The Student Leadership Challenge, 4th Edition

6Commitment #6: Experiment and Take Risks

When Yijie (Frank) Huang enrolled as an international graduate student at his Ivy League university, he noticed something strange: the school required international students to register for insurance that cost $4,500 per year—much more expensive than what domestic students paid for insurance. Domestic students could opt out of the university insurance, but it was required for international students—and the school didn't recognize any other insurance options.

However, Frank, who grew up in China but came to America at 15 to attend high school in Maryland, had also spent his undergraduate years at a university in the same state. He knew that the state had a program that offered insurance to international ...