With your support in the voluntary Buddy Program, you will have the chance to learn about other cultures, make new friends, improve your interpersonal skills, and receive a certificate at the end of the program. The outstanding volunteers at the end of the semester receive awards from the ICO – Office of International Programs based on the ICO’s special pointing system. 

We strongly welcome our international students to take part in the program. Your experiences will be highly valuable in supporting the new students who will be joining us soon!

• assisting new students with settling in,
• helping them to navigate around procedures at KU,
• supporting them with their residence permit applications,
• participating in every session of the Buddy training and specific sessions of the orientation week, 
• reporting interactions with students on a monthly basis to the ICO members by submitting evaluation forms,
• improving your communication and relationship skills to get ready for the professional world,
• extending your network, 
• experiencing new cultures and perspectives,
• creating new friendships.

Requirements:

• Ability to socialize and communicate with new people easily
• Strong sense of responsibility and belief in the value of volunteerism, hospitality, diversity, inclusion, and equality
• Being helpful to and developing empathy with people from different backgrounds
• Interest in different cultures, learning or improving how to communicate with new international people
• Fluency in English

The applications have closed for the 2023 Fall semester.