Ayane Kitta Helps Other International Students Find Their Way

When Ayane Kitta was in middle school, her family moved from Japan to Indiana for three years. “Not knowing any English, not knowing the culture, I transferred to a school where everyone was speaking a language that I didn't know,” she says. Her whole family struggled. After returning to Japan, she reflected on her experiences in the States and the missing supports that might have eased that transition.

Although she studied literature as an undergraduate, Ayane also continued to think about how she could help others. Her desire to help led to volunteer work with international middle and high school students living in her home country. The many challenges international students faced in Japan were very familiar to Ayane from her middle school days in the U.S.—including language barriers and cultural differences. “And [international students] are sometimes seen as incompetent—as a burden,” she adds.

Ayane taught these students Japanese and other skills to help them adjust to their new environment, make friends and explore future career options. However, she felt that there might be more effective ways to support this population. "Seeing students losing confidence and self-efficacy as I had, I decided to become a mental health counselor and seek ways to support them."

When she began looking at graduate programs, Ayane decided to return to the United States where mental health counseling is more widely accepted than it is in Japan. She chose Lehigh’s College of Education (COE), in part, due to its reputation for multiculturalism and social justice.

“I think the mental health counseling program does a good job of addressing multiculturalism and differences across many different cultures in the curriculum. While many academic programs in the U.S. focus on educating students in the U.S. context, our College of Education is making an effort to help students with their diverse aspirations.”

As a COE graduate student, Ayane served as the international student support and outreach coordinator. “Dr. Liang came up with this idea and offered me the position,” she says. “I was honored; I had the privilege to support international students in the college, to connect with their peers and provide a space where they can share their challenges and success.”

Like all university students, international students can face academic and emotional struggles, and concerns about life after graduation. International students may face visa complications, too, that can complicate their post-graduate work and access to the field experience they need to begin their careers.

The visa application process can be quite overwhelming, complex and time-consuming. The Office of International Student and Scholars (OISS) offers a workshop to help students begin the process beforehand. But having peer support within the college is also invaluable.

Ayane adds, “Once you start job hunting, it's very busy and stressful, but international students have to go through the visa application  process at the same time—and on top of that, they have internship,  academic, and professional obligations.”  She was grateful for the senior students who gave her and others a “heads up” about the process and helped them through it. These students also helped guide newer graduate students through the job search process, which can be different from the process in students’ home countries.

Helping students with career preparation lead to Ayane’s proudest accomplishment as a COE grad student. Along with Dr. Liang, Chairperson for the Department of Education and Human Services, Ayane started the Career Café to help COE students prepare for life after graduation. “Our aim was to create a warm and friendly space for students—especially international students—to share their success and challenges,” she says.

The café also provides a space for students to receive insight from their peers and professionals in the international education field including the Office of International Students and Scholars(OISS), the International Center for Academic and Professional English (ICAPE), and the Center for Career and Professional Development (CCPD) at Lehigh. ”We invited one professional from each department to address language, culture, and visa-related challenges that international students might face in their job search, acknowledging  that the process can look different and require more preparation for international students facing these challenges.” 

Additionally, there are students who intend to return to their home countries as soon as they complete their degrees. Dr. Liang and Ayane also did their best to support these students throughout the year. 

Ayane graduated from Lehigh with a master's degree in Counseling and Human Services this spring. She shares,

Coming to the U.S. from Japan two years ago, not knowing anyone in the area, there were times I yearned to return home. I remember my first day—overwhelmed with assignments and unfamiliar words. My pursuit of this degree in the U.S. was far from easy—filled with trials, errors, self-doubt, and fear for the future.

Ayane credits her family, friends, colleagues and professors with providing the support necessary to succeed—“especially Dr. Liang, for choosing me for this position and then supporting me to thrive and shine in this challenge.” 

Now that Ayane has graduated, she will continue to share that encouragement and guidance with others while working towards her professional licensure with a mental health counseling organization. She hopes to eventually take what she has learned back to Japan. “I want to increase mental health awareness in Japan and also support families living away from their home countries,” she says.

Dr. Liang hopes to continue the Career Cafe in the upcoming academic year.