International Graduate Students Research Articles

Preparing a Globally Competent Workforce: A Mixed Methods Study of an Innovative Co-Curricular University Program

Problem Human resource development (HRD) scholars and practitioners have long sought ways to develop employees to meet the needs of globalized workplaces. However, given that many employers expect employees to possess global skills before they begin working, it is incumbent upon HRD educators in higher education contexts to develop and implement innovative programs to enrich global competence, which includes the knowledge, skills, experience, and mindset required for global work. Solution This mixed methods study describes and explores the efficacy of an innovative co-curricular program, the Global Competence Enrichment Program, designed to enhance the global competence of American and international graduate students enrolled at a higher education institution in the United States through a mutual intercultural learning process. Stakeholders Stakeholders include HRD scholars and practitioners as well as organizational leaders interested in designing and implementing HRD programs around global competence enrichment.

Performative Facework During Graduate School: International Graduate Student Parents’ Navigation of Work and Family Precarities

This paper examined how international graduate student parents (IGSPs) engage in performative facework to deal with their non-normative parent identity in graduate schools in the United States. Participants engaged in sedimentary facework to perform the ideal graduate student face. IGSPs’ sedimentary facework perpetuated their own marginalization as they disciplined themselves to “hide the children” and avoid receiving “special favors.” Nevertheless, sedimentary facework provided face cover that enabled IGSPs to actually have children in practice. A few IGSPs worked with mentors who advocated work–family integration and engaged in subversive facework that disrupted the child-free norm of graduate students, thus cultivating the potential for individual resistance and structural change. Taking a feminist intersectional lens, we unveil how participants’ performances of the ideal graduate student face are entrenched in intersectional precarities to problematize the dominating workplace ideology privileging neoliberal productivity over personal and family well-being.

Sociocultural adaptation process of international graduate students at a university in southern Chile

ABSTRACT Chile has a growing migrant presence, including at universities. As migration involves adjusting to new demands, this study aims to understand international graduate students’ sociocultural adaptation in a southern Chilean city using qualitative phenomenological research. Thirteen semi-structured interviews were analyzed via interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Findings show migration decisions are influenced by home country social factors and academic/cultural growth objectives in Chile, impacted by contextual, cultural, social, and intrapersonal elements. Students manage threats using emotional regulation, acculturation strategies, and sense-making coping. Supportive social environments also protect, offering valued conditions. In conclusion, adaptation involves individual coping strategies and host society social factors. The paper discusses recommendations for future research.

Peer Feedback’s Impact on the Writing Self-Efficacy of International Graduate Students

Peer Feedback’s Impact on the Writing Self-Efficacy of International Graduate Students

Im/Mobilities during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Perspectives from International Graduate Students Studying in the Southern United States

Im/Mobilities during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Perspectives from International Graduate Students Studying in the Southern United States

Analyzing In-Depth Study of Southeast Asian Graduate Students: A Qualitative Approach

Studying abroad can be a transformative experience, but it often presents significant challenges. Southeast Asian international graduate students, in particular, face considerable academic and cultural hurdles when transitioning to U.S. higher education. These stressors, including language barriers, financial difficulties, and academic adjustments, can negatively impact their mental health and academic performance. This study aims to illuminate these challenges and identify effective support strategies. It is essential to recognize the diverse experiences of Southeast Asian American (SEAA) students, who are included in this study. The SEAA community is rich in culture and heritage, contributing significantly to the U.S. landscape. This research seeks to understand the unique challenges faced by SEAAs and to foster a more inclusive academic environment. This study has identified key academic and cultural stressors by examining the experiences of Southeast Asian international graduate students. These findings highlight the urgent need for targeted support services to enhance student well-being and academic success. It is crucial to shift from a deficit-oriented perspective to one that centers on the voices and experiences of SEAA students. By listening to their stories, higher education institutions can develop effective strategies to support their academic journeys and create a more inclusive campus community.

