Indian International Students Research Articles

Greener pastures: why Indian international students leave the US labor market

ABSTRACT This paper revisits conventional wisdom on US degree premiums for immigrant workers and shows that, despite the benefits of a US degree, migration policies and substandard labor conditions contribute to international student motivations to return home. Using two original datasets, I find that about a third of Indian-born US graduates leave the US, seeking employment opportunities abroad and a respite from US work visa restrictions. I draw on 105 in-depth interviews and 7,177 employment histories constructed from LinkedIn, and the analysis demonstrates the use of digital data to shed new light on under-studied patterns of return migration in institutional perspective. I find that US work visas are related to the underemployment of immigrant workers, and gaps in visa availability are associated with US labor market departure for Indian international students. At the same time, foreign employers reward skills and credentials developed in the US, and the results suggest that US degrees carry a higher premium in foreign labor markets. The paper emphasizes the role of institutions in the skilled migration system and identifies disjunctures in US migration policy. I identify opportunities for policy reform to improve immigrant labor conditions and increase the retention of US-educated migrants in the US labor market.

Transnational lives interrupted: The Canadian state and Indian international student experiences during the COVID‐19 pandemic

AbstractCanada has emerged as a major education destination for international students from across the world. International students are understood to significantly contribute towards the labour market and economic growth of Canada including the higher education sector that has come to financially rely on international students. India has emerged as the largest source of international students to Canada in recent years making them a significant category of migrants impacted by the covid‐19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown measures implemented by the Canadian state. This paper looks at the experiences of Indian international students already in Canada and prospective students in India planning to pursue their studies in Canada. The pandemic delayed international education plans for many students in India while causing significant disruption to the studies, employment, and living arrangements of international students in Canada. Such disruptions created considerable uncertainty over their financial situation including meeting various eligibility requirements for work permit after graduation. This paper reveals the deeply embodied and personalised consequences for students in the face of state responses to balancing pandemic control and retaining financial and economic contribution during the pandemic.

Unscrambling the preference puzzle: an in-depth exploration of why Indian international students shy away from home institutions for Master’s programs

PurposeIn 2021, more than half a million Indian students traveled abroad to pursue Master’s programs. Against this background, we explore why Indian students do not enroll in Master’s programs in Indian higher education (IHE) institutions.Design/methodology/approachSemi-structured, in-depth online interviews of 30 Indian international students pursuing post-graduation studies in four major host countries were conducted to elicit the required information. The interviews were recorded, transcribed and analyzed using a thematic approach. The attribution theory was used as a theoretical lens to discuss the findings.FindingsThe results indicate that the primary reasons for students not choosing Indian institutions are wide-ranging. The need to study abroad, decision influencers and why they did not consider IHE institutes were three significant categories encompassing nine themes. The study revealed that besides other factors, the rigor of admission in premier Indian universities is much higher when compared with other international universities. Also, the perceived rate of return in investing in those developed countries' universities is better when compared with those of premier Indian universities.Practical implicationsThe insights will act as marketing intelligence for supporting the business and university administrators of Indian universities in formulating effective tactics to admit more students from this in-demand Indian subgroup.Originality/valueMost of the existing research papers discuss the motivation and challenges of Indian international students for studying abroad, There is negligible research on their demotivation to join IHE institutions. The present study tries to focus on the aspects that most of them considered but did not join IHE. Also, the attribution theory is a new perspective for understanding their behavior in selecting higher education institutions.

Coping Strategies Used by Indian International Students to Overcome Transitional Challenges in the United States

Coping Strategies Used by Indian International Students to Overcome Transitional Challenges in the United States

Spiritual Wellbeing of International Students: A New Zealand Case Study

Wellbeing of international students is an extensively explored topic in international education discourses. A plethora of research has been devoted to general wellbeing of international students. Nevertheless, little is known about international students’ spiritual wellbeing which can be pivotal to their adaptation to the new environment. In the context of New Zealand higher education, utilizing an intrinsic single case study design, this study examined spiritual wellbeing experienced by Indian international students. Phenomenographic interviews were conducted with 13 Indian students who were studying management courses at postgraduate level in an institute of technology in a North Island city of New Zealand. Data analysis generated three dimensions (spiritual cognition, spiritual practice, spiritual efficacy) of spiritual wellbeing which were influenced by four strategies of adaptation (connection, isolation, accommodation, integration). This study provided new insights into the experiences of international students which may influence international education in the long run.

