scholarly journals How to Retain Global Talent? Economic and Social Integration of Chinese Students in Finland

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 4161 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanwei Li
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Social Integration ◽  
Chinese Students ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Knowledge Based ◽  
Multicultural Environment ◽  
Nation States ◽  
Policies And Measures

Global talent is the key resource for today’s knowledge-based society and sustainable economic development, and an increasing number of countries are aiming to not only train but also to retain international students as a potential supply of highly skilled labor in innovative fields. This article explores ways to retain international students as global talent through an empirical study on mainland Chinese students’ integration into Finland as an example. Based on data obtained through semi-structured interviews with 30 Chinese students, this research identified a number of individual and societal factors that contribute to their difficulties with economic and social integration. The findings demonstrate the complexities of the language barrier faced by Chinese students in non-Anglophone country contexts, and the important interplay between students’ social and economic integration. The host environment (nation-states and organizations) also plays a vital role in creating a more open and multicultural environment to enhance the capacity of such young people to integrate and innovate. This paper concludes with a number of proposals for individuals, organizations (including higher education institutions (HEIs), and nation-states to consider for innovating their policies and measures to better integrate global talent.

The academic and personal experiences of Mainland Chinese students enrolled in a Canadian Master of Education Program

2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 177-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane P. Preston ◽  
Anhui Wang
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Education Program ◽  
Intercultural Competence ◽  
Chinese Students ◽  
Chinese Student ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Mainland Chinese Students ◽  
Master Of Education

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to communicate the positive and challenging aspects of a Master of Education program, as perceived by Chinese students at an Atlantic Canadian university. Design/methodology/approach Assuming a qualitative methodology, 21 Mainland Chinese students participated in individual, paired, and focus group semi-structured interviews. Interviews were member checked. Data were analyzed through content analysis. The findings are discussed using Deardorff’s (2006, 2009) concept of intercultural competence. Findings Students perceived the best features of their educational experience to be personable instructors, their enhanced English skills, and practical course-based experiences embedded in the program. The main challenges were social isolation, English language requirements and related assignments, and theoretical expectations of the program. Research limitations/implications This study contains a somewhat small qualitative small sample size (i.e. 21 participants), therein, disabling any generalization of results. In other words, the data findings are unique and non-generalizable beyond the particular research case. However, transferability, which refers to the extent in which the results of an original study can be applied to similar people, contexts, or settings (Lincoln and Guba, 1985), may be applied to the findings if the reader deems the context of this study in alignment with his/her situation. Practical implications Approximately, 82 percent of Canadian universities rate internationalization as a top priority, supporting the need for research in this area. An implication of the study is that internationalization of higher education must be more than just the recruitment of international students. Universities have direct and fiduciaries responsibilities to support the academic needs, personal needs of their international students, as well as the intercultural competence of all students, instructors and staff. Originality/value There is a plethora of research documenting experiences of international students, in general, but such research is not directly transferrable to the Chinese student. The issues and problems encountered by Chinese international students are unique and should be addressed independently from international students. Moreover, a lot of the research that focuses on Chinese students enrolled in North American universities, predominantly, is conducted within the USA, and such research tends to spotlight the challenges only. In turn, the authors’ research addresses a specialized focus of the international Chinese student in Canada.

Studying where the jobs are: Mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 290-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy Wai Wa Yuen ◽  
Alan Chi Keung Cheung ◽  
Ping Man Wong
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
International Student ◽  
Chinese Students ◽  
Teaching Profession ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Mainland Chinese Students ◽  
Stay Behind ◽  
Country Specific