Strangers in the North: Critical narratives on the postgraduation career transitions of international doctoral students

AbstractData show higher enrollment of international graduate students compared to undergraduates in the United States in 2022, with the trend expected to continue. Many international doctoral students pursue education in the United States, hoping to seek employment and/or employment‐based permanent immigration after graduation. Through critical personal narratives (CPNs), the authors use their stories to reflect on employment‐seeking experiences during their time as international graduate students. The narratives depict a 20‐year time span of ongoing issues faced by international graduate students. These first‐person accounts authentically recognize the challenges and provide an avenue for institutions to subsequently address the areas of immigration policies, hiring practices, career development, and cultural responsiveness for international doctoral students.

“What are you looking for in a candidate?” The career search process for international students in higher education student affairs

AbstractThis study examined lived experiences of two international student affairs professionals in the United States. Through a series of interviews, the dialogues unfold rich narratives that explore the multifaceted journey from academic preparation to career placement in the field of higher education student affairs (HESA). It also underscores the unique challenges encountered by international students compared to their domestic counterparts during the job search process. Given the limited research pertaining to the experiences and support for international graduate students during the job search process in the field of HESA, this study provides valuable insights and implications for educators, institutions, and career support services to better address the needs of the diverse and growing demographic of the candidates.

International graduate students: Unique stories and missing voices in higher education

International graduate students: Unique stories and missing voices in higher education

Breaking silence: A critical duoethnography on examining epistemic violence in negotiating the journey as international graduate students in U.S. higher education

Breaking silence: A critical duoethnography on examining epistemic violence in negotiating the journey as international graduate students in U.S. higher education

Examining International Graduate Students’ Career Willingness in China: Influencing Factors and Integration of Professional Development

Examining International Graduate Students’ Career Willingness in China: Influencing Factors and Integration of Professional Development

Rot, White, and Blue: A scholarly personal narrative on the lived experiences of a white, German international graduate student in the United States

AbstractThis scholarly personal narrative offers insight into the everyday lived experience of a white international student from Germany living and studying in the United States. In this narrative, she explores her life between discrimination in the form of anti‐German sentiment and white privilege. The narrative focuses on discrimination from a systemic as well as an interpersonal level and is a first attempt in offering a more stratified and complex insight of the experiences of a white, German international student in the United States.

Exploring Chinese international students’ critical thinking skills: A systematic literature review

AbstractMost graduate students in higher education are classified as adult learners, being 24 years old, and have responsibilities and commitments outside of higher education. This literature review presents how Chinese international graduate students face challenges in the US due to sociocultural, ideological, and educational differences. This systematic literature review explores these students' critical thinking skills, which are crucial factors for academic success but have been underexplored. Three themes were identified as follows: (1) critical thinking education in China, (2) stereotypes of perceived lack of critical thinking, and (3) comparative views of critical thinking between Chinese and American college students. Each theme presents a landscape of how critical thinking is interpreted. Themes suggest several trends, including cultural variations that may impede Chinese international students from showcasing their critical thinking abilities, notwithstanding their inherent capacity for critical thinking. Recommendations include ways to improve critical thinking among international students and call for more comparative studies between Chinese and American college students. The findings offer valuable insights into the internationalization of higher education curricula and the promotion of global learning.

Navigating academic and everyday life challenges in the US: the role of social media for international graduate students

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the adaptive experiences of first-year international graduate students at a US university. It aims to understand the challenges they encounter, strategies they adopt with social media to navigate these challenges and tensions that emerge in their social media interactions.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses a qualitative multiple-case research design to collect data from 22 semistructured interviews with 11 participants. Additionally, 110 social media artifacts were collected, focusing on international students’ use of social media in everyday and academic contexts.FindingsThis paper offers empirical insights into social media’s role in helping international students address practical challenges and fulfill learning needs in academic studies, assistantships, cultural understanding and the constructions of ethnic and peer groups for emotional and social support. Additionally, it identifies tensions such as addiction, distractions, emotional distress and the creation of filter bubbles.Research limitations/implicationsGiven the qualitative approach of this paper, the generalizability of study findings is limited. Future studies can focus on different sites to explore context-related issues, students across different years or use a longitudinal research design to further explore international students’ experiences in relation to social media use and its role in their adaptation over time.Practical implicationsThis paper proposes implementing social media curricula in universities to educate students on media literacy and digital competence and create peer groups to support international students beyond classrooms.Originality/valueThis paper adds value to informal learning literature focusing on international students.

