International Student Body Research Articles

Volunteering in a PTA and getting the international community involved

This testimony looks at my experience as a parent volunteer within the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) of a large elementary school in Bethesda, Maryland, a mostly affluent suburban area near Washington D.C. The school has a large international student body with a significant number enrolling as non-English speakers. The linguistic and socio-economic divides between the international community and the local families are strongly felt on both sides. As PTA International Liaison, I describe my attempts to assist international families navigate the school system and help them integrate the school community at large. Thanks to the recruitment of volunteer translators and systematically translating all PTA and school communications, the social connections, networking, and international community involvement are slowly improving.

International Students and the Canadian University

This paper explores the dynamic international student populations within Canadian academic institutions and their relationship with the academic library. The international student body has evolving needs that must be adequately addressed by the library and institution if growing numbers are to continue being supported. Plagiarism, language barriers, and an unawareness of library services are well-known barriers to success, while more current issues such as changing technologies are equally problematic. Through such efforts as hiring an international student librarian, academic libraries may discover the specific issues facing their institution’s international students and begin the process of addressing them in a tailored manner. Data collection would be a priority for better understanding the international students, as would partnering with professors and student organizations to market library services and promote information literacy in a Canadian context. The international student librarian may also provide continued outreach to this demographic that is inclusive, proactive, and collaborative, which would in turn create an atmosphere that fosters international student success and is able to support rising numbers.

Chinese International Students’ Expectations About Career Counseling

Chinese international students are the largest international student body (33.19%) in the United States. However, career services on college campuses are underutilized by this population despite their pressing needs for career guidance. Chinese international students’ expectations about career counseling may explain the disconnection between needs and service utilization. Although clients’ expectations about counseling have been studied extensively, no study has focused on Chinese international students’ expectations about career counseling. The current qualitative study surveyed 58 Chinese international students by using 10 open-ended questions that inquired about their expectations, including preferences and anticipations, about career counseling. Findings highlighted a number of needs and expectations for career counseling, such as outcome-driven activities, specificity of services, rapport with counselor, taking assessments, and culturally sensitive services. Clinical implications for career services on campus and future directions for research were discussed.

Faculty as bridges to co-curricular engagement and community for first-generation international students

The proportion of first-generation international students at US institutions ranges from one-tenth to one-half of the total international student body. First-generation status is an underexplored, and potentially significant, demographic factor in international students’ adaptation to college. Researchers used structural equation modelling (SEM) to examine how faculty interaction out-of-class, engagement with cultural variation in-class, and students’ interest in cross-cultural interaction relates to sense of community and co-curricular engagement among first-generation (n = 508) and non-first-generation (n = 955) international students’, respectively. The primary contribution of this study is providing evidence for the importance of interactions with professors out-of-class and engagement with cultural variation in-class on international students’ sense of community and co-curricular engagement, especially first generation students. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

International Students and Community Involvement in Tiffin, Ohio

Situated in northwest Ohio, Tiffin is a small community of 18,000 residents and is the proud home of two institutions of higher learning: Heidelberg University and Tiffin University. Over the last several years a unique collaboration has developed among the two universities and the community’s International Cultural Center (ICC). As most things do, this partnership began with a single idea and has blossomed into an evergrowing number of events and activities. Working closely together, these three entities have made concerted efforts to integrate the international student body into the greater Tiffin community. In doing so, the city has become “internationalized” in ways that have provided mutual benefits to the community and the international student population.

Establishing and managing a global student network.

The Regional Student Groups (RSGs) program is a network of student groups affiliated with the International Society of Computational Biology Student Council. While each RSG is encouraged to act independently and address the local needs of its regional student membership, a significant amount of effort is also invested in coordinating affiliation of these groups with the international student body, which provides long-term direction and facilitates communication between groups. Participating in a global student network provides students with an opportunity to network and connect with others around the globe. By sharing experiences within the network, students gain cultural insights and awareness of regional differences in scientific research and industry. In this article, we provide an overview of the tasks involved in setting-up and managing this global student network for bioinformatics. We also highlight the benefits a global student network offers, in the hope that other fields can use this to create their own global student network.

