SJSU students share their experience of studying abroad
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Students shine light on parking
By Anfisa Pitchkhadze STAFF WRITER
At San José State many students, particularly commuters, are grappling with a severe parking shortage.
The university provides 7,500 parking spots for over 32,000 students, according to the Parking Services web page.
SJSU provides parking in the North Garage, South Garage, West Garage and South Campus Garage, according to the same website.
For students to earn the chance to park on campus, the university provides parking permit purchases for the semester for $384, listed on the Parking Services website.
Yvette Morales, a first year transfer justice studies student, voiced her concerns about the parking permits.
“It’s incredibly
frustrating to pay for a parking permit and still waste precious time searching for a spot,” Morales said. “I feel like I’m being charged for something that’s not even available.”
The parking crisis at SJSU has intensified in the start of the year as
according to SJSU Parking Services.
“I bought a permit for the whole semester, thinking it would guarantee me a spot,” Morales said. But everyday, I’m circling the lots and often end up late to class because there’s no space.”
Jackson Demlew, a
when I get to the North Garage, it is pretty much full,” Demlew said. “The parking situation does get better overtime. As the semester went on, I managed to find parking on the top of the North Garage around noon.”
The university has listed out a warning
building, South Campus Garage, according to another Parking Services document.
The South Campus Garage is located at 377 S. Seventh St. which is located across CEFCU Stadium.
This garage is a new four-story parking
7:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m to give a ride to and back from campus to the South Campus Garage, according to a parking notice from the university. The shuttle buses will be located between Duncan Hall and the new South Campus Garage, according to a Parking Services webpage.
The parking situation does get better over time ... It’s definitely a pain to spend so much time driving everywhere in the lot to park in my car in a narrow spot.
Jackson Demlew Transfer finance student
students struggle with overcrowded lots and limited availability,
This whole parking thing is all crazy and new for me as a transfer student. I hope this situation improves during my time here.
transfer finance student, is frustrated with not only the lack of parking spots but the space for the parking spots.
“It’s definitely a pain to spend so much time driving everywhere in the lot to park in my car in a narrow spot,” Demlew said.
Demlew said he typically parks in the North Garage and always looks at the parking garage fullness status.
“I would also look at the parking status online that shows that the garage’s are not entirely full, but
that parking is typically full around 9:30 a.m. from Mondays through Thursdays, according to the SJSU Parking Status website.
The SJSU Parking Status website also shows how much space is left for each of the parking garages.
SJSU students can check the status before arriving on campus.
However, with students arriving early to find parking in the main garages, SJSU suggests that students should park at the off-campus garage
facility that provides 1,500 parking spaces to the campus parking impaction, according to a web page from Parking Services.
An Cao, a second year accounting student, feels there is an advantage when it comes to parking in the South Campus Garage.
“There is definitely an advantage that is nearly empty, but the bad part is that it will take more time for me to get to my class,” Cao said.
The university provides a free shuttle service from
SJSU also suggests students to use the Transloc app which tracks down shuttle location and estimated time of arrival for each shuttle, according to a webpage from Parking Services.
Cao said she may find it a whole lot easier to find a spot, but it is difficult for her to get back to the South Campus Garage when she is finished with her classes on campus.
“I have a class that goes past 6 p.m. so I won’t be able to (take) the shuttle bus back,” Cao said.
Many students are in the same boat on navigating the parking over the course of the semester.
“This whole parking thing is all crazy and new for me as a transfer student. I hope this situation improves during my time here,” Morales said.
ANFISA PITCHKHADZE | SPARTAN DAILY
San José State’s North Garage, one of four garages, is depicted as having a crisis of student-parking shortages this semester and presents various issues for students.
Yvette Morales First-year transfer justice studies student
Studying abroad opens student eyes
By Alejandra Gallo STAFF WRITER
San José State University study abroad students urge their peers to go on study abroad trips because they won’t regret it.
SJSU offers a variety of study abroad programs, such as short-term programs like facultyled summer and winter programs, according to their web page.
