International Partners

Partner Perspctives

Netherlands
By: Ernestine Crowther, Netherlands
Coming to Cambridge, Getting around
No matter how many times you move, it is always an exciting and exhausting experience to come to a brand new city, country or continent. I moved around a lot as a child, but upping sticks and putting down new roots doesn't necessarily get any easier with time or experience. There are some strategies, however, people might pick up after a while to help them settle into their new surroundings quickly and smoothly.

Spend a while reading up on your new town. There are practically more bookstores, and coffee shops where you can read your new books, than bars in Cambridge. Pick up a few guidebooks and maps of Cambridge/Boston. Even by leafing through them you quickly get a pretty good picture of where you have arrived. Then by setting yourself walking goals at increasingly further distances from your home, you can get comfortably lost and stumble into the quaintest areas of Cambridge. Spending a few hours following the Freedom Trail, which starts on Boston Common, is a pleasant yet structured way to get a quick feel for the different flavors of Boston.

I found having a bike really opened up the city to me. I bought a mountain bike, which turned out to be a smart move, as the roads in certain parts of Cambridge are a true adventure to ride on, and not for the faint-hearted, especially in winter (ideally I would like to add extra suspension to my bike for those really big potholes on Cambridge Street!). Bike riding is really the fastest way to get around, as you don't have to figure out where the bus stops or T (subway) stops are or how often they run. I bought my bike at ATA bikes, 1773 Massachusetts Avenue- great bikes and great service! We haven't needed a car for getting around, and are turned off by the one-way traffic, so we hire one for weekends away.

Making friends
Many people will find it easy to quickly build up a new circle of friends here. They might have friends here already, meet people through their new jobs or make friends with their neighbors. The HBS Partners' Club also organizes some social events, which provide a good opportunity to lay down some initial contacts. Your student partner will be inviting you along to many of their social dos too. Even if you are feeling a little vulnerable or homesick when you first arrive, it's important to make a really big effort to go to as many social events as you can handle, with or without your student partner. It's good to take advantage in the first few weeks of term that everyone else is also making the biggest effort to make new friends, like you. Then when things calm down again, you'll have a group of friends to spend the next couple of years with, and hopefully for the rest of your life!

Getting a job
It is isn't always easy for foreigners to get paid jobs in the USA. Before moving to Boston, I sent my resume to some schools for teaching positions. It was only after my husband's course had started that I actually heard back from one of them. Cambridge Public Schools is often looking for tutors, especially bilingual ESL tutors (Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Haitian Creole or Chinese). Phone them at 617-349 6468.

Getting sponsorship for a work visa has proved to be a real headache. I think big international companies might have more experience with hiring and sponsoring foreigners. If you aren't too tightly strapped for cash, however, there are many volunteer jobs out there. Cambridge is very active with regards to human services- phone City Hall for information.

Getting information
The Improper Bostonian is a free magazine you can pick up in stores or restaurants. It gives you good up to date information on what's going on Boston. There's also the Metro, which is a free (international) Boston-based paper, giving you daily tips- you can find them in green plastic units on street corners and by T stations. My favorite website is www.boston.citysearch.com for basically any information. It's also worth exploring the Harvard and HBS websites. You can use your partner's passwords to get an in-depth picture of what's out there. Also make sure your student partner is keeping you informed of what's available to you through Harvard as he is introduced to the School. Once you know what you're interested in, for example the Fogg Museum, the David Rockefeller Center for Latino Studies, the Africa Business Club or the Kennedy School, you can subscribe to their newsletter.

Final note
Cambridge is a great place to live. It's entertaining, attractive, clean, bizarre, busy, quiet, cute, artsy, yummy and generally very livable. Boston is also beautiful. There's nothing I miss from a city. I've also had an incredibly socially active time since moving here. It's one of those rare moments in your life when a whole group of you are newcomers and everyone is up for making new friends. I'm having a wonderful time, and I'm sure you will too!


Mexico
By: Angelica Solares, Mexico
How enjoyable is life in Boston?
Living in Boston has been a very enjoyable experience to me. As a partner, you will have access to many social events that will occupy a good part of your time. You will find yourself living in and learning from a cross-cultural environment (I guarantee you will enjoy meeting people from your partner's section as well as other American and International partners!)

A great thing about Boston is the ample opportunity it offers to continue with your own studies in any of its various schools. I am taking the CSS (Certificate of Special Studies in Business and Management) at the Harvard Extension School, which has allowed me to study with people from all around the world and interact with Harvard professors. Classes follow the "case-method", which has given me a better understanding of what my husband is doing at HBS. Life in Boston offers many opportunities for personal growth, it is what you make it to be and I am sure you will find that which better fits your goals.


China
By: Ying Shen, China
At the very moment that my husband received his admission to Harvard Business School, I knew my life would change permanently. My career development at Hewlett-Packard was in a crucial stage then. Moving to Boston meant I must sacrifice my soaring career in China.

I discussed thoroughly with my husband about our future, and he, as considerate as usual, said, "I support whatever decision you make". On the other hand, however, I realized that the pressure was double-folded: not only I was facing the crossing, but also my husband was confronting the most dramatic challenge in his life - studying under intensive stress in an alien culture. I could read the yearning for my company from his eyes. At that moment, I heard the vow we made on our wedding ceremony: nothing breaks us apart. I am one half of a new family, a once-in-a-lifetime "career" for me. Against all odds, I jumped into the uncharted water hand-in-hand with my husband.

