A long way from Cameroon
Caroline Adjimi displays her national pride with the flag of Camaroon outside the Latina center.
February 24, 2016
It is always astounding to see the diversity at CSUSM. Students on campus are of an abundant amount of backgrounds and cultures that help them prosper and strive to be the educated individuals they seek to be.
Caroline Adjimi came to the states in 2012 to attend Palomar College in San Marcos. She later received her bachelor’s degree in psychology at CSUSM. Initially receiving a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Ngaoundéré in Cameroon, she wanted to continue pursuing her education in order to help other people.
“Right now, I am in a better place to help other people. That is why I like psychology,” said Adjimi.
School in the U.S. has not been easy for her, but there has been tremendous progress along the way.
Acknowledging the vast differences between Cameroon and America, Adjimi shared her first encounter in America. Initially, she was under the impression that Americans were wealthy with all the “big cars” that were around. But that mentality quickly went away as she later visited less prominent areas in Los Angeles.
Racial issues were new to Adjimi.
She said, “I can only sympathize. In my country, it was not talked of … I am trying to wrap my head around that as much as possible.”
She also expressed her concern on the fact that racism does not only affect people of African descent, but people of all ethnicities.
When asked about the expectations one should have when visiting Cameroon, she said, “You will cry twice. You will cry the first time you arrive because things are so different … it is not the same thing as in the states.” The second time, she said you will cry because “Once you start knowing people, you don’t want to leave anymore. That is just the beauty of it … It doesn’t mean that it’s perfect [though].”
Progress is something that Adjimi has definitely made since her days in Cameroon. She ended on a bright note saying, “Be open to learn. Be open to … challenge yourself. I have challenged myself so much. Challenge yourself and be ready for whatever is going to come up. Because, whether it’s hard, or whether it’s easy, it will still teach you something about life.”
Gilbert Babena Bilal • Jun 21, 2017 at 8:29 pm
I knew Caroline Adjimi when she was in Cameroon and i am proud of her. It is true that Cameroon is powerfull country in Cemac’s region. But, i would like to know how her University could help african students in humanities as her to return in their country and help their people… Psychology is an important domain, but this kind of preoccupations is not in habits of africans un general. Personally, i finished to write a PhD. on language sciences (my subject concerns interactions in situation of corruption) in the University where Adjimi obtained her bachelor in History, but, in spite of my results, it is difficult to propose them to structures which fight corruption in Cameroon. In these conditions, the only issue is to become a lecturer… Best regards!