Judith Njogu smiles at strangers since her arrival to the United States from Nairobi, Kenya.

In Kenya, people are friendly and hospitable only after having their initial introduction, said Njogu, a medical technology and premedical senior.

"You don't go smiling at strangers," she said.

But Njogu said she appreciates grins from those she's not familiar with and likes to smile back.

"These days I do," she said. "I realize it's a good thing now that I have been exposed to it."

Njogu, who traveled to Michigan in December 2000, described her experiences adapting to the United States in her first place entry for the 2nd Annual International Student Essay Contest offered by the Office for International Students and Scholars, or OISS. Her essay was picked out of 145 submissions, and Njogu will be recognized today, and awarded $1,000.

Participating students described both positive and frustrating experiences since their arrival in the United States. They were encouraged to describe the high and low points of their transition, as well as events that occurred on or off campus and in the classroom.

"Being very independent and having no family in the country, you have to make big decisions for yourself," Njogu said. "If something gets really bad you can always go back to your parents' house. But here, if something goes really bad, it's just me."

Njogu said international students form deep friendships with each other early to substitute familial bonds.

One of the goals of the essay contest was to alert all students on campus to what international students go through, said Rosemary Max, assistant director of OISS.

Max said after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, it has become harder for international students to travel to the United States without undergoing much more scrutiny. She said reports on the students are sent to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security every semester.

The distance quickly makes the students mature and become independent, Max said.

"It's a lot farther than driving from Grand Rapids," she said. "It's a lot more of a treacherous journey these students go through. They sacrifice a lot to be at Michigan State."

Max said international students come to the United States for the quality of the education, because they know it will open doors for them and enhance their career options.

"They adapt and persevere and keep their mind focused on the goal, which is getting their degree," she said.

Carla Barbieri, a park, recreation and tourism resources doctoral student, won second place. Mazen Haydar, an environmental engineering doctoral student from Lebanon tied for third place with Cindy Chen, a journalism junior from Malaysia.

Haydar, from Beirut, said he arrived the day before Christmas in 2001, only to be met by an empty campus and a lonely apartment.

Haydar said his feelings of frustration and sadness almost drove him to return to Lebanon.

"The thought came to my mind that I wanted to leave after I came here. I wanted to pack my stuff and go," Hayrdar said.

"It was my first experience outside my country - it wasn't pretty the way it started."

But Haydar said his family convinced him to stay, and since then he is very satisfied with his involvement in all the opportunities offered on campus.

"When I came here, I wasn't that into being a Spartan," he said. "But you grow to be a Spartan - you feel like you are part of a community that is MSU.

"You're going to carry that experience wherever you go."