Did you know that there are students at Dublin High that come from different places around the world? There are foreign students on our campus that come from Australia, Azerbaijan, Burma, China, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and more! Each country has their own school system, schedule, teaching style, and other customs, many which are very different from the United States.

“I was born in Gangnam, Korea,” sophomore Harin Cho states. “I moved to the United States in 8th grade, then moved to Dublin this year. In Korea, school is so much more competitive than in Dublin since everyone works hard. We also have to take a test in order to get into a good high school.”

Different from Korea, schools in the United States do not require middle school students to take any test when transferring to high school. Although there are standardized tests such as the SAT and ACT, they are nothing compared to the college admission exam in Korea.

Not only in Korea, but Taiwan also has college admission exams that high school students must take in order to attend college. The score will determine what school students will be able to attend (the higher the score, the better the school).

“Schools in Taiwan are more depressing,” senior Kevin Chuang says. “There are more tests and homework and it’s a lot harder.”

Chuang, who moved to Dublin during his sophomore year, thinks that Dublin high is not as competitive as schools in Taiwan. He thinks that there is a lot more work to do in his hometown high school than there is here at Dublin high.

According to Chuang, teachers at Dublin High are very energetic and like to interact with students. In Taiwan, teachers do not ask students questions. Instead, they tell the students what the answers to the questions are.

Besides school work, Chuang also thinks that the school’s cafeteria food is not as good as it is in Taiwan. However, he enjoys the fact that Dublin High has an open campus where he can go off campus to have lunch so he can get cheaper and tastier food.

One thing Chuang really likes about living in the United States is that he gets to drive to school everyday while his friends in Taiwan ride buses to school.

“Sometimes I drive to school, sometimes my brother drives to school,” senior Miri Akhundov shares. “We both like driving because in Azerbaijan you have to be at least 18 to be able to drive.”

Just like Chuang, the Akhundov siblings, Miri Akhundov and Che Akhundov, like driving to school as well and showing off to their Azerbaijan friends who don’t even have a driving license yet. Also, instead of having 10 minutes lunch breaks like they used to in Azerbaijan, the Akhundovs are now glad to have 35 minutes lunch breaks in Dublin High.

This is the Akhundovs’ first year studying in the United States. Both brothers are seniors this year and have recently moved from Azerbaijan to get a better education.

The Akhundovs really like the environment in Dublin and their aunt who has been living in the U.S. for more than 10 years said that Dublin is above all the other cities she had lived in, and recommended the Akhundov brothers to move to Dublin.

“I like the diversity of people in Dublin and the huge amount of activities and sports available here,” senior Che Akhundov says. “In Azerbaijan we used to play chess instead of actual sports.”

Dublin High indeed is a very athletic school filled with spirit. Do you know any of these foreigners?