Running head: International Students

Critical Issues in Higher Education:

Perceptions of International Students

Sarah Callihan
November 29, 2014
Wright State University

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Abstract
This literature review examines the perceptions that students and faculty have of international
students in American higher education. International students opinions of how they feel that they
are observed by faculty and their American counterparts are also studied and explained in this
review. Finally implications for student affairs professionals and methods of how to improve
opinions of this student population is discussed. The purpose of this study is to focus on how
foreign students are observed and how they are view themselves in the higher education
atmosphere as well as how this population believes they are treated. The overall implications
exist that administrators should learn the cultural and social norms that these students possess.
Also in order to best recruit and retain this population, professionals should welcome any lessons
that the students can teach them about their needs and concerns.

At any given time, there are approximately three-quarter of a million

international students in American institutions. According to the Institute of
International Education, there was a total of 886,052 students from around
the world in the United States during the 2013-14 year. This included the
following populations: Africa: 31,113; Asia: 568,510; Europe: 86,885; Latin
America and Caribbean: 72,318; Mexico and Central America: 22,276; Middle
East and North Africa: 92,618; Oceania: 6,292; and South America: 39,163.
(Institute of International Education, 2014). This population brings a unique
set of issues with them from their home country.
Many college students, domestic and international, have concerns
about college life. These can include anything from what their living
arrangement will be to what their professors will expect of them. However
with international students their worries go beyond academia and touch all
aspects of the students lives. Some of the concerns that these students face
are language barriers, visa regulations (as well as those regarding working in

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the U.S.), societal/cultural barriers and general acclimation concerns

regarding classroom structure. This last one is a concern because some
universities are more formal in nature whereas in the United States, higher
education courses are for the most part are a collaborative learning
environment where participation is valued and there are group presentations
and other methods of teaching that some foreign students may not be as
familiar with when they come here to study. The problems that these
concerns present can affect how international students are perceived by
American classmates, faculty and higher education administration.
Student Perceptions and concerns
Many international students, especially those from East Asian
countries, are not as deft in English as their counterparts in American
universities. So one of the major concerns that effects perception is
language. Yuchun Zhou conducted a study on how well international
graduate students adapt to higher education in the United States. Zhou
discovered that cultural distance was an important concept to consider when
focusing on international students acculturation. For example, if the country
that the student decides to study in is similar to their own countrys culture
then the student will adapt and transition easier to the way that the
university is governed.
While conducting their research, Zhou and his colleagues found that
while professors were generally accepting of questions from the students,

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communicating outside the classroom was a different story. The students had
trouble discussing the class at times because of language barriers or cultural
differences. These students also worked hard on peer relationships, in that
they valued collaboration in class but outside of the classroom some
students found it difficult to work on group presentations or homework with
their American peers. Many of the students that were interviewed expressed
concern over being treated as a foreigner and that concern made them feel
excluded by other students. For example, some participants from
individualist countries mentioned that they were required to visit school
offices in person for some document processing, whereas American students
could do the same online. Without any explanation from the school, these
students felt that they were treated unequally on campus. (Zhou, 2011,
p.84). Administratively this concern could also be a misunderstanding as it is
common for non-native speakers to present paperwork in person in order for
there not to be any miscommunication on what is needed and whether that
student has any questions that are best answered in person. This could also
be because of the language barrier because sometimes if they were to call
the office many people talk fast whereas in person an administrator is more
likely to talk slower so that they are more easily understood. Despite the
circumstances behind these concerns, many international students are
strong-willed so they come to the institution with a strong desire to succeed
because in their culture success in education gives them more selfconfidence and in turn the confidence boost helped the students in Zhous

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study overcome their various challenges and transition successfully into the
American institution. One of the advantages in learning to be more selfconfident is that it will help this population want to stay at a given institution.

A study by Osman zturgut was conducted that surveyed 53 institutions not only on how
they recruit international students but also on their retention efforts. The researchers purpose
behind this survey was to discover the methodology that the top institutions used to convince
international student to enroll at their respective universities. Along with these practices,
zturgut inquired about how the same institutions retained this population. One method not
within the themes identified was having friends from the same country or students from other
nations over students from the U.S. help them adjust and adapt more easily. (zturgut, 2013, p.
4). As in the previous article, the data in the current study supported the finding that building
relationships is important, not only for students but also for universities, which is not necessarily
shocking as other research also suggest that networking and using social involvement is
important at wanting to remain at an American institution.