From homogeneity to heterogeneity: the multicultural future of higher education

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide insights for educators when adapting their pedagogy to suit the increasingly diverse international student body. Design/methodology/approach – Archival analysis was conducted at three levels: students’ teaching style preference; epistemology of the students’ home culture; and national sociocultural dimensions. Findings – The study elucidates the importance of recognizing heterogeneity rather than homogeneity of the increasingly international student body. It extends understanding of sociocultural underpinnings of different student learning styles and encourages educators to increase their cultural empathy to adapt their pedagogy. Originality/value – This paper helps forge the way to a truly global learning environment. Understanding, adapting to and celebrating the differences among international students helps to create more inclusive learning about our global community.

Health professionals for the future

Recommendations for an intersectoral policy for the education of health professionals have recently been stated in the Lancet Report “Health professionals for a new century” and by the WHO policy framework “Health 2020”. These postulates were further developed into an educational strategy by the Careum Foundation. In this framework four mutually dependent perspectives were defined: functions related to the population, to patients, to organisational development, and to increasing knowledge. It is stressed that besides the historically strong education for patient-related functions, the three other functions must receive the same attention with regard to regulation and financing. Hence, education for health professionals must lead to cross-functional and intersectoral thinking and makes cooperation skills a priority, besides promoting technical expertise. These skills require new approaches in methodology and didactics. The Department of Health Sciences and Health Policy at the University of Lucerne, Switzerland, recently developed a Master’s program that complements clinical education with an education that aims at the other three functions. The program offers a case in point on how the current dialogue on the intersectoral policy for the education of health professionals can be put into practice. The program approaches the complexity of health issues by examining them from an interdisciplinary perspective. Teaching modules are instructed by a diverse faculty of researchers with background in areas such as medicine, natural sciences, economics, law and the humanities. Besides the teaching of technical expertise, knowledge of health systems and services is broadly included in the curriculum. After the first semester, students can choose their major in the area of health and social behavior, health economics and health policy, health communication, research methods, human functioning sciences or health services research. The faculty works in close connection with local partners from academic institutions, industry and government. Together with these partners, research internships are offered to all students, which allow students to participate in a team outside University. Conclusions so far are that students are highly motivated to grasp the complexity of health issues from an interdisciplinary perspective. Many students who were initially attracted by specific majors were introduced to a broader health perspective and gained insight in novel areas they would not have otherwise. The entire program is taught in English which attracts a broad international student body with diverse backgrounds and fosters cooperation skills and the cross-area dialogue during interactive sessions.

Supporting international students with careers provision: A review of UK higher education careers service provision and a case study based on the University of Exeter

As part of my role as a Careers Consultant at the University of Exeter I decided to undertake some research in to the careers provision offered to international students. I wanted to review provision across the UK higher education sector and then focus on the University of Exeter, my employer, which has a growing international student body of over 4000 students and ambitious growth plans. With growing numbers of international students, from a variety of different countries, come different needs and expectations along with increasing pressure on University support services as a whole. Through surveying a number of universities, this report explores how UK universities have been dealing with this challenge and looks at the expectations international students have of careers services. Itbecame clear that this was a topic high on the agenda of a number of institutions, and whilst this report focuses in detail on Exeter, the information obtained and recommendations made may provide useful insights for other universities.

Intelligence Exchange Through InterIntel

While giving a lecture to an international student body, one young student asked me “Does every country have an intelligence service?,” implying first that she was surprised that every country woul...

Teaching Within, Against, and Outside the Canon: Strategies for Incorporating Diversity in Core Political Theory Courses

