scholarly journals Exploring the challenges and opportunities for improving the health and wellbeing of international students: Perspectives of international students.

2021 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-34
Author(s):  
Danielle C. Newton ◽  
◽  
Adrian J. Tomyn ◽  
Anthony D. LaMontagne ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Emotional Health ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
University Support ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Waiting Periods ◽  
The University ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Access Services

This study sought to explore the challenges and opportunities for improving the health and wellbeing of international students through in-depth interviews with 21 international students at an Australian University. Interviews explored 1) conceptualisation of health and wellbeing, 2) perceptionsof the most significant health and wellbeing issues for international students, and 3) the barriers to international students accessing campus-based services for health and wellbeing concerns. Almost all international students viewed health and wellbeing as a state encompassing both physical and mental/emotional health. Key challenges included mental health, lack of social support, academic stressors, financial pressures, and accommodation concerns. Barriers to accessing university support services included cultural stigma, language barriers, waiting periods to access services, and not knowing how or where to access support within the university. The implications of these findings and suggested strategies for improving the health and wellbeing of international students are discussed.

scholarly journals Learning "betwixt and between": Opportunities and challenges for student-driven partnership

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanna Barrineau ◽  
Lakin Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Interdisciplinary Education ◽  
Education Student ◽  
Design And Implementation ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Institutional Contexts ◽  
Unusual Amount ◽  
The University ◽  
Depth Interviews

This paper analyses students’ experiences of a partnership learning community in which students take on an unusual amount of power over decision-making in the design and implementation of interdisciplinary education. Student-driven contexts are largely absent in literature on partnership in higher education, which has thus far been based on empirical study of institutional contexts in which faculty have more power than students. This reveals a gap in knowledge about arrangements in which students have more control over decision-making than faculty. Drawing from in-depth interviews with student course coordinators, and using the concepts of roles and liminality, we analyse how course coordinators perceive their challenging and often ambiguous roles in which they renegotiate their relationships to staff, students, and the university itself. We then identify some challenges and opportunities for partnership within this context.

scholarly journals Exploring the challenges and opportunities for improving the health and wellbeing of international students: Perspectives of professional staff at an Australian University.

2021 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-92
Author(s):  
Danielle C. Newton ◽  
◽  
drian J. Tomyn ◽  
Anthony D. LaMontagne ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
International Students ◽  
Support Services ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
International Student ◽  
Professional Staff ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities

There are growing concerns about the mental health of university students, with particular concerns for international students studying in countries with different language and culture from the country of origin. We sought to explore the challenges and opportunities for supporting and improving the health and wellbeing of international students through interviews with health and other support services staff at an Australian University. Semi-structured interviews with a range of health and support services staff were conducted in person or by telephone in late 2018. Staff were asked about their perceptions of 1) health and wellbeing issues for international students, 2) barriers to international students accessing campus-based services for health and wellbeing concerns, and 3) strategies to improve international students’ health and wellbeing. Transcribed interviews were analysed thematically. Mental health/illness was identified as the most important health and wellbeing concern for international students. Barriers to help-seeking included fear of repercussions for coming forward, lack of problem and symptom recognition, poor understanding of health information, cultural stigma associated with counselling and language barriers. A tendency among international students to delay help-seeking until problems reached crisis-point was also identified as a concern. Suggested strategies to improve wellbeing included pre-departure education/orientation to life in Australia, the integration of health and wellbeing education with other university programs, education about confidentiality, better supporting students in how to access services, and skill building to promote social connection. Addressing the identified issues and opportunities would support international student health and wellbeing and may assist in attracting international students back to Australia post-COVID.

State of the Art About COVID-19's Impact on Santiago University, Cape Verde

2021 ◽  
pp. 314-328
Author(s):  
Eduardo Moraes Sarmento ◽  
José Mascarenhas Monteiro
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Online Teaching ◽  
Teaching Experience ◽  
Transition Process ◽  
Cape Verdean ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
The University ◽  
Critical Challenge

The COVID-19 pandemic has become a critical challenge for the higher education sector worldwide. Under such a circumstance, the exploration of the capacity of this sector to adapt to such a state of uncertainty has become of huge importance. In this chapter, the authors critically reflect on the Cape Verdean teaching experience during the early COVID-19 lockdown. This is an exploratory case study based on a qualitative approach with an aim to reflect on new practices of teaching under a pandemic emergency. Based on the teaching experience of teaching in Santiago University, they explain how this university has changed from a face-to-face to an online teaching system and stress the challenges and opportunities that appear from this transition process. This chapter concludes that this strategy has become an opportunity to the university since it consistently raised the number of international students cooperating with them and also that the more adaptive and resilient approaches to online teaching were also a success.

