Madison Friends of International Students

INFO SOURCES

International Student Services, 217 Red Gym, 716 Langdon Street, (608) 262-2044, iss@odos.wisc.edu, http://www.intstudents.wisc.edu/ has handouts on may issues relevant to maintaining international student status. See ISS.

Information desks provide general University information at Memorial Union (265-3000) and Union South (263-2600). Both desks are open 7:45 am - 4:30 pm on weekdays, and for limited hours on weekends.

Campus Information and Visitor Center, 106 Red Gym, 716 Langdon Street (263 2400), http://www.civc.wisc.edu/, is open 8 am - 6 pm weekdays; 12 noon - 8:00 pm Saturdays; 12 noon - 4:00 pm on Sundays. You can also contact CIVC by email at askbucky@redgym.wisc.edu. Hours for all information desks change during holiday and intersession periods.

To find out contact information for departments, university staff, or faculty, call 262-1234 or search the directory on the UW homepage at http://www.wisc.edu/. The homepage also contains useful links to various databases and calendars.

Nearly every university building has a bulletin board. Check the bulletin boards in the hallways before the entrance to the ISS and MFIS offices for information about current activities, travel, tours, vacation possibilities, special employment opportunities, etc. You will also see bulletin boards at groceries stores, libraries, laundromats, and other businesses.

See also INFO SOURCES - PUBLICATIONS and NEWSPAPERS

For information on Madison, check out Madison web sites at http://www.wisc.edu/wiscinfo/beyond/.

When you install phone service, you will receive a Madison telephone directory (Yellow Pages). Your Telephone Directory is a Reference Book. The front of the book contains helpful information on the Madison area, emergency phone numbers, and the "LocalSource" information system. Phone numbers are listed by residence, business, and government offices.

For information on tourist attractions in the area, contact Wisconsin Division of Tourism, 266-2161, http://www.travelwisconsin.com/ and Greater Madison Visitor and Convention Bureau, 255-2537. For specific questions about life in Madison, you can contact MFIS at 263-4010 or mfis@redgym.wisc.edu.

The publication Resources: New Student Information Handbook, published yearly by Campus Information, Assistance and Orientation (CIAO), provides comprehensive information on various campus resources. The handbook is available for free at CIVC (see INFO SOURCES - CAMPUS).

The Graduate Student Council publishes the Guide to Graduate Student Life, which contains information about campus and city resources, including a chapter "for international students." The guide is available for free from the Graduate School, 333 Bascom Hall.

The PSO Student Organization publishes a guidebook called Choose Your Own Adventure, written by undergraduate students about various aspects of student life in Madison. You can buy it at the University Bookstore for currently $5.

The University apartment complex "Eagle Heights" publishes a handbook every year available to all residents of the complex. It contains a lot of helpful information for international students and their families.

Both the Isthmus and the Wisconsin State Journal publish an annual guide to the Madison area, usually in late August, just before the fall semester begins. These guides contain lots of useful information on Madison events and attractions.

NAFSA's International Students Handbook is published by the Association of International Educators and Educational Testing Services. The book focuses on choosing and applying to university programs in the U.S., but it also contains information about life and study in the United States. Copies of the above publications are available to look at at the MFIS and ISS offices.

The Memorial Union publishes a quarterly calendar of its own events. You can pick one up at the Union.

ISS publishes an electronic newsletter every month (ISS BYTES). All international students should receive the newsletter; if you don't, be sure to contact ISS. Read the newsletter carefully to get the latest information on resources, events and immigration regulations.