C = Counsellor
K = Kate
L = Luki
C: Hi there, Kate. Come on in. How are you today?
K: Fine thanks.
C: Hi, Luki. Hows things?
L: OK.
C: Well, as I explained on the phone, Im a Counsellor here at the StudentServices section of the university and Im interviewing overseas students to help me draw up a guide for new students so Id be grateful if you could tellme a little about your time since youve been here in Cambridge.
K: Right.
L: Good idea.
C: Now, Kate lets start with you. OK, um ... this is your second semester isntIt? Could you tell us something about your first impressions of the town when you arrived?
K: Yeah well first of all I was struck by how quiet it is here in the evening
Repeat
C: Yes, I suppose Cambridge is a quiet place. Where did you live when you firstarrived?
K: Well, I went straight into student accommodation; it was a kind of studenthostel.
C: Ah right,so you didnt have to worry about doing your own cooking oranything like that?
K: No, but sometimes I wished I had! The food at the hostel was awful.
C: Oh dear. But how were the other students?
K: To be honest I havent managed to make many friends even though the placeis full. People seem to keep to themselves; theyre not really very friendly.
C: Oh Im sorry to hear that. Well, what about the actual course? Yourestudying ... uh?
K: Im doing a Masters by coursework in Environmental Studies.
C: Ah, right, and how are you finding that?
K: Yeah, well, its been pretty good really. Ive enjoyed the course, but I feelthere hasnt been enough contact with the lecturers. They all seem to beincredibly busy. The only chance Ive really had to talk to them was on the field trip.
C: Well thats no good. Could anything be done to improve the course in youropinion?
K: Well ... I think it would be helpful to have meetings with lecturers on thecourse. Say once a fortnight something like that.
C: Regular meetings. Yes that could certainly help. Now Kate, well come backto you in a minute, but Id just like to ask Luki some questions.
C: Luki, Where are you from?
L: I am from Indonesia.
C: And how did you find Cambridge when you first arrived?
L: Well, I like it here. I think the city is very beautiful.
C: What about your accommodation? Was that OK?
L: Yes, OK. At first I stayed with a family for three months. They were verykind to me but they had three young children and I found it difficult tostudy
C: Right, I see.
L: So after three months I moved out and now I live with two other students ina student house. Its much cheaper and we like it there.
C: Good, and what about your studies? What are you studying?
L: Im doing a Bachelor of Computing.
C: Computing. I see. Um, apart from the language difficulties, if you canseparate them, how have you found the course?
L: OK, but .
C: Yes, go on.
L: Well, the main difficulty for me is getting time on the computers in thecomputer room. Its always busy and this makes it very hard to do my practical work.
C: Yes, Im sure it would. Can you reserve time in the computer room?
L: No, you cant ... but it would certainly help if we could reserve computertime.
C: Yes. Ill look into that and see if something cant be done to improve thingsover there. Now lets go back to Kate...