Voices of dissent: unpacking Vietnamese international student experience

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 280-292
Author(s):  
Le Huong ◽  
Fung Kuen Koo ◽  
Rodney Arambewela ◽  
Ambika Zutshi
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Learning Environment ◽  
Student Perceptions ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
International Student ◽  
English Language ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The University ◽  
Depth Interviews

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine Vietnamese international students’ experiences with the campus learning environment by analysing differences in staff and student perceptions. Design/methodology/approach Two focus groups (n=12) and ten in-depth interviews were conducted with Vietnamese students and four in-depth interviews with the university staff (totalling 26). Findings The findings show a greater divergence of views between students and staff on teaching and learning than English language proficiency and student support services. These key differences were influenced by students’ prior expectations of their learning environment in Vietnam. Research limitations/implications This study is limited to one group of international students and to one Australian university. Practical implications The lecturers/administrators must have a good understanding of international students’ learning backgrounds and expectations to enhance their positive experience; appropriate teaching skills and practices are essential for teachers to meet the current needs of students. More effective training for international students to understand the multicultural nature of Australia is also essential. Originality/value This study contributes to the literature by identifying the experience of Vietnamese international students in a western university, which is, a relatively under-researched nationality compared to other Asian nationalities such as Chinese and Indian.

scholarly journals The Role of Postgraduate International Students in the Process of Internationalization of Higher Education

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdul Qahar Sarwari ◽  
Nubli Wahab
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
International Students ◽  
Host Country ◽  
Foreign Students ◽  
Internationalization Of Higher Education ◽  
Positive Role ◽  
Postgraduate Students ◽  
Almost All ◽  
The University

This study was conducted to assess the role of interactions among international students from different nationalities on the process of internationalization of Malaysian higher education. An embedded design of mixed methods with the predominant role of the quantitative method was applied to conduct this study. The participants of this study were 118 international postgraduate students from a Malaysian public university, and based on their personal agreements, six of them were interviewed as well.  Based on the results, the presence and persuasions of students from their countries at universities and the emerging reputation of public universities in the host country were the main reasons that encouraged international students to enroll in the university. The findings of this study also illustrated that almost all participants of this study shared some information about the quality and standards of higher education in the host country with their friends in their own countries, and encouraged some students to join the mentioned university and other universities in the country. Generally, the findings of this study confirmed the positive role of foreign students in assisting the increase in the number of international students, and also on the process of internationalization of higher education. The findings of this study may help universities to reap more benefits from their international students, and also may encourage students to have better academic achievements through their interactions with their peers from different nationalities.

scholarly journals International students' views on sexual health: a qualitative study at an Australian university

Sexual Health ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 231
Author(s):  
Anneka Parker ◽  
Peter Harris ◽  
Bridget Haire
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Sexual Health ◽  
Sexual Misconduct ◽  
Sexual Consent ◽  
Limited Information ◽  
Sexual Health Education ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Depth Interviews ◽  
Australian Universities

Background The number of international students at Australian universities is rapidly increasing, and they contribute significantly to Australia’s economy. However, concerns have been raised for the health and wellbeing of international students, and there is limited information concerning international students with regard to their sexual health. Methods: Overall, 13 individual semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with 13 international students at an Australian university, aiming to understand the views and experiences of international students with regard to their sexual health and wellbeing. The interviews were analysed thematically, generating four themes. Results: Participants had a varied understanding of sexual consent, which often included concerns about the practicalities of saying ‘no’ to unwanted sexual interactions and misinformation about the effect of reporting sexual misconduct on their privacy and visa status. Cultural and familial taboos were often inherited, but many participants described an evolution of personal views and attitudes regarding topics such as sex before marriage and same-sex relationships, which had occurred since moving to Australia. Participants expressed that they received large amounts of information about sexual health, but often lacked the skills to navigate that information and access relevant support. Conclusions: These data, along with participants’ suggestions for future support and education, are important for understanding the complex experiences of international students at Australian universities, and should be considered when implementing future sexual health education and support programs.

Structural Model of Service Quality Factors Affecting Loyalty Sustainability

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eman Al-erqi ◽  
◽  
Mohd Lizam Mohd Diah ◽  
Najmaddin Abo Mosali ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Service Quality ◽  
Goodness Of Fit ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Quality Factors ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Measurement Models ◽  
Confirmatory Factor ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact

This study seeks to address the impact of service quality affecting international student's satisfaction towards loyalty tothe Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia(UTHM). The aim of thestudy is to develop relationship between service quality factor and loyalty to the university from the international students’ perspectives. The study adopted quantitative approach where data was collected through questionnaire survey and analysed statistically. A total of 246 responses were received and found to be valid. The model was developed and analysed using AMOS-SEM software. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) function of the software was to assessed the measurement models and found that all the models achieved goodness of fit. Then path analysis function was used to assessed structural model and found that service qualityfactors have a significant effect on the students’ satisfaction and thus affecting the loyaltyto the university. Hopefully the outcome form this study will benefit the university in providing services especially to the international students.

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