African international students’ challenges, investment and identity development at a highly selective EMI university in Kazakhstan

Abstract

This article documents the reflections of six African second-year master’s students on their international educational experiences in Kazakhstan with a special focus on their challenges, strategic learning efforts and identity development. It is guided by Norton’s conceptualisation of investment in identity, language learning, and social change. The qualitative data collected from a written narrative and two subsequent rounds of individual semi-structured interviews suggest that participants pursued their studies at an English-medium instruction university in Kazakhstan mainly because of the fully-funded scholarships. However, their expectations regarding the university and Kazakhstan were unclear, as they received no pre-departure orientation. Despite being satisfied with the high-quality education in the host institution, they faced challenges such as difficulty securing part-time work due to a lack of proficiency in local languages (Kazakh and Russian), enduring prolonged cold weather, and limited opportunities for socialising with other students. Most participants described Kazakhstan as ‘a peaceful and progressive country’; however, two participants experienced linguistic racism in the classroom. This study underlines the significance of addressing the issues of graduate employability and linguistic racism, along with implementing pedagogical interventions in all phases of study abroad and fostering a sense of intercultural citizenship among students.