Internationalization at Home and the Development of Intercultural Competence. Belgian University Students’ Views

Abstract

This study contributes to the literature studying Internationalization at Home (IaH) as a way to develop intercultural competence in university students. It investigates how a group of students studying at Belgium’s oldest (°1425) and largest mainly white university perceive intercultural competence and their university’s initiatives to promote its development among local students. The results gained from the thematic analysis of 53 semi-structured interviews show that students’ conceptualizations of intercultural competence validate theoretical frameworks and definitions. Also, although students are mainly supportive of their university’s IaH initiatives they also suggest interesting ways to better support students in acquiring intercultural competence.