Specifically the SJSU Exchange, California State University International Programs and International Student Exchange Programs for semester and year-long programs, according to their web page.
Katera Perry, fourth year psychology major, traveled to South Korea for the fall semester of 2023 and studied at Sungkyunkwan University.
“I was excited to develop an understanding of different cultures that are different from the American one I’m used to,” Perry said.
Though Perry was excited to live out her dreams, she said she was scared of many things before her study abroad trip.
“I was nervous about experiencing racism because I am African American,” Perry said.
Students from marginalized groups, such as those with disabilities and racial minorities, tend to be underrepresented in study abroad participation, according to the 2023 Institute of International Education study.
For the 2021-2022 school year, Black students were 12.5% of U.S. college enrollment but only 5.3%
of them studied abroad, according to a study by National Association of Foreign Student Advisers.
“Thankfully, I didn’t experience any racism,” Perry said. “But it was something that I was really scared about.”
Interacting with foreign cultures, language immersion and interaction with other people around the globe can lead to increased self-awareness, improved critical thinking and even work opportunities, according to a Sep. 8, 2023 article by U.S. News & World Report. Janette Albor
managing a budget are skills that allow study abroad students to become independent, according to an article by Education First.
“It’s important to know that this (feeling overwhelmed) is a natural part of the process and things do get easier as you start to settle in,” Hernandez said.
One of the biggest benefits of living abroad is that your self-confidence will increase, according to the same source.
Hernandez said she learned many things during her trip, such as becoming comfortable
article by U.S. News & World Report.
“There was a time when I was in Korea when I questioned if I made the right choice to go abroad since I worried that I would run out of money,” Perry said. “However, my financial plan came into play.”
Perry was worried less about her finances because she applied to scholarships before the trip.
Studying abroad for a semester or a year can be less expensive or about as expensive as living in the Bay Area, according to SJSU’s Study Abroad
Successfully navigating life in a foreign country showed me that I could overcome challenges and thrive in diverse environments
Hernandez, a fourth year finance major, studied abroad at the Chulalongkorn University in Thailand.
She believes that the biggest lesson she learned was self-discovery and independence.
“Most importantly, the journey significantly improved my confidence,” Hernandez said.
“Successfully navigating life in a foreign country showed me that I could overcome challenges and thrive in diverse environments.”
Self-confidence levels increase significantly when students travel abroad because navigating a different culture, making new friends and
doing things alone and realizing it was incredibly rewarding.
Though the experience was rewarding for Hernandez, she experienced homesickness while studying abroad.
“This was the first time I was going to be away from home for so long,” Hernandez said.
“The thought of being halfway around the world without my friends or family – especially –in moments when things (got) tough, (it) was unsettling.”
Many things can prevent a student from studying abroad, such as the fear of missing out, being far from home and financial reasons, according to an
web page.
Each program varies in costs, but for faculty-led programs and summer school abroad, each unit is $350.00, there is an administration fee of $300, and additional costs such as flights, housing, insurance, meals, ground transportation and more, according to the same web page.
“Overall living abroad is achievable with a solid financial plan, so don't let it hold you back from your goals,” Perry said.
Andrew Wood, professor and chair of the department of communications studies said studying abroad adds depth and breadth to one’s perspective upon
the world.
“I look back on my experiences traveling the globe and I think about the people I met, the artwork I encountered, the foods I tried, and the adventures I had, and I feel fortunate that I said 'yes,” he said. “So if it’s even remotely possible for a student to study abroad, I say, go for it.”
There are hundreds of scholarships available for students studying abroad, including scholarships based on need, merit, area of study or professional associations, according to an SJSU study abroad web page.
Some scholarships include SJSU College of Health and Human Sciences: Dean’s Study Abroad Scholarships with a deadline in March, according to the same SJSU study abroad web page.
Dan Brook, senior lecturer emeritus in the department of sociology and interdisciplinary social sciences, believes that students benefit from studying abroad.
year kinesiology major, traveled to England for the fall semester of 2023 and studied at the University of Birmingham.
“Classes over there are split into lectures and seminars,” Torres said. “In the lectures you learn general information and in the seminars, it’s kind of up to you to figure out how to handle that information.”