Purpose Mainland Chinese students (hereafter called Mainland students) are a major source of international student applications. Some countries have initiated policies to enable Mainland students to stay and work after graduation. Additions to the literature, particularly more country-specific studies, are much needed to cast light on the employment issues for such Mainland students overseas. The purpose of this paper is to fill this gap by focussing on Mainland students who have completed teacher education programmes in Hong Kong and then served as teachers in Hong Kong schools (Mainland teachers). The incentives that attracted them to stay and work in Hong Kong and the challenges they faced were examined. Their future plans were also probed. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted a mixed methodology. Data collection comprised both a questionnaire survey and interviews. The semi-structured interviews provided opportunities for respondents to explain their answers, to narrate and widen the scope of data to areas hitherto unanticipated by the researchers. Findings Mainland teachers were attracted to stay on in Hong Kong to work for both intrinsic and extrinsic reasons. They were in fact settlers. They found the programmes they had taken to be practical and believed that they had acquired a niche situation in the teaching profession. Working and living in Hong Kong was satisfying, but some experienced social distance from local colleagues. Originality/value The paper can be read with reference to countries that recruit Mainland students and there is a possibility that some of them may stay behind to work. It sheds light on the selection criteria of such students, on ways to enrich their programmes, as well as their employment, living and social integration issues.

Acculturative Stressor and Meaning of Life as Predictors of Negative Affect in Acculturation: A Cross-Cultural Comparative Study between Chinese International Students in Australia and Hong Kong

2007 ◽  
Vol 41 (9) ◽  
pp. 740-750 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jia-Yan Pan ◽  
Daniel Fu Keung Wong ◽  
Lynette Joubert ◽  
Cecilia Lai Wan Chan
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
International Students ◽  
Negative Affect ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
Chinese Students ◽  
Meaning Of Life ◽  
Chinese International Students ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Mainland Chinese Students ◽  
The Impact

Objective: The purpose of the present study was to compare the predictive effects of acculturative stressor and meaning of life on negative affect in the process of acculturation between Chinese international students in Australia and Hong Kong. Method: Four hundred mainland Chinese students studying at six universities in Hong Kong and 227 Chinese international students studying at the University of Melbourne in Australia completed a questionnaire that included measures of acculturative stressor, meaning of life, negative affect and demographic information. Results: The Australian sample was found to have a higher level of acculturative stressor and negative affect than the Hong Kong sample. Acculturative stressor had a positive impact on negative affect in both samples, but the impact of different domains of acculturative stressor on negative affect varied between the two groups. Finally, meaning of life partially mediated the relationship between acculturative stressor and negative affect in the Hong Kong sample, but no such effect was found in the Australia sample. Conclusions: Acculturative stressor is a critical risk factor for negative affect in acculturation for Chinese international students in Australia and Hong Kong. Meaning of life acted as a protective factor that mitigated negative affect for mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong, but not for the Chinese international students in Australia. The theoretical and practical implications for resilience-based and meaning-oriented intervention for Chinese international students are discussed.

The connection between VFR experience based and sociocultural dimensions of international students and mainland Chinese students

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chung Shing Chan ◽  
Birgit Pikkemaat ◽  
Dora Agapito ◽  
Qinrou Zhou
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
International Students ◽  
Chinese Students ◽  
Urban Infrastructure ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Mainland Chinese Students ◽  
Tourism Resources