This paper discusses strategies for balancing the expectation to teach the 'canon' in introductory political theory courses with teaching content that reflects a diverse and increasingly international student body. I draw on Moore's (2011) study of what is taught by political theorists in American universities, which both identified controversy about the composition of the 'canon' and identified the limitations of current theory curricula. Of particular note is Moore's finding that only 37.3% of respondents regularly teach any work of non-Western political thinkers (2011, 105). Using Moore's findings, I outline four possible approaches to course development for introductory classes in political theory, and assess the advantages and challenges of each. The first approach, which I refer to as 'teaching within the canon', involves focusing on the works of canonical thinkers and reflecting diversity only insofar as is possible within the canon, for instance by teaching Arendt and Wollstonecraft. The second approach, which I term 'teaching against the canon', involves combining canonical texts with contemporary critiques of the exclusions within those texts, for instance by teaching Hobbes and Locke alongside the work of Carole Pateman and Charles Mills. The third approach, which I term 'teaching outside the canon', involves rejecting many or all of the canonical texts in political theory in favour of readings that better reflect diversity, for instance by including the work of multiple non-Western political thinkers. The fourth approach involves a combination of the second and third strategies, by including canonical texts, critical responses to those texts, and content from a more diverse body of thinkers and political traditions. While making no firm recommendations, I outline some of the advantages and disadvantages of each approach, and suggest some areas for further research.

‘International education’ in US public schools

This study focuses on the recent adoption of ‘international education’ (IE) by US public schools. Theoretically, it conceptualises this phenomenon as a social movement and a dynamic arena of knowledge construction and contestation. Methodologically, it combines fieldwork, interviews and critical discourse analysis. The central finding is that multiple meanings are circulating on an asymmetrical field: a discourse of national security dominates the ‘IE’ movement but competing discourses (global perspective, cosmopolitanism, international student body) are found closer to the ground of school practice.

Changing international student and business staff perceptions of in-sessional EAP: using the CEM model

This article addresses the question of whether the existing approach to EAP delivery implemented at the University of Northumbria is supporting the learning needs of the international student body. In addressing this the article documents the background, research and preliminary findings relating to provision of an in-sessional English for Academic Purposes (EAP) programme to international students studying in a business context. The article focuses on the management of the delivery of the EAP programme and is based on the experiences of two ‘subject champions’ from the English Language Centre and the postgraduate (PG) area of Newcastle Business School at Northumbria University. It documents research which has begun with an analysis and critique of past practice. This has led to the recognition of key issues which can influence the attendance and participation of overseas students on an in-sessional EAP programme. The article identifies and discusses the role of the three key concepts of contextualisation, embedding and mapping of the programme, as the foundation for managing in-sessional EAP delivery. The resulting model, the CEM Model, is designed to facilitate improved management of the provision of the EAP programme in a postgraduate business context. The findings show that application of the model can demonstrate added value in the key areas of design and content of an in-sessional EAP programme impacting on student attendance, understanding and integration of the programme with PG degree programme learning objectives and outcomes. To address the issue of sustaining the practice and benefits of the CEM Model the work concludes with the articulation of a framework which establishes the integration of the EAP programme within academic programmes both at the strategic level through Teaching and Learning policies and operational processes.

Abstracts of the Fourth International Society for Computational Biology (ISCB) Student Council Symposium. Toronto, Canada. July 18, 2008.

In this meeting report we give an overview of the talks and presentations from the Fourth International Society for Computational Biology (ISCB) Student Council Symposium held as part of the annual Intelligent Systems for Molecular Biology (ISMB) conference in Toronto, Canada. Furthermore, we detail the role of the Student Council (SC) as an international student body in organizing this symposium series in the context of large, international conferences.

Design Management Education at the Delft University of Technology

Attracting an international student body, these programs–including a rigorous master's in strategic product design–prepare managers and executives to take the lead in leveraging a company's design resources. As explained by Jan Buijs, the goals, the coursework, and the achievements of this institute and its talented students emerge from a philosophy that integrates teaching with the dilemmas of corporate decision‐making.

