CULTURAL ADJUSTMENT FACED BY THAILAND STUDENTS OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MUHAMMADIYAH MALANG IN THE FIRST SEMESTER

摘要

In this era, many international programs that are offered in several collages open the possibility for International students to study abroad. However, living in other countries with the cultural differences could lead people to problems. This could be faced by Thailand students who took the degree program of English Language Education Department at the University of Muhammadiyah Malang. They might face changes in every aspect of life such as language, food, weather, environment, habit, or education system.ududFurthermore, this research was focused on the freshman of Thailand students studying in University of Muhammadiyah Malang. It analyzed the cultural adjustment problems and the strategies to cope with those problems during the first semester. The aim is to crosscheck the real problems with the wider subjects of Thailand students and describe their problem-solving.ududIn addition, the qualitative research design was chosen as the research approach. The subjects were four Thailand students of English Language Education Department who came from South Thailand (Mueang Yala, Krabi, and Pattaya) and Central Thailand (Chachoengsao). Furthermore, the writer used interview guide and document analysis that was taken from social media as the instrument of the research.ududThe writer found that Thailand students of English Language Education Department experienced six cultural adjustment problems; they faced difficulty in communicating and understanding the formal Indonesian language, difficulty in finding Thai food and accepting Indonesian cuisine, cold weather, bad facilities of public transportation and the cleanliness of Indonesian people, indiscipline drivers, shaking hands, and the lack respect for time and people, and the different rules in education system, such as learning time and facilities, dress code, discipline, and class placement. The way Thailand students dealt with the problems were: learning Indonesian language at BIPA and finding a new vocabulary in the dictionary, Google Translate, and Youtube, cooking and forcing themselves to accept Indonesian cuisine, wearing thick clothes, keeping clean, avoiding touching others, doing the same thing for people who have a lack of respect for time and people, and trying to comply with the rules by waking up earlier and buying clothes as much as possible. The arising problems on cross-cultural adjustment could help Thai students get accustomed to the new culture, with the efforts they made; they will be formed in a new culture.