ANN ARBOR, MI — Xingzao “Peter” Zhuang, 21, feels connected to his family in Jinan, China, despite being away from home for nearly eight years.

Zhuang, a senior studying communications and media at the University of Michigan who also attended a Connecticut boarding school, said he can always stay in touch with his family via text and phone.

“Even though I’m far away from home, our heart is connected,” Zhuang said.

Zhuang is one of over 8,000 international students at the Ann Arbor campus, according to a 2025 report from the university’s International Center . Many of the university’s international students will not return home this Thanksgiving, unlike their peers from Michigan and neighboring states.

Reasons for not returning home include the short duration of their school break, di

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