This must-read book combines carefully selected contributions to form a collective scholarly critique of existing research with international students, focusing on key critical and conceptual ...considerations for research where international students are participants or co-researchers. It pushes forward new agendas for the future of research with international students in global contexts, posing new sets of problems, provocations, and possibilities. Bringing together a range of interdisciplinary scholars, this book explores the many facets of research, which centres international students and their experiences. Each chapter concludes with practical reflection questions, suggestions for researchers, and examples in existing research to support research designs and aid in developing high-quality, critical research on this topic. Bringing fresh perspectives to the topic of research with international students, the book focuses on: Outlining current problems with existing research, including the ways that international students may be stereotyped, homogenised, Othered, or framed through deficit and colonial narratives (Re)-conceptualising key ideas that underpin research which are currently taken for granted Developing reflection points and practical guidance for new research designs which centre criticality and ethics Outlining ways that discourses and narratives about international students can be made more complex, particularly in reflection of their intersectional identities This key text is essential reading for researchers at all career stages to reflect on issues of power, inequality, and ethics, whilst developing understandings about critical choices in research design, analysis, and the presentation of findings.
PurposeCambodian and Laotian students (CLS) are among the largest groups of international students in intra-ASEAN student mobility as well as in Vietnamese higher education institutions (HEIs). ...However, little has been researched on the factors influencing CLS’s decision to choose Vietnam as destination country. The purpose of this study is to investigate why CLS decide to go overseas and choose Vietnam as their host country among other opportunities as well as their perceptions of the decision.Design/methodology/approachUsing qualitative methods and employing purposive sampling, data were collected by semi-structured interviews from CLS studying in a HEI in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam. The data were analysed against the push–pull framework to understand factors influencing the participants’ decision.FindingsThe findings show that CLS in the study were “pushed” by the perceived higher value of a foreign qualification and family encouragements. In terms of pull factors, they were attracted to choose Vietnam as the host country most observably due to scholarship opportunities. However other pull factors were also significant, especially the lack of certain skills in home countries and its congruence with Vietnam’s competitive strength in offering courses for those skills. In retrospect, the participants expressed a sense of optimism, though there was also certain reservation.Research limitations/implicationsThe small sample restrict the generalisability of the findings.Practical implicationsAs an exploratory study, the findings can lay the ground for largerscale studies investigating CLS mobility in Vietnam and be employed for inbound student mobility policymaking reference for HEIs in Vietnam as well as in other developing countries.Originality/valueThis study investigates why Cambodian and Laotian international students decide to go to Vietnam, a developing country in the lesser-known part of international student mobility landscape. This is a topic that remains under-researched in the Asia-bound student mobility literature. Insights from the study can not only contribute to the scholarly gap but also offer implications for HEIs in Vietnam and other Asian countries.
Objectives: China now offers top-notch postsecondary education to students worldwide. Similar problems develop every year when hundreds of international students come to China for further education, ...creating new difficulties. This study looks into the challenges and obstacles international postgraduate students face while spending a full academic year at NENU in Changchun, China. Methodology: A qualitative process was used to choose 86 international students, both male and female. Six foreign students, all nationals of different countries, were recruited from various Northeast Normal University schools. After gathering the data through a thorough process of in-person interviews, a themetic analysis method was applied. Findings: Emerging themes were examined in both the individual interviews and the aggregate for more examination. The findings demonstrated how a number of issues, including the academic barrier, the cultural barrier, and adjustment strategies, affect the lives of recently arrived students. Incorporate issues related to diet, communication, and other psychological factors. Implications: Conversely, these obstacles also spur international students to create problem-solving solutions. They create novel learning strategies to overcome obstacles as they grow into autonomous learners. Time, effort, and a great deal of support from various sources are required for the adjustment and adaptation.
The emergence of a regional hub Jon, Jae-Eun; Lee, Jenny J; Byun, Kiyiong
Higher education,
05/2014, Volume:
67, Issue:
5
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
As the demand for international education increases, middle-income non-English speaking countries, such as South Korea, play an increasing role in hosting the world's students. This mixed-methods ...study compares the different motivations and experiences of international students within and outside the East Asian region. Based on findings, this paper suggests the possibility of Korea developing its position as a regional hub for education in East Asia. It also discusses related issues such as English-Medium Instruction in Korean higher education as well as strategies for international student recruitment. (HRK / Abstract übernommen).
This research contributes to the booming literature on the mobility of international students in higher education. We analyse university-level factors that affect the sorting of Chinese international ...students across British universities. We produced a unique data-set merging university-level data from the 2014 UK Higher Education Statistics Agency and the Higher Expectations Survey, supplemented by qualitative evidence from six focus groups for illustrative purposes. Our results, using nationally representative evidence for the first time, confirmed that university prestige is the most important driver for the sorting of Chinese students across British universities, together with further effects of the broader social and cultural offerings that the universities provide. Interestingly, the cost of study and marketing strategies deployed by universities do not seem to drive the Chinese students' university choices. Our findings underline the importance of diffuse institutional factors such as university rankings and their taken-for-granted status by students themselves.
