Equatorial Guinea students prepare for bright future

Scholarship hopefuls begin application process in Equatorial Guinea

One year ago, 427 people in Equatorial Guinea began to assemble an application for a competition sponsored by Marathon Oil Corporation. The prize: a full-ride to an American university and excellent employment opportunities after graduation. The competition? The Sponsored Student Programs Office at Texas A&M University would first select, through a series of tests and personal interviews, only 10 percent of the qualified applicants. Eventually, all but six competitors would be eliminated.

Santiago Nguema Esono Beyeng feared that he wouldn’t be chosen. He had become a teacher after finishing high school seven years previously, and now he found himself returning to the role of a nervous test-taker.

At the country’s island capital, Maria Adoracion de Mbo Salgado also worried that she wouldn’t win the scholarship, especially when she saw the competition.

“Intelligent friends were taking the test,” she recalled. “I thought, ‘O my God, how can I pass?’ They were great students.”

Despite Santiago and Maria’s lack of confidence, their high school transcripts, math, and essay scores indicated that they had the skills to succeed in an American university. They were eventually informed, along with four other students, that they had been selected for a scholarship that would alter the course of their lives.

“Until I got on the airplane, it was difficult to believe that I was coming to the US,” Santiago said.

Competition winners uproot to the US, join Texas A&M campus life

This semester, the Marathon scholarship recipients have turned their attention to learning English at the Texas A&M English Language Institute (ELI), which offers intensive, non-credit classes to international students. The students from Equatorial Guinea are taking 21 hours of class per week, including oral skills classes with Texas A&M student conversation partners and classroom volunteers from the College of Liberal Arts and the College of Education and Human Development.

The interchange between Texas A&M students and ELI students in class and on campus fostered by the ELI helps the students from Equatorial Guinea understand and adjust to the accent, slang, and values of the people they live and interact with on a daily basis. ELI instructors strive to familiarize the students with English as well as orient them to the university, culture, and community of Bryan/College Station.

To that effect, Baltasar Ngumu Ngumu Eyang’s teacher recommended that he post fliers in his dorm, inviting students to his room for chess and conversation.

“I play with some Americans, but I’m always winning,” he laughed, adding that he has played chess since the age of six.

While the international students are learning English, they are also teaching Aggies something new. Texas A&M students are amazed to learn that Spanish is the official language of Equatorial Guinea, which is in Africa. Baltasar remembers an incredulous friend saying, “I will check it online.”

The students from Equatorial Guinea understood that the first step to adjust to life in College Station would be to learn English, but they had no way of anticipating the other cultural differences they would encounter. For one thing, the students are learning how much American instructors value punctuality and deadlines. Maria recognizes that in order to be successful, she’ll have to adapt to American expectations.

“If I don’t change, I can’t live here,” she said. “A simple example is everyone [in Equatorial Guinea] walks slowly, slowly. I do everything slowly, but now I walk fast. I’ve changed.”

Future homecoming promises opportunities for scholars

Maria’s lifestyle transformed upon her move to the US, and she expects the changes to continue. She knows that time will not freeze in Equatorial Guinea during her five-year absence.

“[My friends] will have had experiences without me…maybe they will become different people,” she said.

Ultimately, Maria’s education will bring opportunity and honor to her family.

“I’m going to have the best education for my country’s level of education. I can work anywhere,” she said.

Santiago agrees that when he returns to Equatorial Guinea, life will be different. He’s hopeful as he looks down the road and considers his future family’s welfare.

“[My education] will give me an opportunity to give my family a better education,” he said.

Contact: Jessica Downing, jlpfister06@tamu.edu, 979.845.7936