Life is such a miracle - whatever has been given up is returned doubly. As my HBS partner's life unfolds, I find it neither a personal setback nor a professional disadvantage; instead, it is an inspiring and enlightening experience. In the heterogeneous HBS community, I expose myself to dramatically different cultures and ways of thinking, which enhances my culture sensitivity and understanding; and through the Case Night for HBS partners and discussions with my husband about the exhilarating cases during dinners, I start rethinking what makes an efficient manager at workplace. In addition to extensive working experiences I also need a solid knowledge foundation - MBA. I realized that this is the best timing for me to prepare myself for a new stage in my career life. I started my own B-School application campaign. With support both from inside the family and from outside partner friends, I finished the 6-month application campaign and received admission from one of my dream schools.

I'd like to welcome all in-coming internationals partners. You can pursuit your dream in HBS community. If you have any concern or uncertainty now, just follow your heart and believe - miracle does happen here!


Japan
By: Toko Umeza, Japan
When I first arrived in Boston, I had only a few acquaintances. Since I only lived in Japan before coming here, my communication skills in English were not so high. At first, I was hesitant to go out and communicate with others in English because I did not want to embarrass myself struggling with English. In hindsight, however, I am glad that I changed my mind and attitude to take some proactive approaches in the early stage. This helped me to make so many great friends. Indeed, I am always busy having great time with them!

I first became friends with several people in the first Partner's Club meeting. Once I got into the circle of friendship, the circle kept widening. One month later, I made a Japanese cooking session with ten partners, which one of my friends named "Secrets from a Japanese Kitchen." Although explaining the detail of Japanese cooking was sometimes not easy, I still had a great time since everyone was pleased with the event. This experience was instrumental in changing my attitude - I decided to enjoy my social life in Boston as much as possible - and this change led me to innumerable opportunities to learn more about the U.S. and other foreign countries, as well as motivations to boost my English proficiency. In order to improve my English, I spent two months studying attending an English communication school. The course met everyday for three hours, and I had to write four essays and make three presentations in two months. In addition, I had a number of reading assignments. I immediately became occupied with the classes and the assignments. This experience forced me to think and write in English for substantial part of days. Needless to say, it made a great effect on my speaking skill.

What I enjoy the most now is the two classes at the Harvard Extension School: Psychology and Academic Writing. In the psychology class, I have to read two thick books filled with technical terms, and will have to write an essay. Yet, my strong interest in psychology seems help me accomplish these assignment. Although technical words sometimes annoy me, a thought that I am receiving the high-leveled lectures from the Harvard professor keeps pleasing me. While there are more than one hundred students in the psychology class, there are 15 people in the academic writing class. Every student in the writing class is engaged with the reading and writing assignment given by the professor. During the class we always have energetic discussions about students' essays and those written by famous authors. I believe these two classes is just the beginning of my academic life in Boston.

If you are not a good English speaker, you may be irritated with yourself at first. But, don't worry. Even I was able to make friends and enjoy a daily life. Join our circle of friendship!


Canada
By: Paris Masters, Canada
My student husband, Charles, and I moved from Toronto, Canada, to off-campus housing in Cambridge, about a 25-minute walk to HBS on August 12, 2002. My first priority was to find a job, but reality dictated that this was going to be more difficult than I originally thought due to my Visa situation (being on an F2 Visa you cannot work and even if I could, the poor state of the economy was out of my hands!) During the first five months of endless job searching, I realized that I could better make use of my time here by pursuing my Masters degree.

Having said that, during the months I was job searching, I found out how to become eligible to work in the United States: by getting an employer to hire me and then obtaining a TN Visa under the NAFTA regulations. This visa allows certain professionals to work in the U.S.A. from Canada or Mexico (and other Treaty Nations) under the North American Free Trade Agreement. I have now obtained my visa (after 6 months) and it was not as complicated as I first thought. I highly recommend a visit to the International Office on Holyoke Street, 8th Floor, for tons of information from obtaining work visas to various support services available to you (they provide you with information flyers on almost any subject).

At first when I arrived here, the essentials of setting up "house" took up most of my time but soon after I found myself with something I have not experienced before, considering I am in the height of my career: TIME! Hence, the next step was to determine how to keep busy but also network into the community. I stumbled upon volunteer information on various opportunities and quickly started soul searching about what community-related work I could make my contributions. I decided on Tutoring Grade 3's at a local Public School one afternoon a week, and Teaching ESL and Computers to Spanish-speaking Harvard Employees through the Harvard Bridge to Learning and Literacy Program. The result of my 7 hours per week of volunteering led to a part-time job at the Bridge office, which in turn allowed me to obtain my TN Visa. If you can spare 2 hours or more, and would like to help adults learn English, please contact Carla Fontaine, Program Director at: 617-384-9442. You never know what doors it might lead to!

Now that I had a routine for half of the week, the other half allowed me to explore Boston, continue to meet new friends/partners, go to some of the balls and other events held both through the school and Partners' Club, and all the while adjusting to life being newly married and with a student-husband!

As for my time now - I'm working part-time at Harvard University teaching computers, a member of a Partners' Book Club, taking oil painting classes with Charles on Friday evenings through the Cambridge Center for Adults, volunteer tutor grade 3's, and await the start of my classes in June. I hope to complete my degree around the same time as Charles.

There are a lot of adjustments and changes, and it's not always easy, but I can honestly say that during the past six months, I've created a life which just got busier, more fulfilling and the support from new friends experiencing the same sorts of things has definitely helped!