Students Face Unique Challenges Research Articles

International Students Attending Canadian Universities: Their Experiences with Housing, Finances, and Other Issues

Universities recruit international students for a number of reasons, including enhancement of global contacts and reputation, to increase enrolment, and to generate revenue from tuition. These students face unique challenges as compared with domestic students, but no published studies or reports exist on this issue. In this article we report our findings from a survey and interviews with international graduate students, university personnel, and service providers assisting students. Students reported difficulties with finding affordable, adequate, and suitable housing; with finances, stemming from their ability to work or find employment, and from currency fluctuations; and with integration into a new university and an unfamiliar society. Administrators described limits to the assistance they could provide. Both groups suggested changes to address international students’ housing and financial issues. This study is part of a larger research project exploring housing and related issues among post-secondary students in a western Canadian city.

Adjustment Difficulties and Caregiving Burdens Faced by College Students with a Parent with Bipolar or Depressive Disorders

College campuses often host students who come from families where one or more parent has been affected by a bipolar or depressive disorder. The present study sought to determine whether these students face unique challenges in college, including increased adjustment difficulties as well as greater caregiving burden associated with their parents’ illness. Participants (N = 89) were undergraduate students at a large public university in the South (27 had a parent with bipolar disorder; 30 had a parent with major depressive disorder [MDD]; 32 had no parent history of a mood disorder). Semistructured interviews were used to assess student symptoms of mood disorders and mood disorder symptoms within their immediate family. Self-report measures were used to assess college adjustment and levels of caregiving burden faced by the students. We found that students with a family history of bipolar disorder and MDD had significantly greater difficulty adjusting to college. These difficulties persisted even after controlling for whether the student themselves had been affected by a mood disorder. The students of a parent with either bipolar disorder or MDD also reported significantly more burden associated with caring for their parents. College campus mental health professionals need to be aware that students with a parent with bipolar disorder or MDD face unique challenges adjusting to college that are only partially related to an increased risk for mood disorders.

The Adjustment to U.S. Rural College Campuses for Bisexual Students in Comparison to Gay and Lesbian Students: An Exploratory Study

Previous research suggests that sexual minority (lesbian, gay, and bisexual [LGB]) university students face unique challenges during the adjustment to college that their heterosexual peers do not. Furthermore, sexual minority students, and particularly those identifying as bisexual, at rural campuses in the United States may experience additional struggles because of their environment. The authors undertook this study in an attempt to understand the challenges facing LGB students as they transition to college life on rural campuses. A small, exploratory sample of 56 sexual minority participants attending rural colleges in the United States provided data on measures of college adjustment. Using content analysis of qualitative data and correlational analysis of quantitative data, the following themes emerged: challenges making new friends, difficulty with roommates, and when or whether to disclose sexual orientation. Comparisons between sexual minorities (bisexual to homosexual) were also conducted to explore the unique experiences of bisexual individuals.

African Canadian Students Identify Strategies for Success

In today’s educational systems, all students face obstacles and challenges. African Canadian students face unique challenges. This study investigates the perspectives of successful African Canadian students about their educational programs in Nova Scotia, Canada. The purpose of this study is twofold. The first objective is to examine the background and demographic characteristics, and socio-cultural experiences of ten African Canadian students in Nova Scotia. The second objective is to discuss the obstacles, challenges and strategies for success. The voices of these students provide insights into successful strategies for all students. The methodology included contacting ten African Canadian students at diverse levels in public education in Nova Scotia, to interview the participants by asking questions about their background, the obstacles and challenges which they have faced in education, and the strategies which have enabled them to be successful. Interviews are completed, and strategies for success have been analyzed. These data indicate that students have faced many challenges. Furthermore, these data indicate that facing the challenges have empowered the participants to devise strategies which have enabled them to be successful. Critical factors for their success include: family support; role modeling; caring educators; infusing African heritage into the curriculum; having someone believe in them, knowledge and pride in Black cultural and racial identity; and self-motivation. The author suggests that an improved understanding of the lived educational experiences of African Canadian students hold implications for all students and educators.

Career development with transgender college students: implications for career and employment counselors

The number of transgender college students continues to increase every year. These students face unique challenges that many college and university career centers are not prepared to handle. This article describes some of the challenges facing trans‐gender students and college career centers. A professional development design is proposed to assist career professionals who work with transgender clients in college career centers and community mental health agencies. Implications for career and employment counselors are also provided.

