Costanzo, originally from Melbourne, Australia, is studying abroad at MSU. He said he has met people from all across the world, engaging in a global experience all on MSU’s campus.

Costanzo said at MSU, he has made friends from Ecuador, Brazil, Spain, England and Germany, among others.

“We know we come from different areas, different backgrounds … but we ended up mixing very well,” Costanzo said. “(And) I think we have made really great friendships that way.”

One of the ways Costanzo and his friends communicate is through a Facebook group where they are able to exchange information and make plans.

Another member of the group, graduate student Frank Buehler, who originally is from Germany, said after pursuing his undergraduate degree in his home country, one of the biggest differences is the type of schooling he has been exposed to.

“Back home, there is a huge university … and nobody cares if you attend class, nobody cares if you do anything; you just have to do one final exam, and if you pass, you pass,” Buehler said. “(Here), it is very different; you always have homework, (and) the professor is trying to care.”

Buehler said he feels as if many exchange students on study abroad have the same mindset as himself — they are open to exploring new things and meeting new people.

Costanzo also noted that at a university in Australia, students most likely will commute and continue to live at home. The group agreed, laughing to themselves, that most people probably will live at home until they’re married.

The boys also noted the presidential election was extremely interesting and entertaining to observe.

It was an experience physics senior Ed Hawkes said is quite different in England. In his home country, Hawkes said candidates are not allowed to criticize one another in the way Americans “obliterate” their opponent — something he described as a “cat fight.”

Hawkes said he also was confused about the way the results were reported.

“It was all projections,” Hawkes said, chuckling, his voice escalating with his friends’. “And as soon as it came on national news, Obama’s won, and so he’s making his speech, apparently, (and) Alaska hasn’t even voted yet.”

Costanzo said he didn’t quite understand the politics of game day either.

“We understood how serious the police are here … (but) everything changes on the game day,” Costanzo said. “(I think) they don’t really care; I think they’re just wanting (MSU) to win, too.”

The students agreed they enjoy the American lifestyle, and Costanzo said many of them already have talked about how hard it will be to leave at the end of the semester.

“(I) don’t think (we) realized how close our friendships were going to be,” Costanzo said. “I know that it’s going to be really hard leaving some of the guys.”