Cws EDITOR OMAR SHARIFF THE VOICE, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2012 2 Enrolment Stats show new trends The college has increase in students for the arts & science transfer program By JUDY CHERN nese international students to an already growing student popula- tion. Enrolment in regular studies at the college has increased about six per cent from 2009 to 2011. The arts and science university transfer program remains the most popular with more than three-quarters of the student population enrolled in them. More students are showing interest in the engineering transfer program for those aspiring to complete their de- gree at UBC or SFU. Enrolment in the program has grown by 61 per cent in the past three years. Langara draws the bulk of its stu- dent population from the central Van- couver area, but students commuting from Richmond are the fastest growing demographic with an increase of 320 students since 2009. The number of international stu- dents has dropped slightly from 2009. Chinese students make up more than half of this population, and Langa- ra appears to be soliciting more. Marjorie Cai, an international arts and science student said she first heard of Langara through a major agency in China that operates nation-wide. She lists more choice in course selec- tion and lower fees compared to other colleges among her reasons of choos- ing Langara. She also likes the fact that there are a lot of Asian students, although it’s also a drawback for her as an ESL stu- dent. “There are not so many good [Eng- lish] speakers,” said Cai. “I want to talk to more native speakers.” Hao Chen is a business student who was convinced, along with several of his classmates, to study at Langara af- ter representatives from the college came to speak at his high school in China. Langara is a good environment in which to practice English, he said. “There are a lot of Asians, but it doesn’t mean they are international [ESL] students,” said Chen. Both Cai and Chen plan to transfer to UBC. Home buyers wait continued from page 1 Ls is looking to add more Chi- Ronda Karliner, a south Vancouver resident, said she’s been looking to buy a new home in the area but admits she is in no hurry. “Tam seeing a lot of inventory out there so I’m comfortable waiting,” said Karliner. She believes that if she waits, the prices might go down even further. Bargain hunting is a by-product of a weak economy, said real estate agent James Wong of Team 3000 Realty Ltd. “Buyers are reluctant and banks are tighter with loans,” he said. According to Wong, on average, only three out of 10 mortgage loan applica- tions are being approved. As aresult there are fewer buyers in the market, he said. In the past, bidding wars have driven house prices up and pressured hopeful homeowners to buy quickly, but that pressure isn’t there right now said Jag- pal. “Homes must be priced right in to- day’s market,” he said. They can then be sold within 30 to 90 days, he added. ee JENNIFER THUNCHER Bo Liu, 50, studies in the A build- -ing on Langara campus. She fac unique challenges in an environ The he life of an older student Isolation and loneliness are but two of the hardships that mature people face when they return to college to further their education By JENNIFER THUNCHER eing an older student at Langara can be both overwhelming and inspiring. According to a breakdown of Langara students in the fall of 2011, of the 9,641 students enrolled, two per cent were over 45. With such a small percentage of oth- ers in the same age group, older stu- dents on campus are faced with unique challenges. Bo Liu, 50, began taking psychology courses at Langara in September. In addition to the expected challeng- es of keeping up with course work after years away from school, Liu has also faced loneliness and isolation. She said she hasn’t made a single friend at school. “If 1 don’t start a conversation, there would be no conversation,” said Liu. She says her classmates don’t in- clude her most of the time. She wishes they would “just treat me as one of them.” Liu feels the other students incor- rectly pass judgment on what she is like, strictly based on her age. “They are all very cool,” said Liu. “TBut] Iam cool too myself.” A few weeks ago there was a positive development when a classmate in Liu’s fundamentals of psychology class ap- proached her to discuss the difficulty of the course. This was a nice change, Liu said, be- cause it was a common issue between two students, bridging the generations. Unfortunately, the young woman hasn’t been back to class since that ex- change. Overall, Liu is very glad she is in col- lege at this stage in her life. She has already overcome many things, having battled depression and coming to Can- ada from China as an adult. “Tm learning new things and that is the point,” said Liu. She plans to spend two years here, ultimately obtaining a psychology de- gree. Liu is a retired mother of six, and two of her children also attend Langa- ra. Her children, who range in age from 20 to 26, encourage her to carry on. She said her husband has been par- ticularly supportive which has made the process of going back to school much easier. To help alleviate the social isolation at school, Liu said a club for older stu- dents would be a great idea. “We want to be social,” she said. “We don’t want to be excluded.” 66 If I don’t start a conversa- tion, there would be no conver- sation.” Bo LIU South Asian dance craze takes over CLASSES at Sunset BHANGRA DANCE Wednesday 7:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. $105 for 12 classes or $10 to drop in BHANGRA FUSION Wednesday 8:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m. $105 for 12 classes or $10 to drop in YOGA FLOW Sunday 11:15 a.m. — 12:15 p.m. $120.00 for 12 classes Source: Sunset Community Centre Bhangra has become more popular in recent years, and a local community centre now offers classes BY ANNIE ELLISON tre’s upstairs dance studio at 7:30 p.m. on a Wednesday night and Sandip Rakhra will send you home skipping to bhangra beats. The folk dance originated in the Pun- jab region of India as a celebration of the harvest, but has evolved with main- stream pop and hip-hop dance to fren- zied popularity in the Lower Mainland. “The bhangra scene has changed in many ways,” says Rakhra, who has watched the local scene explode from three troupes when she first started, to dozens of recreational and competitive academies and teams. S« into Sunset Community Cen- “T think it’s wonderful that people of different backgrounds are interested in bhangra music and dance,” she said. Traditionally in Punjab, only men participated in bhangra — ladies had their own dance called giddha. “But I think based on the number of female coaches and dancers, we’ve overcome that quite nicely,” says Ra- khra. Arts and science transfer student Harleen Gill no longer has time to dance. “It would be pretty entertaining to see a bunch of [Caucasians] learning bhangra,” says Gill. Not all bhangra dancers are Punjabi, nor do all Punjabi people learn bhangra. At high-level competitions like Bhangra Idol, where performances fea- ture dance breaks to songs by Michael Jackson and Missy Elliott, Rakhra meets dancers of all ethnic back- grounds. Manjit and Chandeshwar Parmar’s two sons took Rakhra’s class and be- fore long, the parents signed up for her adult class. The dhol — the reason Jay Z ft. Pun- jabi MC’s 2003 track still fills dance floors — is a large double-sided drum that produces the heavy bass and rapid percussion at the thumping heart of bhangra. “It’s the feeling I get when I’m danc- ing that I love the most,” says Rakhra. Rakhra first fell in love when she saw the SFU Elite Bhangra Team per- form at a Punjabi festival. “Their music, their stunts, their gim- micks and movements were so enter- taining and I was hooked,” she said. Rakhra went on to compete with SFU Elite Bhangra between 2008 and 2012 from Detroit to Long Beach. Sunset Community Centre offers a wide variety of dance classes that in- clude a yoga flow class and a bhangra fusion class.