Counseling and Connecting with the Military Undergraduate: The Intersection of Military Service and University Life

The majority of military undergraduates at universities are National Guard and Reserve personnel and prior-service military veterans, all difficult to identify on campus. These students face unique cultural challenges. Though the academic literature primarily addresses disability services and administrative programs often focus on “wounded warriors,” most military undergraduates are not physically or psychologically disabled and can be stigmatized by the “wounded warrior” stereotype. Minimal literature exists on the intersection of military culture with student life and on counseling center services for military undergraduates. This article offers a review of the literature, three core principles of care, and three vignettes of military undergraduates who received support from a counseling center provider, helping them manage both university and military life.

Creativity: Cultural Capital in the Mathematics Classroom

Contemporary students face unique economic, environmental, and humanitarian challenges. The problem solving required to address these challenges requires solutions that have never been thought of before. In order to tackle these problems, teachers must challenge the traditional problem solving methodologies used in math classes and encourage new problem solving strategies through incorporation of the arts and facilitating of creative problem solving. This article will explore the research surrounding creativity, the arts, and creative problem solving and suggest future applications of creativity in the mathematics classroom.

Beyond the “Model Minority” Stereotype: Trends in Health Risk Behaviors Among Asian/Pacific Islander High School Students

Asian/Pacific Islander (API) students have been stereotyped as the "model minority." The objective of this study was to examine the trends in health risk behaviors among API students who participated in the San Diego City Schools Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) between 1993 and 2005. High school students from the San Diego City School District completed the self-administered YRBS between 1993 and 2005. Among sexually active students, logistic regression for survey data was used to examine trends in health risk behaviors. From 1993 to 2005, condom use at last sexual intercourse was consistently lower among API students than their cross-ethnic peers. We observed a significant increasing trend in lifetime smoking, drinking, and marijuana use. Parental communications regarding human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) were significantly less frequent and decreased over time. Our findings challenge the notion of API youth being the "model minority." API students face unique challenges, including barriers to good communication about sex and lower rates of condom use. School-based prevention programs are needed for API students, including a focus on HIV communication with parents.

Applying to College

This article suggests that unlike their well-off counterparts who apply to college in the fall and know they will go somewhere when the applications have been sent, low-income students face unique challenges that extend the process in a manner entirely different from the wealthy. The notion that college-going is a cultural interpretation is circumscribed by constantly shifting forces rather than a rational choice. The author offers portraits of three 17-year-old male Latino youth who attend the same school to demonstrate how different their stances are toward college. The purpose is to move away from the essentialized notions of student identity. Even with three seemingly similar students the manner in which they interpret how to go about applying for college differs. The narrative strategy works from a standpoint that has sought to understand the meanings of applying to college from the perspectives of the three youth with whom the author has worked.

A Philosophy and Approach to Teaching the Epidemiology of Food-Borne, Waterborne, and Zoonotic Diseases

Faculty members from veterinary colleges that teach courses on food-borne, waterborne, and zoonotic diseases to non-veterinary students face unique challenges. The diversity of students' backgrounds, skills, and goals and the public nature of the science require some ingenuity in combining good science with the ability to communicate clearly in a variety of public forums. Drawing on pedagogical theory, the nature of the material, and the diverse abilities of the students, we have put together an effective teaching package for non-veterinary courses on these subjects, which includes a range of methods from outbreak investigations to town hall meetings and food diaries.

Resume Writing and the Minority Student

writing is a difficult task for most job applicants, but minority students face unique challenges as they decide what information to present to a potential employer. A minority applicant's name, address, education, work history, extra curricular activities, and choice of references may trigger unfavorable assumptions by the reader and unfairly influence the selection process. To reduce the chances of "detection" and being eliminated prematurely, some minority students Anglicize their names, use street addresses of relatives and friends in more desirable parts of town, and downplay ethnic-specific education, jobs, and affiliations. Concealing one's ethnic background, however, may be difficult and, more important, may be counterproductive. Minority students should write resumes that are accurate and accentuate the achievements that a potential employer would focus on. Business communication instructors should address concerns about discrimination in selec tion and hiring as they help all students choose the appropriate resume format and language to present their best selves.

A Comparison of Two User Groups

ABSTRACT The effective use of library resources is critical to the success of international students, a group which is gaining importance in American higher education. These students face unique challenges in their pursuit of higher education in a foreign country which presents both language and cultural barriers. The authors conducted a mail survey of two populations. International students and U.S. students were sent nearly identical surveys designed to compare use patterns, perceptions of the library and its services, and willingness to seek help. A comparison of responses provides insight into both similar and differing behaviors and suggestions for improving service.