the chance to talk first-hand about my personal experiences when I was a student in Austria and Switzerland as well as to sort through the experience of returning to my Turkish homeland after a long period abroad.

As SIETAR Turk we hope to create awareness in those issues and train students as well as
working adults in intercultural issues. For a quick look at the many facets of Turkish History and life,
please click on http://www.halicrotary.org/presentation/.

Yeditepe University Students group following the intercultural issues presentation.