Both Canada and the United States enrol a significant number of international students. However, in March 2020, both countries closed their borders and increased restrictions to international travel ...due to COVID‐19, which had a direct impact on international students' ability to travel between their home countries and study destinations. This article examines the impact of COVID‐19 on international student enrolments by asking two related questions: first, how did government policy address international students' difficult reality in the wake of COVID‐19? And, did international student enrolments change as a result? With regard to policy, we find a stark divergence: Canada's federal policies quickly adapted to support international students and ensure they remained eligible for post‐graduate work permits, preserving the appeal of Canada as a study destination. Meanwhile, in the US, federal policies for student visas required international students to maintain physical presence, reflecting a more hostile stance towards immigration, characteristic of the Trump administration. Despite these differences, with regard to enrolments, we find largely similar patterns, with COVID resulting in only a small decline in international student enrolments nationwide. A more worrying trend for both countries is that selective institutions seem to have been less impacted than access‐oriented institutions.
加拿大与美国为两大留学国家。新冠疫情爆发后，两国于2020年3月封锁边境，并且限制了国际旅行。此政策直接影响了两国的国际学生返回本国或者返回留学目的地的计划。在此背景下，本文通过两个研究问题探讨新冠疫情对加拿大和美国国际学生招生的影响。第一，两国的政府政策如何处理新冠疫情以来国际学生所面临的困境？第二，两国国际学生招生数量是否受到影响？政策分析显示，加拿大与美国两国政策差异明显。加拿大联邦政府迅速调整原有政策，支持国际学生，并确保国际学生仍有资格申请工作签证，从而保持加拿大对国际学生的吸引力。美国联邦政府的国际学生签证政策则要求国际学生留在美国本地。此政策与特朗普时期对移民的敌视态度如出一辙。虽然两国政策存在反差，本文发现，两国的国际学生数量变化大致相似。新冠疫情在两国仅造成国际学生数量小规模下降。然而，相对引人担忧的趋势则是，相比于招生规模大的普通大学，精英型大学受新冠疫情的影响似乎较小。
The increasing number of people studying abroad has drawn significant scholarly attention to the experiences of international students. While these works have productively informed policy and ...practice regarding how international students may be better supported, they have not always considered the active ways international students contribute to higher education. This article suggests that adopting the notion of experience as a conceptual starting point is problematic because it only partially illuminates international students' agency and reproduces understandings of them as a vulnerable group. The more active notion of practice, by contrast, suggests a more agentive subject who is a pivotal actor in spaces of education. The main argument in this article is that the abiding focus on international students' experiences will be productively unsettled by orienting attention to their practices and theorising the notion of practice in more fluid and dynamic ways. After critically engaging with the existing literature, the article outlines four ways that a focus on international students' practices may reanimate debates. A focus on practice will: (1) show how international students actively contribute to spaces of higher education, including classrooms, campuses and other sites of sociality; (2) demand that researchers theorise agency in more expansive ways and consider the practices of a broader set of social groups; (3) encourage researchers to make use of a wider set of qualitative research methods; and (4) create a stronger political foundation from which to defend the interests of international students in a post‐COVID‐19 world.
Introduction The current systematic review aimed to examine the relationship between acculturative stress (AS) and psychological outcomes in international students to determine the role AS may play ...in predicting the mental health of international students. Methods The studies included in the current systematic review and meta-analysis had considered AS and its impact on psychological outcomes among international students studying abroad. After checking the studies found in our primary search through the scientific databases in terms of our eligibility criteria, 29 studies were included, of which 26 were eligible for a meta-analysis (total N = 7,247). Results Meta-analysis indicated a moderate mean correlation of AS with psychological outcomes like depression, life satisfaction, quality of life, vocational outcome expectations, drinking behaviors, resilience, health promotion behavior, psychological adjustment, psychological distress, negative affect, and mental health symptoms ( r = 0.39) and depression ( r = 0.41), respectively. Discussion The review of studies revealed a robust relationship between AS and increased negative psychological outcomes such as depression, psychological distress, and general stress, as well as decreased positive psychological outcomes such as psychological adjustment, mental health, life satisfaction, and quality of life.
Previous studies on self-esteem development show substantial changes as well as interindividual differences in change from adolescence to young adulthood. However, the processes underlying these ...developmental trajectories are still not well understood. The aim of the present study was to shed light on the macro- and microprocesses of self-esteem development. We investigated a sample of 876 German high school students (M = 16.0 years at Time 1) participating in an international exchange year. Exchange students provided 3 waves of trait self-esteem data (shortly before they departed, immediately after return, and 1 year later), as well as 9 monthly state measures of self-esteem and social inclusion during their stay abroad. In addition, a control group of high school students who stayed in Germany (N = 714) provided 2 waves of trait self-esteem data. From a macroperspective, results showed an effect of student exchange on trait self-esteem development: Exchange students showed a steeper mean-level increase and a lower rank-order stability compared with control students. Zooming in on the microprocesses underlying these developmental patterns, we found trait changes in exchange students to be mediated by state changes in self-esteem during their exchange. These fluctuations in state self-esteem were found to be predicted by feelings of social inclusion in the host country, and vice versa, providing support for both sociometer and self-broadcasting perspectives on self-esteem dynamics. In sum, our findings emphasize the importance of incorporating a microanalytical approach when investigating self-esteem development by showing that the environment triggers changes in this relatively stable personality trait through changes in states.
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