The development and challenges of an international nursing workforce

April 2007 International recruitment of nurses to fill the staffing ranks of US hospitals is at an all-time high. According to Buerhaus,1 employment of foreign-born RNs accounts for nearly one-third of the total growth of RN employment in the US labor market during the years 2002-2003. This adds yet another challenge for chief nursing executives and their management staff, compounding the issues of communication and patient safety. Given that the US nursing schools are unlikely to be able to meet the US health care industry’s demand for registered nurses,1 it seems a safe assumption that international recruitment will continue. As a result, the nursing workforce is likely to be more globally diverse than ever in coming years. The International University of Nursing (IUON) is located in the West Indies on the Caribbean island of St. Christopher-Nevis (St. Kitts). A former British Colony, St. Kitts was chosen by entrepreneur Robert Ross as the site of a private nursing school for educating an international student body for both the US market and the students’ countries of origin. In 2006, the student body of the university comprised 178 students. Of them, 49% are American and 51% are from 19 other countries. The IUON experience of educating nursing students with such diversity may offer some insights to hospital administrators regarding the challenges and the opportunities for welcoming these graduates into the US health care system. OUR EXPERIENCE OVERALL Since opening its doors in May 2005, the overall impression of the student applicants is one of strong motivation to become a professional nurse. Students must leave their home country and move to a new country with different cultural norms and, for some, a different language of conversation. Students must overcome visa issues, generate financial resources to cover private school tuition and living costs, and navigate a detailed process for admission to both the school and the island of St. Kitts. While St. Kitts is a Caribbean island of great natural beauty—with clear Caribbean waters, beaches, and a balmy year-round temperature—living in a foreign country, no matter how beautiful, has its adjustments. Students live among the locals rather than in dorms and must figure out how to take responsibility for transportation and food and the all-important cellular telephone. While the university has a housing department and extensive student services, there are still the usual difficulties with roommates and finding the ethic cuisine of home. The students come from diverse countries, as well as diverse socioeconomic backgrounds within each country. Ages range from 18 to 46, with a majority in their early 20s. For approximately 20%, nursing is a second career choice. The program was originally designed as a six-semester associate degree in nursing, with the students spending the first three semesters on St. Kitts, then transferring to a partner associate degree program in the United States. The Development and Challenges of an International Nursing Workforce

Cultural dimensions of authenticity in teaching

AbstractWith an increasingly international student body in universities all over the world, there is growing contact between teachers and students from different cultures. This chapter brings cultural issues to a more conscious and explicit level so they may be examined in the light of teacher authenticity.

Communication in academic libraries: an East Asian perspective

PurposeTo discuss library services with attention to effective communication between public service professionals and East Asian library clientele.Design/methodology/approachA wide range of library literature (1984‐2001) about serving international students is reviewed to provide a portrait of efforts made by librarians and researchers. This article then focuses on East Asian students as a unique group based on shared cultural values, applies literature of East Asian/Western communication styles to library reference services, and discusses how cultural‐specific communication styles can cause misunderstandings in information delivery processes. Recommendations are made to assist information professionals in their efforts to communicate effectively with international students and meet their information needs.FindingsDifferences in communication styles can often create barriers to having messages understood correctly. As a result, the information conveyed does not necessarily reflect the intention and may even cause misunderstandings. The key to successful cross‐cultural communication is knowledge.Research limitations/implicationsFurther research should be conducted in addressing how cultural awareness affects effective and appropriate communication.Practical implicationsThis paper will be helpful for public service professionals in enhancing their understanding of East Asian cultures and improving communication skills when assisting customers of East Asian backgrounds.Originality/valueThis paper separates East Asian students from the entire international student body, examines cultural‐specific communication styles, and explains why misunderstanding occurs when Western librarians communicating with East Asian students.

Utilization Rate and Presenting Concerns of International Students at a University Counseling Center

ABSTRACT This study sought to understand the utilization rates and presenting concerns of international students in order to identify relevant topics for outreach programming. We examined the presenting concerns of all international students (n= 41) who sought counseling at a university counseling center during an academic year. The results indicated that only about 2% of the international student body sought counseling services from the counseling center that year. Results also showed that most of the international students who sought counseling presented with concerns about depression, assertiveness, academic major, and anxiety, and that about a third dropped out after the initial intake session. Implications for outreach programming with international students are addressed.

Transition from Student to Practitioner: The Role of Expectations, Values and Personality

Research into occupational therapy job satisfaction has been driven largely by concerns regarding recruitment and retention. There is a need to develop more robust theoretically sound methodologies for the investigation of job satisfaction within the profession. This article presents the initial findings of a national longitudinal study of Australian occupational therapists. The respondents (n=295) were investigated immediately prior to graduation with respect to their expectations about working as an occupational therapist, their work values and their work preferences. A personality profile was also administered. The findings indicate that students hold inflated expectations about their first job and retain traditional occupational therapy work values. Demographic and personality profiles reflect those of the international student body and can assist in the prediction of student expectations.