Torres also mentioned that he was only taking three classes when he was in England but it counted for 18 units.
“Making the choice to study abroad is the hardest part and it’s okay to feel nervous, but it is worth it,” Torres said. “Just do it.”
In the U.S., the undergraduate curriculum includes more general education courses, while the U.K. is more concentrated with your intended area of study, according an April 23, 2024 article by Interside.
“When I was in middle school, I wanted to see the world,” Perry said. “It was a childhood dream to travel so far and I wanted to live it.”
Some scholarships accept applications on a rolling application, such as the John Gilbert Scholarship for International Studies, according to the same web page.
Brook says he believes that some students think it’s too expensive or not worth it, but students often say that studying abroad is one of the best things they’ve ever done.
o n, h n f or es, m e ves nk n ot n ts i n g est e.
“Being able to see different cultures and ways of living was an impactful experience,” Perry said. “I’m normally quiet but I was put in an environment where I had to talk and be confident.”
Luis Torres, a fourth
GRAPHIC BY ALEJANDRA GALLO
Janette Albor Hernandez Fourth year finance major
GRAPHIC BY KAYA HENKES-POWER
‘Paleta Planeta’ is out of this world
By Anahi Herrera Villanueva STAFF WRITER
Paleta Planeta held its grand opening on Saturday. The store is located at 150 E. Santa Clara St. and is only an eight minute walk from San José State.
Paletas are ice cream treats made from fruit purées that are dipped into water-glycol to make large quantities in a small amount of time, according to a May 21 KQED article.
Along with fresh fruit purées, Paleta Planeta also uses natural and organic ingredients whenever they have access, according to its webpage.
Brothers and owners Luis, Gabriel, and Mauricio Salazar were inspired by their cousins from Texas who helped them create their business after the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the same article.
Paleteros are the people who push ice cream, or in this case, paletas in a cart going up and down the street through different neighborhoods, parks and schools. Paleteros can be heard coming down the street with a bell that is attached to their cart, according to a Jan. 6 Monterey County Now article.
“You allowed us to grow our business from the house which became Paleta Planeta warehouse and storage. Without their love and support, we wouldn't be standing here,” Luis said as he spoke to those in attendance at the grand opening.
Nate LeBlanc, business development manager for the San José Downtown Association, said he worked alongside the Salazar family to make this brick-andmortar dream come true.
The San José Downtown Association works to represent the businesses in the downtown area, according to its web page.
“Like all of you, I am here to celebrate the opening of Paleta Planeta and I can tell you it was not an easy process to get here,”
LeBlanc said. “There were a bunch of things we needed to do . . . There were many times this could have fallen off the rails, but they didn't let it (happen). They stuck with it and that is a huge accomplishment.”
LeBlanc said he is extremely proud of Paleta Planeta’s owners since this one has stood out to him in his career thus far as four separate referrals were sent to LeBlanc requesting the San José Downtown Association to help the Salazar family.
LeBlanc also praised the resourcefulness that the Salazar family had to make to take the next step.
“For Luis, Mauricio and Gabriel to have made it from a suburban garage to this beautiful storefront in such a short amount of time is a huge accomplishment,” LeBlanc said.
San José residents formed a line outside the front entrance and waited patiently for the opening ceremony to begin.
Local San José resident Benjamin Martinez was one of the many customers eagerly waiting.
“A couple of workers came by and said they appreciated us for coming on time and they gave us a couple of options between strawberry and watermelon,” Martinez said.
Martinez mentioned how he was excited about this new spot as he had not heard about it before he attended the opening. He described himself as a “big dessert guy” so this was something that
caught his attention.
Jess dela Fuente, a resident from East San José, said he was already familiar with what Paleta Planeta had to offer.
“We tried them once when they were selling from their cart going down the street and it happened to park right in front of my girlfriend's apartment,” dela Fuente said.
One of the owners of Paleta Planeta, Luis Salazar, attributed the success of the business to his parents.
