Five Slovakians have gotten a taste of the American and Iowa lifestyles this semester through an exchange program at Iowa State.

Patrik Zoltvany, Monika Tothova, Peter Szovics, Zuzana Svihelova and Milan Belica arrived Aug. 1 and will be going home Dec. 19. The students, who had attended the University of Agriculture (UAN) in Nitra, Slovakia, are enrolled in regular courses and have been learning about the United States’ approach to agriculture.

“In Slovakia they don’t have farms like the U.S. The government owns the land, but now they are trying to return farms to private owners,” Svihelova said. “Usually the farms are run by more people, not owned by one person like here.”

The students have visited both local farms and agri-businesses to learn about different approaches to agriculture.

“The goal of this program is to provide for an international awareness and personal growth,” said Mary de Baca, ISU’s administrative director of the program. The program is sponsored by the United States Information Agency under the Samantha Smith Memorial Fund.

The students from Nitra all have a command of the English language and stay with host families around Iowa to help make the transition to a new culture, although many didn’t see it as a severe transition.

“It was no major cultural change coming to the United States,” Zoltvany said. The other students agreed.

The main difference is in the academics.

Monika said: “There is more homework, and less time spent in class.”

“We [in Slovakia] have exams during breaks, and you always are studying for the exams which are oral,” Svihelova said. “The treatment is different. Here it is more informal. At home we dress up to go to school, and the teachers don’t give you their numbers or have you call them by first name.

“I came to learn English; to learn about a subject I am interested in from another point of view, and ISU has a good reputation in Slovakia,” he added.

As a senior at UAN, Zoltvany saw this exchange program as an opportunity to “see America and to travel.” And aside from missing the traditional things such as family, friends and good food, they all said they’re having a good time.

The Slovakian students have traveled a little in the Midwest, specifically Chicago. At the opening of a Czech and Slovak Museum, they met the presidents of the Czech Republic, Slovakia and President Clinton. “Perhaps I will be president in 20 years,” Zoltvany said.

Next semester five ISU undergraduates: Brad Murty, David Gerdes, Andrea Gronau, Susan Wahls and Denise Nieland, will travel to Nitra.

Gerdes and Gronau have participated in an exchange program with the Ukraine. Gerdes said his trip there was “challenging and rewarding. It made me realize I can survive anything.” He spoke positively of studying abroad.