Date of Graduation

2011

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Abstract

College students in the twenty-first century face a different political, economic, cultural, and social world than students faced in the previous century. Technology and business have broken down virtually every barrier between countries. As a result, many colleges believe that they must educate and involve their students in cultures beyond their country’s borders in the hope of producing inter-culturally competent students. Despite government policies and available financial assistance that encourage study abroad, the vast majority of students in Western countries do not study outside their own borders. Thus, successful integration of international students and scholars with the campus and its domestic students is the key to effective internationalization efforts. The purpose of this research was to investigate the challenges international students encounter while attending American universities and students’ perceptions of the extent to which these challenges are met by their host institutions. In addition, the research set out to identify how these perceptions vary according to institutional and student demographics. The instrument used for the research was the Michigan International Students Problem Inventory (MISPI). Survey Monkey was used to survey all international students at one public and one private institution. A total of 472 responses were collected. Of these, a total of 183 were complete and usable for this study. To analyze the data, One-Way ANOVA tests and Tukey analyses were used. Statistical analyses revealed that the varying student demographic characteristics perceived varying adjustment challenges. The greatest challenges perceived by international students were Religious Service, Student Activity, Living Dining, Academic Record, and Social Personal Problems. The least challenging problem areas were identified as Orientation Service, Placement Service, and Admission Selection. The least met challenges by host institutions were reported as Financial Aid, Admission Selection, Academic Record, Orientation Service, Placement Service, and Student Activity Problems. Based on the findings of this research, a “one size fits all” approach cannot be used to solve the challenges international students encounter as they adjust to their host institutions. Recommendations were made for international students and professionals based on the demographic information that provides insight to the expected challenges that may be encountered by various categories of international students. For future researchers, a study expansion was recommended.

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