‘Sense of possibility’ key to overseas students’ experience

Universities misinterpret the factors that imbue international students with a sense of belonging, an Australian study suggests.

Researchers have found that foreign students feel “more integrated” in their host universities if they can picture a successful future in their host country.

The team surveyed 175 overseas students at Charles Darwin University’s Sydney campus, asking 42 questions about their experiences in Australia. The probe covered issues like happiness, confidence, loneliness, mental health, family support, stress, financial pressures, language barriers, study habits, academic engagement and career plans.

The researchers then used “explainable” artificial intelligence – a form of machine learning that helps users understand the rationale underpinning the bots’ pronouncements – to tease out the most influential issues.

Students’ expectations of future happiness in Australia – rather than immediate issues like social support or English coaching – turned out to be the most important contributors to their sense of integration. Pivotal factors included their confidence in achieving their career goals, appraisal of their own study and time-management skills, and anticipation of prejudices that could impede their success.

The team has published its findings in the journal AI. “Students integrate better when they can imagine a future here – a career, stability and a sense of possibility,” said co-author Niusha Shafiabady, head of information technology at the Australian Catholic University.

“Integration is less about fitting in socially and more about whether Australia feels like a place where their aspirations are achievable.”

She said the research had implications for universities, which tended to support international students through orientation activities, English workshops, social events and “generic” well-being programmes. “Our findings suggest these efforts miss the deeper drivers of belonging,” Shafiabady said.

“If institutions want students to thrive, they need to focus on career confidence, clear pathways to employment, reducing perceived barriers [and] helping [them] imagine a stable, successful future in Australia.”

Shafiabady acknowledged that universities already ran employability programmes, and that many of the barriers overseas students encountered – such as bosses’ reluctance to hire people with foreign accents or temporary visas – were beyond universities’ control. “They can’t fix the whole job market. Our point is simply that students’ belief about their future matters a lot.

“Even small things like clearer advice, reducing fear of discrimination or helping students feel more confident academically can make a big difference.”

Shafiabady said universities and government authorities could also use the findings to gauge whether applicants for student or graduate work visas were likely to struggle with life in Australia. She said most foreign students in Australian universities had aspirations to stay on.

“They are just not coming here to study,” she said. “They are coming here to stay. They will be our future graduate students and Australians. It’s important to see if they’re going to be integrated properly.”

john.ross@timeshighereducation.com