PRACTICAL TIPS for International Students & Scholars

The most complete source of practical information is Madison Friends of International Students (MFIS), who offer help with 47 topics (Air Travel, Alcohol and Smoking, ... , Work) that are on the left side of the end-of-page table, and in the left side of every page when you CLICK THIS LINK.

    Another major resource is the ISS Handbook (its Table of Contents is in the right side of the table) from International Student Services, who also offer Hiring International Students and a variety of links.
    And more resources come from UW Graduate Engineering Research Scholars (Guide to Renting Apartments at UW-Madison) and UW International Ministries: Ethnic Grocery Stores and Transportation (for UW, bicycles, buses).

    also:  Here are some extra tips about...
    Air Travel — when you use an internet service (Expedia, Travelocity,...) you can check 4 airports (Madison MSN, Milwaukee Mitchell MKE, Chicago O'Hare ORD, and Southwest Airlines at Chicago Midway MDW) that can be reached using Metro Transit (Routes 2 and 51) to MSN, Badger Bus to Milwaukee, or Van Galder (Coach USA) to O'Hare or Midway in Chicago;  in the recent past, I have found good deals (re: timings and cost) in flights through all four airports.
    Improving Language — in ESL Cafe and in other ways.
    Temperature Conversions from Celsius (Centigrade) to Fahrenheit, and vice versa;  unfortunately, the United States is non-metric, we're the only major country in the world.
    Madison Metro Transit — Maps & Schedules (for Routes 1-78 in the city, plus 80-85 around campus) and Popular Destinations around the city, and use the FAQ and Sitemap and you can explore other links on your own.   Rack-N-Roll Bikes lets you combine the best of bus (for long distance travel) and bicycle (for flexibility and speed when you get to an area you want to explore), but their directions don't tell you, clearly enough, that in #1 the key is to find the handle (at top of vertical rack) and then squeeze it strongly so the rack can rotate into its horizontal position, and for #2 you should figure out how to efficiently use your body strength (in back, shoulders, and arms) when lifting the bike onto the rack, and in #3 you must sometimes pull very hard on the support arm to move it toward you (away from the wheel) so you can move it up and onto the wheel, and I suggest that as Step #0 (before #1) you lock your front wheel to the frame so a thief cannot remove your bike when the bus is stopped and ride away on your bike, and there are now two different kinds of racks on buses, and (as with most things in life) the first time you use Rack-n-Roll it may be a challenge but it will be much easier the second time you do it.

I.O.U. — Later we'll add more information to this page, so check back later to see if anything new is here.
 

MFIS — Topics	ISS Handbook