“Sitting with myself by myself”: Indian students in Canada during the pandemic

The number of international students from India in Canada has increased rapidly in the last five years. Students from India now comprise 34 percent of Canada’s international students. This article places the remarkable growth of Indian international students within the broader context of Canada’s internationalization of higher education. Drawing from a national survey, qualitative interviews, and secondary data, it examines the changing profile of Indian international students and the major trends and challenges experienced by Indian international students in Canada during COVID-19. The paper identifies a recent trend of “vocationalization” of Indian international students and several associated vulnerabilities due to the increasing commercialization of international education. Our findings also point to the complex intersections of psychosocial, academic, and economic disruptions during the pandemic, exacerbating the precarious position of Indian international students.

The social practice of international education: analysing the caring practices of Indian international students in Australian universities

ABSTRACT This article contributes to debates about international student mobility and the globalisation of higher education by attending to the caring practices of Indian international students at Australian universities. Drawing on qualitative material produced with postgraduate students, it examines the practical, economic, emotional and social ways they support each other throughout their educational sojourns. The main argument is that Indian international students develop critical modes of supporting each other that make international study possible. These caring practices highlight the need to move beyond approaches that cast international students as neoliberal subjects or as a vulnerable group in need of intervention. They also unsettle the tendency to cast the higher educational landscape as strictly neoliberal. They highlight instead the importance of notions such as mutuality and reciprocity among the international student cohort, at the same time as they suggest the production of logics in higher education that cannot strictly be defined as neoliberal.

Chinese and Indian higher education students go abroad: listening to them to determine what their needs are

This paper voices the opinions of international students’ from China and India, and highlights the intentional process of integrating their perceptions of internationalization into a strategic service delivery plan. Data on those perceptions were analysed using a probabilistic model. We clustered 766 international students’ opinions into categories that enabled us to determine the main ideas that constituted their perceptions. The findings enabled us to draw comparisons between two major sending countries and to formulate a series of recommendations for stakeholders in higher education institutions that receive Chinese and Indian students, as well as for policymakers. Primary differences relate to factors such as learning and internship opportunities for Chinese students and service provision for Indian ones. In conclusion, this study offers the next step in the analysis of Chinese and Indian international students’ needs providing with an innovative way of determining students concerns with a view to empowering them within the internationalization process of higher education institutions.

The homogenizing and diversifying effects of migration policy in the internationalization of higher education

Amid internationalizing shifts in higher education, universities around the world are simultaneously becoming more integrated and more disparate. This paper examines the role of immigration policy in producing convergent and divergent educational attainment among international and domestic students at Indian and US universities and shows that student and work visas influence international students’ decisions about where to study, what to study, and how much education to pursue. Using original data sources and a transnational data collection strategy, this study develops new approaches to measuring international student mobility and offers a window into transnational phenomena not easily observable in other datasets. An analysis of 7177 education histories and 105 in-depth interviews with international students, university administrators, and immigration lawyers shows that migration policy contributes to the growth of international student enrollment and multinational educations but also creates asymmetrical student flows and funnels international students into certain fields of study. The results of this study indicate that migration policies simultaneously contribute to integration and differentiation between the US and Indian university systems. The findings show that immigration policies play an important role in regulating the flow and nature of international student migration streams and lead to simultaneous convergence and divergence in the educational attainment and field of study between Indian international students enrolled in US universities and their domestically educated peers in India. Through an empirical case, this paper develops a conceptual bridge between two dominant frameworks on internationalization and theorizes the central role of migration policy in shaping processes of higher education internationalization.

