Study Abroad: College in NZ constructs a new wellness centre for international students

The opening of a new wellness centre will provide international students at Kapiti College in New Zealand with exciting prospects in the upcoming academic year.

The wellness centre will be divided into two portions, with around 40% of it being used for counselling and the other 60% being used for international students and their education.

The wellness centre’s construction began in July of last year, and it is anticipated to be finished in March or April, at the conclusion of the first academic term.

Building the wellness centre will cost $1.3 million, which will be covered by government and school board funding.

The wellness centre’s emphasis is on solitude

The main entrance is available for students to use, however, if they prefer more solitude, they can use a side door that is accessible from another building.

The director of foreign education at Kapiti College, Steve Burt, stated that when children visit a counsellor, they want to make sure other people know what they are doing.

The wellness centre is particularly significant to Burt because he has experience working as a guidance counsellor as well as in his current position in international studies.

He claimed that due to Covid-19, Kapiti College only had six overseas students the previous academic year. This year, that number has increased to 48, with more likely to enrol in Term Two.

A former schoolhouse that has three bedrooms, and a lounge, and is currently used for counselling classes formerly housed Esol (English for Speakers of Other Languages) courses in one of these bedrooms.

International students come from all over the world and pay a weekly fee for homestays.

While many of them are from Asian nations like China, Japan, and Korea, Kapiti College’s international marketing director Paul Western noted that the institution also enrols many students from Europe.

Students arrive for a variety of factors

He claimed that while many Japanese students come for scholastic motives, such as to win admission to universities, many European students come for tourist reasons.

When Burt attended the wedding of a Waikato farmer and one of his Japanese foreign students, he remarked that it was good to see them embracing both his Kiwi agricultural culture and her Japanese culture.

International students, according to principal Tony Kane, are crucial because they enrich the school’s diversity.

For more exciting news updates, make sure you follow Leverage Edu.