Almost as important as academic acculturation is that of building social

networks and acclimating to American social culture. Edwin Gmez and his
colleagues conducted a study looking at the perceptions of international
student involvement in collegiate activities. This study examined the
relationships among language, leisure, social networking, and international
student adaptation to college. Correlation and regression analyses indicate
that students process of acculturation is positively related to participating in
leisure and social eventsAcculturation was found to have a significant

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inverse relationship with leisure constraints, suggesting that as international

students become more acculturated they perceive fewer constraints to
leisure. (Gmez, 2014, p.7). This relationship can also be compared with
Astins Student Involvement Theory. Astins theory basically states that
involvement is the energy that a student spends on different activities. No
matter what the activity, the student will take the program more seriously
and put more time into it than others. The more of their resources that are
placed into the event, the more they will learn and develop as students. This
is important because the more a foreign student gets involved at which ever
university they are studying at the better the perception of both that student
and the institution. American students are more likely to have a positive
opinion of foreign students if they acclimate to the culture of the higher
education institution. The more interested an international student is about
part of the traditions or customs at their guest university, the more willing
domestic students are to teach and help them to integrate into their society.
Faculty perceptions
Faculty members perceptions of foreign students are just as important
as domestic student opinions. This is mainly because domestic students tend
to view their interactions as more of a social nature i.e. classmates, graduate
assistants or any other day to day contact. Faculty and other staff members
have more of a professional relationship with these students in such things
as research and teaching assistants. While student perceptions were mainly

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social, faculty members were more prone to see how international students
can impact their American counterparts. For example in Andrea Trices study
on faculty perceptions of graduate international students, the beneficial
opinions and observations greatly outweighed any negative perceptions.
Faculty members in every department commented that these students
provided an important international perspective. Engineering faculty
members emphasized how international students presence prepared
students for the real world of work where they would interact with people
from many cultures. (Trice, 2003, p. 391). Overall while faculty members do
take note on such things as English proficiency, especially in research
groups, and other cultural norms, they perceive international students as an
educational resource that domestic students can learn from.
Although professors believe that it is beneficial to have foreign
students in the classroom, many of these students still feel at times that they
are treated unfairly. Students whose English was not as good as other
students felt that they were more likely to be discriminated against and less
likely to have positive relationships with American students. This perception
could cause students to self-segregate, as was discovered in the study by
Trice, so as to be with students whom they feel as if they are more
compatibly with for example, those that speak their native language.
According to a study by Corinne Karuppan, the level of English proficiency is
entirely dependent on whether that student feels as if they are included in
collaborative learning and not faced with prejudice. As Gmez found in his

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study, the less there is a language barrier, the more engaged a student will
be in the classroom. In Karuppans study, she found that the more proficient
a foreign student is in English the more likely they will be active and seek
collaboration with American students inside and outside the classroom. The
researcher also found what much of the available literature suggests which is
that more a student feels as if they are being discriminated against the less
likely they are to have a positive educational experience. Another method
that can be used to look at how perceptions effect is to directly interview
international students.
Aparna Hebanni and her colleague conducted a study about the
perceptions of international teaching assistants in American classrooms.
Instead of focusing on only one university, the researchers broadened their
search for participants through a global research listserv and conducted an
email survey. The respondents were a combination of PhD and Masters
students. The two groups held different opinions about how they were
perceived. For example, while the Masters students were more likely to be
concerned about speaking their native language in front of English speakers
or speaking English in the classroom because their students complained
about their lack of English proficiency, the PhD students main concern was
preparing and presenting the material. The Masters students seemed to
echo what other research has pointed out which is that while American
college students seem to be welcoming, they are less so when a foreign
teaching assistant is presenting course material especially if the assistant is