학문공동체에서 중국인 유학생의 침묵에 대한 연구

This study aims to investigate the complex and dynamic meanings of silence exhibited by Chinese international graduate students within their host academic community. Adopting a language socialization perspective and utilizing qualitative data from three participants, the findings reveal that even those who actively participate in the community may exhibit silence in certain contexts. Their silence does not signify non-participation, but rather represents a choice for personal investment and development. This, in turn, contributes to their socialization within the host community. In conclusion, educational implications are discussed from the perspectives of both learners and the community.

“I Just Feel Overwhelmed” Overall Stress, Course-Related Stress, and Stress Management Among First-Generation and International Students at a Research University

ABSTRACT This mixed-methods study ascertained the causes of course-related stress — and strategies to cope with such stress — for first-generation (FG) and international undergraduate and graduate students. Using survey data from a public research university, results show FG students experiencing higher levels of overall and course-related stress — and lower abilities in stress management — than their international, domestic, and continuing generation counterparts. Teaching practices and policies that exacerbated students’ struggles were recognized across foci relevant to heavy and unevenly distributed course workloads, ineffective and unsupportive instructor behaviors, and ambiguous communication about course expectations and requirements. Implications for policy, practice, and research are discussed.

"Let me talk!" Silenced voices of International Graduate Students and A Need for Transcaring pedagogy

"Let me talk!" Silenced voices of International Graduate Students and A Need for Transcaring pedagogy

International graduate students’ perspectives on sense of belonging in leisure

Sense of belonging (SB) has been linked to increased academic engagement, enjoyment, and motivation. This paper explored international graduate students(IGS)’ SB in leisure spaces and its lessons for leisure educators. The paper addressed the following questions: (a) How do IGS’ leisure experiences change after migrating to the US? Furthermore, (b) How does the orientation of IGS towards leisure spaces post-immigration impact their sense of belonging? In the context of leisure, three themes emerged from the intersectional autoethnographic vignettes of five doctoral students. Utilizing Bronfenbrenner's (1979) Ecological Model, we highlight how these themes relate to IGS’ different life systems and we propose a new model for studying IGSs' sense of belonging.

“That does not apply”: graduate students’ (mis)perceptions of the racial climate in STEMM

PurposeThis study aims to explore how science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine (STEMM) graduate students’ experiences with and conceptualizations of racism can more clearly expose the current racial climate across multiple academic institutions.Design/methodology/approachA mixed-method approach using a single online questionnaire consisting of open-ended and Likert scale questions about their perceptions of the racial climate in their department was completed by 34 graduate students of different races and STEMM disciplines.FindingsResults from this study suggested that graduate students, regardless of race, consistently perceive STEMM as colorblind. The results also suggest that experiencing or witnessing racial discrimination is potentially predictive of perceptions of negative social support. Furthermore, multiracial and international graduate students often face different experiences of discrimination than do other graduate students.Originality/valueBy better understanding STEMM academic climates, higher education institutions can begin to reflect on the social barriers that may limit minoritized students from matriculating in academic STEMM spaces and affect retention.

The Impact of Large Language Models on Medical Education: Preparing for a Revolutionary Shift in Doctor Training

This article presents insights gained from utilizing Collaborative Autoethnography (CA), a qualitative research method, by two international faculty members who documented their experiences from a year-long participation in a Faculty Learning Community (FLC) at a midwestern university in the US. The FLC aimed to create a supportive environment where international faculty and graduate students could discuss their challenges, struggles, and joys related to their 'international-ness'. Through autoethnographic reflection, the study highlights how FLC participation helped mediate initial anxieties and dilemmas for one faculty member (Galina) and facilitated a productive reconceptualization of teaching for the other (Henny). The findings demonstrate the value of reflecting on personal experiences through autoethnography, allowing the participants to draw practical lessons that connect their FLC involvement to their individual teaching contexts and personal struggles in establishing a viable teacher identity. The article concludes with pedagogical recommendations on structuring future FLCs to better address the needs of international faculty.