Problems Faced by International Students
Problems Faces by International Students in the UK
Every year there are around 435,000 international students enrolled in universities around the UK (UKCISA). Studying abroad for a lot of these students is a privilege, however it can be a stressful experience for various reasons. There are plenty of challenges, other than language barrier, that these students face, like major culture shock, homesickness, and financial difficulties.
One of the most obvious difficulties for an international student is culture shock. Culture shock is the result of moving from an environment that is familiar to one that is not. Adjusting to new food, people, environment and currency is all a part of getting over culture shock. The first element that might contribute to culture shock is adjusting to the climate. A lot of the international students, who are used to a warm sunny climate, might find it hard to adjust to the dampness and greyness of the UK weather, especially during the winter (UKCISA, December 2008). Temperatures could go down to -11 degrees Co, however in the summer it could go up to 35 degrees Co. Their ever-changing unpredictable weather can be tough to adjust to. Another part of culture shock is the social roles of people in the society. Social behaviors may be surprising or offensive depending on where a student is from. For example, living in big cities people may not be as friendly and comfortable if they’re unfamiliar with one another, however people of small towns tend to be more sociable and friendly with each other regardless of the circumstances. This can come off as strange or different to the students coming from all over the world, however adapting to that can facilitate the experience of studying abroad.
Transitioning from one lifestyle to another can be a somewhat difficult experience. Although at first, studying abroad might be exciting, when the time comes students
Every year there are around 435,000 international students enrolled in universities around the UK (UKCISA). Studying abroad for a lot of these students is a privilege, however it can be a stressful experience for various reasons. There are plenty of challenges, other than language barrier, that these students face, like major culture shock, homesickness, and financial difficulties.
One of the most obvious difficulties for an international student is culture shock. Culture shock is the result of moving from an environment that is familiar to one that is not. Adjusting to new food, people, environment and currency is all a part of getting over culture shock. The first element that might contribute to culture shock is adjusting to the climate. A lot of the international students, who are used to a warm sunny climate, might find it hard to adjust to the dampness and greyness of the UK weather, especially during the winter (UKCISA, December 2008). Temperatures could go down to -11 degrees Co, however in the summer it could go up to 35 degrees Co. Their ever-changing unpredictable weather can be tough to adjust to. Another part of culture shock is the social roles of people in the society. Social behaviors may be surprising or offensive depending on where a student is from. For example, living in big cities people may not be as friendly and comfortable if they’re unfamiliar with one another, however people of small towns tend to be more sociable and friendly with each other regardless of the circumstances. This can come off as strange or different to the students coming from all over the world, however adapting to that can facilitate the experience of studying abroad.
Transitioning from one lifestyle to another can be a somewhat difficult experience. Although at first, studying abroad might be exciting, when the time comes students
Bibliography: Adams, R. (2013). Universities face more complaints since rise in tuition fees. Retrieved June 13 from www.theguardian.com: http://www.theguardian.com/education/2013/jun/13/universities-complaints-tuition-fees Darlena Jones, P. a. (2012). Homesickness Impacts Retention and Academic Performance. Retrieved February 2006 from http://www.webebi.com/: http://www.webebi.com/community/research/24/homesickness-impacts-retention-and-academic-performance Kegel, K. (2009). Homesickness in International College Students . Retrieved from http://counselingoutfitters.com/: http://counselingoutfitters.com/vistas/vistas09/Article_7_Kegel.pdf UKCISA. (n.d.). International student statistics: UK higher education. Retrieved from http://www.ukcisa.org.uk/Info-for-universities-colleges--schools/Policy-research--statistics/Research--statistics/International-students-in-UK-HE/ UKCISA. (2008). International Students & Culture Shock. Retrieved December from http://www2.mmu.ac.uk/media/international/culture_shock_print.pdf University of Aberdeen Counselling Service. (2011). STUDYING IN THE UK (INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS AND HOMESICKNESS. Retrieved from https://www.abdn.ac.uk/counselling/documents/STUDYINGINTHEUK- INTERNATIONALSTUDENTSANDHOMESICKNESS.pdf