At the Coffee Break Table During a 15 Minute Break of a Session on Attracting International

CONFERENCE SMALL TALK

AT THE COFFEE BREAK TABLE DURING A 15 MINUTE BREAK OF A SESSION ON ATTRACTING INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

Bob: Oh, sorry. Could you pass me the sugar? John: Sure, here you go. So your name tag says you work at the Bolashak Scholarship. What's that? Bob: Oh, it's a government scholarship in Kazakhstan to send students abroad. John: Interesting. How many students do you sponsor? Bob: Well we try to send out 3000 students a year, but right now we have around 1500. John: Hmmm. And they all come to the US? Bob: Oh no. The US and Russia are probably the most popular countries but the UK is also high up there. And Europe too. John: Wow. It must be expensive. Hey, Susan. Come here for a minute....I want to introduce this young man from Kazakhstan. He works for the..(looks at name tag) Bolashak Scholarship to send students abroad. Susan: Oh, interesting. I'm Susan Jameson. Bob: Bob Parker Susan: How do you do? I work in the International Office of the University of Connecticut. I'd love to talk to you about sending students to us. Bob: I'm from Connecticut. I know UCONN well. It'd be great to have some students go there. Susan: Great, what are you doing after this session? Bob: Nothing. Can we meet at the cafe downstairs? Susan: That'd be great. I'll bring some information about UConn and we can talk more about your scholarship. Bob: Great, good to meet you. Sorry, I didn't catch your name. John: John. Bob: John. Bob. See you at the cafe after the session, Susan. Susan: Great.

1. How does John introduce himself to Bob? 2. How does John introduce Susan? 3. Why does he tell about Bob's job? 4. How does Bob find out John's name? 5. Why does Bob say “UCONN”? 6. Is this conversation formal or informal? 7. When would the participants shake hands? What other body language might they use in this dialogue?

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