“Thank you to our mom and dad, thank you for having our backs,” Luis Salazar said. “You believed in us from the start, never expecting anything in return.”
To close the ceremony, the
Salazar family gathered at the entrance of the store to cut the grand opening blue ribbon to officially open its doors to the public.
“This day is filled with excitement and gratitude in celebration . . . This is the moment that took us a while to get here, but with our determination and tenacity, and our ganas to get there, we did it,” Luis said using the Spanish word “ganas” for desire.
The mayor of San José Matt Mahan is working alongside the city and the San José Downtown Association to bring more business to downtown, according to an Aug. 9 press release from the city. “This is an awesome local
business. We are so honored to have you guys right here in Downtown,” Mahan said.
Paleta Planeta offers a wide variety of flavors with 20 paleta flavors and more than 10 ice cream flavors, according to the Paleta Planeta website.
“I got the double scoop (of) Cafe Oreo in a regular cup with dark chocolate drizzle on top, I give it a nine out of 10,” Martinez said. “I like the texture of the ice cream and I like the topping ratio on it (and) considering how busy it was, the staff was friendly.”
Esports showcase is virtually thrilling
By Jackson Lindstrom STAFF WRITER
Competitive gamers faced off on Tuesday as San José State Esports hosted its showcase event in the Student Union ballroom.
SJSU Esports is a collegiate level competitive institution that pays students to compete with other colleges in various video games.
Hayden Jones, a computer engineering fourth year student, was a moderator for the event.
“You can be any skill level and have fun,” Jones said. “We invite everyone to go ahead and sign up.” At the event, students had the opportunity to sign up to play games such as Apex Legends, Rainbow Six Siege and Overwatch.
Jones explained that the main event, however, was Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, where 64 people would compete to win a Meta Quest VR headset.
SJSU esports players had the opportunity to compete in the tournament if they wished, despite them being the most skilled.
“We’ve had some upsets, for sure,” Jones said. “We’ve had ... times when (other players) have actually beaten a couple of our players in the program.”
Software engineering junior Alvin Lee was one of the players in the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
tournament.
“I signed up for it because I’m in the Discord (server), and at the last minute I (figured) I might as well join it,” Lee said. He said that it had been a
while since he had played Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and was surprised to see that he was doing so well.
SJSU alumnus Zaid Lakhani was at the event as a spectator.
“I’m not really good at Smash but I like playing it a lot and I really love watching it,” Lakhani said. “When I was attending SJSU, I would come here every year and join the bracket.”
Other fighting games, such as Street Fighter and Tekken were also available to be played on monitors at the event.
SJSU Esports’s plan for the upcoming semester is to prepare for their varsity season.
“It’s one of the first times where we are getting a lot of our teams involved at the varsity level,” Jones said. “We’ve had some collegiate events, but now we’re ramping up to a full on collaboration with the league that hosts a lot of NCAA Division I sports.
Jones said the games that SJSU plays include Rainbow Six Siege, Valorant, League of Legends and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
“From an administrative standpoint, (there’s) a lot of elbow grease going into making
sure that all runs smoothly,” Jones said. “(We’re) just trying to get everybody into the competitive spirit and into a winning attitude.”
San José community members gather to celerbate the grand opening of Paleta Planeta (established 1940).
San José State University students compete in various esports competitions, including Super Smash Bros, League of Legends and Valorant.
ANAHI HERRERA VILLANUEVA | SPARTAN DAILY
JACKSON LINDSTROM | SPARTAN DAILY
The window seat was made for daydreamers
The middle seat can have redeeming qualities
a corner seat in a classroom.
There’s a nice feeling of isolation and privacy that you get when having a wall and corner next to you. If you don’t want to be bothered by people, you can just turn away from them. Not only do you have a window to yourself, but you also have the wall of the plane to lean your head against when you get sleepy during your flight.
Not only do you have a window to yourself, but you also have the wall of the plane to lean your head against when you get sleepy during your flight.
In a middle seat, you’re squished between two people and feel like you have no personal space to move because each way you turn people are next to you. With aisle and middle seats, people are inescapable and it’s not an ideal situation when you’re flying for several hours.
