The problems of socio-cultural and academic adaptation and student satisfaction of international higher degree students

Khairullina Maria V., Mozheevskaya A. E.

The amount of international higher degree students has been significantly growing over the last decades. Meanwhile Russia is permanently increasing the number of foreign students at its universities. However, research has identified that international students often handle a wide range of socio-cultural and academic problems in adapting to their new environment, which can have significant role in their levels of satisfaction of their studies. This paper outlines the findings of a mixed method study exploring the experiences and perceptions of international higher degree students from two different countries. Findings revealed that the most important issues in terms of satisfaction were not directly related to academic studies. Instead, factors such as integration into the community, interacting with other students, relationships with tutors, and availability of adequate desk space were often paid the greatest attention. Implications for how university can more effectively support international students are discussed.

Keywords:international higher degree students, academic adaptation, socio-cultural adaptation, student satisfaction