Colorblind Racial Ideology, Sense of Belonging, and Racism-Related Stress in Asian Indian International Students.

International students are an essential part of higher education institutions in the U.S.A., bringing diversity to the educational environment and enhancing the economy. Asian Indian students comprise around 17.3% of all international students, and this population faces a range of unique stressors, with racial and ethnic discrimination being one that is understudied. In the present study, 192 Asian Indian international students completed a survey to understand how colorblind racial ideology and sense of belonging impacted their racism-related stress. We also examined this relationship based on gender and level of education. Our results suggest that colorblind racial ideology, sense of belonging, gender, and level of education significantly explained 32.3% of the variance in racism-related stress. In general, students who identified as women and undergraduate students (versus graduate students) reported higher levels of racism-related stress. Our findings suggests that in addition to the acculturation barriers international students face, Asian Indian international students deal with barriers related to racism. These findings have implications for educators and counselors in higher education institutions that Asian Indian international students have multifaceted identities that impact how they interpret racism.

Challenges Faced by Indian International Students in the US

Transiting to an unfamiliar academic culture poses several challenges for students. These challenges are more profound for international students who leave their home country to come to the host country in pursuit of higher studies. The purpose of the present study is to explore such challenges that hindered the adjustment of six Indian international students studying in a US university, using the phenomenological methodology. The data analysis generated five themes related to the challenges encountered: (1) living away from family and friends, (2) difficulty in expressing, (3) multitasking, (4) difficulty in fitting in, and (5) lack of positive attitude. Findings have implications for US universities. Higher educational institutions can play an essential role in addressing the challenges to facilitate a positive academic experience for international students.

Understanding Indian International Student Experience in the United States

Currently, over 196,271 Indian international students are attending American colleges and universities. These students, similar to other ethnic minority student populations, encounter various challenges while studying overseas. This article focuses on two central questions, (1) How do individual factors (e.g., personality traits) of Indian international students aid in their adjustment in the U.S? (2) Can these individual factors be acquired? Seven Indian international students currently studying in a U.S. university were interviewed. Data were analyzed using phenomenological methodology. The findings identified ten individual themes that aided in adjustment and reported how these factors can be acquired by adapting certain cognitive and behavioral aspects. This study reflects the limitations, implications, and future research.

An investigation into the English language experiences of Indian international students studying in New Zealand universities

ABSTRACTLanguage proficiency is highlighted in the literature on the adjustment and security of international students. India is the second top source country for mobile students globally, but few studies have focused explicitly on students from India. The purpose of this study was to examine the English language experiences of Indian students at New Zealand universities. This mixed-method study utilised a questionnaire (n = 109) and interviews (n = 15). Collectively the participants had high levels of confidence and proficiency in English language and adjusted more rapidly than many international students to the new academic environment. Major differences experienced by the participants between India and New Zealand related to unfamiliar forms of academic writing and tasks, and on the role of learning support services. Formal high value assessment was for some the first indication of a problem with writing. While most students adjusted through error-based learning others struggled with argumentation and avoiding plagiarism. These findings have relevance for local and international students. We recommend the use of, and research on, early low-stakes assessment of writing and on effective support services for students transitioning into new academic contexts.

Exploring the Study Abroad Journey: Chinese and Indian Students in U.S. Higher Education

Chinese and Indian students represent over half of all international students in the United States. This study explores the study abroad journey of Chinese and Indian international students by connecting their pre-consumption decision-making factors, service experience, and post-consumption consumer marketing engagement (CME) behaviors. The results show that consumer decision-making factors and service experiences have more influence on Chinese international students’ post-acquisition CME than on Indian international students. The prestige and value of a U.S. degree have a positive impact on CME of both Chinese and Indian international students but in different ways. Interestingly, the influence factor inhibits the interactive, persuasive and benevolent aspects of CME behaviors among Chinese international students, while it positively impacts the persuasive aspect of CME among Indian international students, that is, their effort to spread good word of mouth about the U.S. University and their willingness to recommend the university to people in their home country. Besides, international student satisfaction with social opportunities encourages them to promote positive interactive and affective engagement with host universities. Finally, satisfaction with campus quality promotes interactive, cognitive and persuasive aspects of CME. Implications and limitations of the study conclude the paper.