Purpose This paper aims to present the host experience of student hosts in Hong Kong, a popular educational destination for international students from mainland China and other countries. This study examines the interconnection between the experience-based and sociocultural dimensions of visiting friends and relatives (VFR) travel, considering the overall host experience, the host–guest relationship and post-hosting changes in perception of both the VFR experience and destination. Design/methodology/approach This research adopts a qualitative approach to compare the experience-based and sociocultural dimensions of VFR travel considering international university students as VFR hosts in Hong Kong, taking a student sample from both mainland Chinese and overseas students. Based on a voluntary sampling approach, the research team had face-to-face interviews with the students that agreed to participate. The interviews were conducted voluntarily and anonymously and included those students who had hosted any friends or relatives in the past 12 months. A total of 26 interviews were successfully completed, including 10 mainland Chinese and 16 non-mainland Chinese students. Findings The results confirm that the VFR host experience is generally shaped by an integration of internal characteristics (sociocultural characteristics of both hosts and visitors) and external environment (urban infrastructure and tourism resources). The two groups distinctively express their host experience that shows some areas of cultural barriers and geographical proximity. Research limitations/implications The limitations of this research mainly lie on its relatively small sample size because of constraints in accessing the contact information of international students across universities. These shortcomings should be improved by adopting a research design that uses other sampling approaches, such as snowball sampling, to include a wider scope of students from different local universities, or convenience sampling, to interview and compare responses of international students from various educational destinations. Alternative data sources may be considered, for example, through user-generated contents from online and social media platforms that contain sharing of students as hosts. Practical implications The geographical and cultural proximities influence VFR tourism development and social construction of values and the consequent hosting behaviour. The unique role of international students should be further explored, especially in the Asian context. The outcome of VFR travel must be evaluated and studied more from cultural and personal dimensions than economic gain, which should be relevant to host perspective such as improved quality of life, social ties and place attachment and psychological benefits. The changing risk perception caused by the COVID-19 pandemic may be examined through some forms of travel intention. Social implications Firstly, the destination marketing organisations of the educational destination should address the difficulty faced by student hosts in terms of external attributes such as local culture, urban infrastructure, tourism resources and information accessibility. Secondly, to target the hosts, some specific VFR-related products and services may be developed for international students through local tertiary institutions such that the role of hosts as ambassadors can be facilitated and enhanced. Thirdly, the functional role of international students can be distinctive based on their unique network, activities and knowledge constructed upon learning during the period of education. Originality/value The studentification of many educational destination cities, the dynamism of the role of international students as VFR hosts and their cultural differences between places of origin have provided an opportunity for deepening the understanding of VFR tourism.

Place attachment and affinity: turning the Mainland Chinese students into “Word-of-Mouth Champions”

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xin Wang ◽  
Ivan Ka Wai Lai ◽  
Baoyi Song
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Place Attachment ◽  
Word Of Mouth ◽  
Chinese Students ◽  
Positive Influence ◽  
Place Identity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Mainland Chinese Students ◽  
Place Dependence

PurposeMainland Chinese students are the largest group of international students globally. The role of international students in destination marketing can be seen as “Word-of-Mouth Champions”. This study attempts to examine the effect of place attachment and affinity for Mainland Chinese students on generating word-of-mouth intention towards their place of study.Design/methodology/approachSix well-trained research assistants collected paper-based questionnaires in six institutions in Macao. They chose every tenth student who passed by to fill in the questionnaire at six locations in each institution. This study employed partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) to estimate the strength of causal relationship among place identity, place dependence, affinity and intention to word-of-mouth.FindingsThe results of the survey from 327 students in Macao indicate that place dependence, place identity and affinity drive Mainland Chinese students to provide word-of-mouth regarding Macao. Place dependence has a positive influence on place identity, and place identity has a positive influence on affinity with residents. However, place dependence has no significant direct effect on affinity.Practical implicationsEvidence from this study indicates the importance of students' word-of-mouth as they as sojourners, in particular, the students' place attachment and affinity for residents is critical to positive their Word-of-mouth on destinations. This research offers insights about the potential group which need require attention.Originality/valueThis study fills a research gap by exploring the relationship between place attachment and social distance in influencing Mainland Chinese students' behaviour, a relationship that has rarely been investigated in tourism research. Practical recommendations are provided to the governments, universities and education enterprises according to the results of the study. From both theoretical and practical perspectives, the findings from this study suggest promoting international students to turn into real “Word-of-Mouth Champions”.

scholarly journals Perceptions of Mainland Chinese Students Toward Obtaining Higher Education in the United States

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 623-637 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle E. Bartlett ◽  
Wei Han ◽  
James E. Bartlett, II
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
International Students ◽  
Q Methodology ◽  
Chinese Students ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Education Group ◽  
Mainland Chinese Students ◽  
States Data ◽  
And Migration