Also if I want to sleep and it’s too bright, I can close it myself while my seatmates can’t do the same.
If you aren’t at the window seat, you’ll have to ask the person who is to close the window — and if you’re sitting next to a stranger — it’s not guaranteed they’ll be nice and agree to it. The major benefit for this seat is never having to be interrupted by people needing to use the restroom. Whereas with an aisle seat, you need to get up each time someone in your row needs to go. The window seat is optimal for introverts and daydreamers alike, who don’t prefer to be interrupted during their flights by people around them.
With an aisle seat, you’re surrounded by fellow passengers in the aisles across from you, the people sitting next to you, and flight attendants walking by you every other minute.
bothering you to go to the restroom.
You might even get away with bringing your legs up to your chest so that the other passenger can pass through the aisle to avoid getting up from your seat. Once on a flight from San
seatmates should give you as much space as they can.
However, I was stuck with that lady’s head inches away from mine for a couple of hours.
This was an unpleasant experience but at the same time it can be easily fixed by
deserves both armrests.
In a seat that is not comfort-friendly, having both armrests is a big plus since it allows you to rest your elbows and you can use your fist to lean on while you sleep. You also can’t turn your head either way because
The middle seat might be every traveler's worst nightmare, but I’m here to tell you that your conception of the middle seat may not be completely right. There is no denying that the middle seat has big drawbacks, such as being squished between two strangers who will likely take up some of your personal space throughout most of your flight. You also risk not having one, but two horrible seatmates. Passengers are willing to pay for premium economy or any kind of seat assignment if they are traveling alone just to avoid sitting in the middle seat, according to an April 18, 2016 article from The New York Times. Although the middle seat quite frankly sucks, it isn’t as bad as everyone makes it out to be.
When sitting in the aisle, you have two people beside you asking you to get up from your seat to use the restroom. If it’s a long flight, you are more than likely to have to get up numerous times throughout the flight. This is annoying, especially if you’re in the middle of watching a movie or have to unbuckle your seatbelt and pull up your food tray. In the middle seat though, you only risk one person
In a seat that is not comfort-friendly, having both armrests is a big plus since it allows you to rest your elbows and you can use your fist to lean on while you sleep.
Francisco to Houston, I was stuck between a middleaged lady who smelled like cigarettes and an older man who looked to be in his mid‘60s. At the time, I was more of an extrovert and quickly picked up a conversation with the older man, who was excited to have a conversation. Unfortunately, midconversation, the lady next to me fell asleep and though she wasn’t completely resting her head on my shoulder, she was uncomfortably close.
This is the worst situation that a person in the middle seat can find themselves in because not only are you in the worst seat, but you’re also being used as a human pillow by complete strangers.
Your seat already sucks so at the very least, your
shifting a little in your seat so the other person feels you and hopefully moves.
Another plus is that if the person sitting in the window seat is an introvert, it is likely that they will try to repress their bladder-releasing needs to avoid bothering you to get up. This will allow you to sit comfortably in your chair so you won’t have to get up for anyone but yourself.
Even though you’re in the middle seat, you will never end up missing the window view unlike the aisle seat.
Another drawback of the middle seat is that you have a greater chance of struggling to fall asleep since you don’t have anything to lean on.
However, it is also an unwritten rule that since the middle seat has always been acknowledged as the worst seat, the person sitting there
you’ll have two strangers staring at you while you're sleeping.
This often results in having to be stiff and frozen in your seat for your seatmates and your optimal comfort, possibly for hours.
But if you bring a big hoodie on the plane and make your own little cocoon in your seat, you might be able to be in a comfortable position.
With a pair of noisecanceling headphones, a good neck pillow that will keep you from falling on your seatmates and some snacks, the middle seat might not be all that bad.
worst option would be for them to squat on top of their sweaty leather seats for me. However, I don’t mind getting up for others because it’s the perfect excuse to stand up to stretch my legs during a long flight. Having a younger sister has taught me to be patient with small
Sofia Hill STAFF WRITER
Follow Alejandra on Instagram @ale.jandragallo