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not adept in English or lacks confidence in their abilities. By building a

rapport with American students, the PhD students were able to have a better
perception of their students and vice versa. For example, a Chinese PhD
student found that a good way to connect with her students was to share her
personal experiences in the U.S. which allowed her students to take an
interest in her as a teaching assistant and in her culture. One major reason
that connecting with students and administration is important for
international students is that when they go back to their home country they
are more likely to recommend that institution based on how they were
perceived.
In Jenny Lees study about international students experiences and how
likely they were to recommend that particular institution, she found that a
major factor was whether the student felt that they were discriminated
against. If a university uses graduation rates to measure how successful
international student programming is, they fail to quantify how difficult the
experience is for this population. For example, Lee found that Asian
students, Chinese in particular, are strong-willed and overcome academic
difficulties because of cultural expectation to maintain their dignity. The
researcher found that when faced with a perceived lack of support from
administration, international students found alternative support networks.
Not too surprisingly, the most important factors in recommending this
particular university were being treated equally and fairly compared to
domestic students, satisfaction with institutional services and difficulty with

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college and living expenses. (Lee, 2010, p. 75). The questions that were
asked in this study generated opinions that were just as important as an
American perception because as Lee suggests when an international student
returns to their home country, they will share their experiences which could
influence other students decisions of where to study abroad. The
implications of these perceptions effect every aspect of higher education
from recruitment and admissions to a successful graduation rate and
retention of international students in the institution.
Implications for improving perceptions
Some ways that could be employed to improve perceptions of foreign
students in U.S. higher education are to have administration educate
themselves about the various cultural norms and issues that foreign students
bring to their university and to work on being welcoming and inclusive.
Higher education professionals should be willing to work with these students
in order to better understand how to best meet their needs. Karuppan
suggests that a strategy in helping change any negative perceptions is that
higher education professionals work to make international students
experiences better with the added expectation that students at their home
university will hear about the opportunity.
Another important aspect of programming that is important is student
involvement and effective programming. When institutions are recruiting for
new students, especially international students, effective programs and

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showing that students are involved across the board in different activities is
something that recruiters can show prospective students. Involvement is also
needed for retention efforts because a student is more likely to stay in school
and at that institution if they have found a group or program that they feel as
if they belong. In order to better implement programming that will negate
the perceptions that many American students have of international students,
it is beneficial that both types of students be willing to learn about each
other and push aside any ill-conceived misconceptions. This is especially
relevant with the advent of social media outlets and how communication
across cultures and the world can happen in an instant.
Many perceptions of international students are stereotypes in that they
are based on English proficiency and are tied to many American students
believing what is seen and heard on social media. It is the duty of higher
education professionals to educate all students about what stereotypes are
and how they affect the educational experience. Administration should
realize just what international students can teach their campuses and
communities and use that acknowledgment to breakdown misconceptions
and work to make this population and other foreign visitors welcome and
included during their global encounter.

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References
Gmez, E., Urza, A. and Glass, C. (2014). International Student Adjustment
to College: Social Networks, Acculturation, and Leisure. Journal of Park and
Recreation Administration,

32(1).

Hebbani, A. and Hendrix, K. (2014). Capturing the Experiences of

International Teaching Assistants in the U.S. American Classroom. New
Directions for Teaching and Learning,

2014(138).

Institute of International Education. (2014) International Student Totals by

Place of Origin,

2012/13- 2013/14. Open Doors Report on International

Educational Exchange.
Karuppan, C. and Barari, M. (2011). Perceived discrimination and
international students learning: an empirical investigation. Journal of Higher
Education Policy and

Management, 33(1).

Lee, J. (2010). International Students experiences and attitudes at a U.S. host

institution: Self-

reports and future recommendations. Journal of Research

and International Education, 9(1).

zturgut, O. (2013). Best Practices in Recruiting and Retaining International
Students in
the U.S. Current Issues in Education, 16(2).

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Trice, A. (2003). Faculty Perceptions of Graduate International students: The

Benefits and

Challenges. Journal of Studies in International Education,

7(4).
Zhou, Y., Frey, C., & Bang, H. (2011). Understanding of International Graduate
Students

Academic Adaptation to a U.S. Graduate School. International

Education, 41(1), 76-94.