Academic Experiences of Indian International Students in US Higher Education

Globalization and prospects for higher education across borders have led to a significant increase in the number of international students. Although international admissions offices do their best to ensure that international students possess the academic competencies necessary to pursue their education abroad, some students may still experience challenges due to cultural, educational, social, and many other differences between their home countries and education abroad. International students come from different countries and various factors influence their academic experiences. Some of these factors are common to all international students but some are unique to their country of origin. This article focuses on the academic experiences of six Indian international students at a southern higher education institution in the U.S. Data was collected through a demographic survey, focus group sessions and follow up interviews. Themes were constructed through a constant comparative method. Findings highlighted critical thinking, academic code of integrity, in-class participation, student-instructor relationship, English Accent, presentation of the learning material, meeting assignment deadlines, living alone, and approach to education as major areas of concern.

Destination attractiveness and travel intention: the case of Chinese and Indian students in Queensland, Australia

ABSTRACTDestination attractiveness is an important stream of literature. Australia has been recognized as one of the world’s most attractive destinations. This study looked into international students’ perceptions of Australia as an attractive international tourism destination as well as their travel intention. A sample of 252 Chinese and Indian international students participated in the study. Students’ perceived destination attractiveness and how it influenced their travel intention, pleasure of travel and place attachment were investigated. The study also looked into perception differences between Chinese and Indian students using t-test and hierarchical regressions.

International student migration: a comparison of UK and Indian students’ motivations for studying abroad

ABSTRACTThis paper breaks new ground in its comparative analysis of two international student migration (ISM) streams, one from the Global South to the Global North (India to developed Anglophone countries), and the other within the Global North (UK to North America, Europe and Australia). These two ISM movements reflect different positionalities within the global system of international student movements, and hence necessitate a critical perspective on the assumptions behind such a comparison, which questions the dominance of ‘knowledge’ about ISM that derives from ‘the West’ as a theoretical template. Two methods are employed to collect data: an online questionnaire survey of UK and Indian students who are, or have recently been, studying abroad; and in-depth interviews to UK and Indian international students. Motivations for studying abroad are remarkably similar in the questionnaire results; more subtle differences emerge from the interviews.

The neighbourhood context of crime against international students

Stark differences exist between the support and accommodation provision for tertiary students across the UK, the US and Australia. Within this framework, this study provides insights into the neighbourhood contexts where offences against Indian international students took place in the western suburbs of Melbourne. Shaped by ideas associated with social disorganisation and resource threat theories, we suggest that the concentration of large numbers of international students without adequate supports in areas characterised by high levels of disadvantage, ethnic diversity and high levels of crime contributed to the victimisation of international students. The study aims to help better understand how the neighbourhood context influences hate crime more broadly and specifically examines the neighbourhood context of international student victimisation. The study is designed to provide a nuanced understanding of the circumstances leading to attacks against international students and contributes to the international student safety and hate crime victimisation literature.

From students to permanent residents: The role of social networks in the immigration transition of Indians in New Zealand

According to the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, India is now the largest source-country of migrants approved for residence in New Zealand under the Skilled Migrant Category. In this context, many Indian international students have transitioned to temporary work and permanent residence. Drawing on data from 18 interviews with former Indian international students who have since gained permanent residence in New Zealand, the paper examines how social capital in the form of social networks is important for migrant students in finding suitable employment and transitioning to permanent residence. Emphasis is placed not only on how social networks facilitate and structure their opportunities for permanent settlement in New Zealand, but also in providing support in their transition from temporary to permanent settlers.

Asian indian international students’ trajectories of depression, acculturation, and enculturation.

Asian indian international students’ trajectories of depression, acculturation, and enculturation.