Since 1978, when the first group of 50 mainland Chinese students came to the United States for education, increasing numbers of mainland Chinese students have come to the United States to get a degree (Lampton, Madancy & Williams, 1986). In 2009, China surpassed India, becoming the largest source country of international students in the United States, and since then, China has the most international students seeking education in the United States (Open Doors Data, 2015). The purpose of this Q methodology study is to explore personal perspectives of mainland Chinese students on the value of getting a degree in the United States. Data analysis grouped similar viewpoints. Based on data from ten mainland Chinese students, we categorized three different groups of mainland Chinese students: job and education group, education group, and migration group.

scholarly journals Academic Integration of Mainland Chinese Students in Germany

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanwei Li
Keyword(s):  
Applied Sciences ◽  
Academic Success ◽  
Social Integration ◽  
Academic Integration ◽  
Chinese Students ◽  
Mainland Chinese ◽  
Mainland Chinese Students ◽  
Universities Of Applied Sciences ◽  
Success Group ◽  
The Relationship

This article presents an analysis of the academic integration experiences of mainland Chinese tertiary-level students in Germany. Using Tinto’s model, the article explores the challenges that Chinese students face during their academic integration, the strategies they employ, and the relationship between academic and social integration. The data were collected in spring 2016 by interviewing 26 mainland Chinese students studying either in German universities or universities of applied sciences. Four major challenges were identified and analyzed: language barrier, knowledge gap, pedagogical differences, and cultural differences. An important outcome of the study presented is that social integration serves as a facilitator for enhancing academic integration, but is not a prerequisite for academic success. Group learning with peers was found to enhance learning outcomes. Overall, Chinese students have exploited their own advantages in academic integration by exploring feasible strategies and benefiting from their past learning experiences. It is suggested that academic integration as a long and challenging process for international students should be acknowledged by the German HEIs, and that more institutional support and guidance are needed.

Study-work-life balance of international students in the context of temporal boundaries

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 63-79
Author(s):  
Megan O'Mahony ◽  
Debora Jeske
Keyword(s):  
International Students ◽  
Social Withdrawal ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Boundary Management ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Time Zone ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Postgraduate Students ◽  
Personal Challenges

The goal of this qualitative study was to examine the experience of study-work-life balance among international students who were separated from their family both geographically and temporally. Using 10 semi-structured interviews with postgraduate students and thematic analysis, several themes were identified. These included boundary management shifts due to study/work demands and time zone differences. In addition, students reported social and personal challenges (in terms of family’s expectations, relationships maintenance, socialization in host country). Temporal boundaries contributed to social withdrawal and isolation among students, many of which were heavily reliant on their own family network for support. The findings strengthen the argument that time difference impacts the boundary management and social experience of international students.

Tertiary English-majored Students’ Perceptions toward the Role of Pronunciation in English Language Learning and their Practicing Strategies

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 264-279
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
English Language Learning ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
The University

Accurate pronunciation has a vital role in English language learning as it can help learners to avoid misunderstanding in communication. However, EFL learners in many contexts, especially at the University of Phan Thiet, still encounter many difficulties in pronouncing English correctly. Therefore, this study endeavors to explore English-majored students’ perceptions towards the role of pronunciation in English language learning and examine their pronunciation practicing strategies (PPS). It involved 155 English-majored students at the University of Phan Thiet who answered closed-ended questionnaires and 18 English-majored students who participated in semi-structured interviews. The findings revealed that students strongly believed in the important role of pronunciation in English language learning; however, they sometimes employed PPS for their pronunciation improvement. Furthermore, the results showed that participants tended to use naturalistic practicing strategies and formal practicing strategies with sounds, but they overlooked strategies such as asking for help and cooperating with peers. Such findings could contribute further to the understanding of how students perceive the role of pronunciation and their PPS use in the research’s context and other similar ones. Received 10th June 2019; Revised 12th March 2020; Accepted 12th April 2020

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