ISANA

Carol Dalglish, Christian Haker, Lynda Lawson, Peter Nelson and Martin Reese

Abstract: Australian universities are welcoming an increasingly diverse range of international students and they are doing this in the context of increasing international competition for these students. It is vital that our institutions are clear about the nature of the learning experience that they are offering students. Not just the content, but the learning processes, and challenges of daily life. University marketing activities…

Mark Dougherty, Yella Siril

Abstract:  In 2001 Högskolan Dalarna launched a masters programme in computer science. This programme has attracted a large number of applications from international students. This has yielded many exciting opportunities, but also given rise to some problems, both practical and academic. A key element of the success in solving some of these problems has been to make the programme highly modular in structure, allowing two intakes per year. This has been…

Katrina Allitt

Abstract: This paper attempts to explore the stages of development that a homestay family goes through and the psychological significance of each stage. A family who is recruited to be a homestay provider for the first time needs guidance and support from an experienced professional as well as from other families who have been providing this service for a certain length of time. Two ‘new’ families have been selected and the stages they…

Lynda Lawson

Abstract:  This paper will consider the experience of two Australian exchange students at the Grenoble Ecole de Management ( GEM) through a short film that I made about them while I was on staff development leave at this institution during the first 3 months of 2005. I will show the film, discuss how the film was made and then discuss some of the themes it raises in terms of the value that such…

Gavin Sanderson

Abstract: This paper reports on research undertaken in a university department to determine if academic staff used a range of theory-based practical teaching strategies that are promoted to assist international students adjust to Australian academe and support their learning. The department has an enrolment of 50 per cent international students and is located at a medium-size Australian university that is in the planning phase of internationalising its teaching and learning activities. A ‘mixed…

Chika Anyanwu

Abstract:  The Federal Government funding cuts since the 1990s have forced many (if not all) Australian universities to find alternative means to subsidise such shortfalls, one of these being increased international enrolment. One of the consequences of this new economic direction is the influx of international students with new kinds of expectations and overwhlmed academic and administrative staff who have not fully appreciated or undertood the full import of such dramatic academic cultural…

Karen Commons and Xiaodan Gao

Abstract:  Research on the experiences of international students and their adaptation to the education environment in NZ has revealed some dissatisfaction relating to the academic experience of international students in NZ. It has been suggested that the discrepancy between international students’ expectations and reality may sometimes contribute to negative views and difficulties with study. Student Learning Support Service at Victoria University of Wellington has designed…

Lynda Lawson

Abstract: Designed and implemented as a joint project between International student services and the Research Students Centre and overseen by the Dean of Graduate Studies, RIS offers a series of intensive classes, presentations and workshops to new international research students at QUT. The core purpose of this program is to help international research students become familiar with the linguistic and academic expectations as well as the cultural conventions required to…

Shereen Ghobrial

Abstract: Each year, the University of Queensland opens its doors to thousands of new international students.
Although Student Support Services at the University of Queensland introduce international students to some essential safety issues relating to their new environment within the first few days after arrival, it has become apparent that given the number of avoidable critical accidents over the past few years, more specific information was needed to ensure students are made…

Sylvia Hooker and Felicity Fallon

Abstract: Both Australia and New Zealand have had regulations relating to the care and accommodation of younger students for several years. This paper compares and contrasts these pieces of legislation and finds that a different emphasis has been placed on accommodation in each of these countries. Finding the best accommodation arrangements for each unde-age student is one of the most complex issues in the care and monitoring of…

Nicholas Tan, Megan Jager

Abstract only: Trends indicate that increasing numbers of International students are applying for Permanent Residency in Australia after their studies. International student leaders are endowed with academic knowledge, and the skills and experience of having worked in an International student environment.

In 2003, when one of its student advisers left, Edith Cowan University’s (ECU) International Student Support Team realised it needed to fill the void quickly. Believing…

Julie Hockey and Dr Carolyn McSwiney

Abstract: Concern for newly arrived international students must extend beyond the more obvious group of first year students to include a growing cohort of articulant students arriving in Australia having completed part of their degree in their home countries. This paper describes a dual ‘pre-departure’ and ‘on-arrival’ academic library program developed to meet the differential needs of this cohort in the University of South Australia. It is designed to…

Fiona Pakoa

Abstract: While working with AusAID sponsored students in a Queensland university, Melanesian students, as a distinct cohort, appeared to struggle the most with their academic program. Their ability to meet the academic expectations of the university appeared to be constrained, not by ability, but by their inability to cope with the competing academic, cultural and social demands. This research sought to explore the role of Melanesian students’ cultural identity in their academic experiences.

Jocelyn Wolfe

Abstract : Writing about music is fundamental to the study of music in a university. This may not be surprising to most people familiar with study in tertiary institutions in Australia. However, many aspiring young musicians coming from overseas to study music in Australia are not prepared for this aspect of their music education. Their lack of preparedness is, first, in understanding what the academic requirements are…

Dianne Jonasson

Abstract:  When International students from non-English speaking backgrounds (INESB students) choose to study in an Australian university, they come, like any student, with hopes, expectations, and understandings. Their teachers also have hopes, expectations, and understandings regarding these students. In fact, it appears that students and teachers are generally hoping for the same things, namely, that students will pass their subjects, understand the concepts, and improve their English. However, while both parties appear to…

Heather Bigelow, Mary Kerstjens

Abstract: At the ISANA Victorian Branch State Conference in October, 2005, Heather and Mary, together with our esteemed colleague, Lila Kemlo, presented our ‘students at risk’ project, designed to identify and provide an holistic, integrated program to enable Business Portfolio students to gain essential skills for academic and social success. A major feature of this program was the collaboration between members of academic staff of the Business Portfolio, the Learning Skills…

Cathy Saenger

Abstract: Being a mentor to International Students in the Faculty of Business and Computing at a polytechnic in New Zealand, the author has experienced the trials and tribulations of International Students first hand. They begin fresh faced with many expectations, but very soon find that things are not as easy as expected. Some graduates have indicated that they have found it nearly impossible to find jobs and that they are not…

Cheryl Cook

Abstract: This workshop reviews the challenges of engaging with revised legislative environment and looks at these encounters from three angles – practical application, recognition of content and function and, issues discussions. The aim is to engage industry professionals, both physically and mentally, in consolidating their awareness and examining the National Code 2007 in relation to their work requirements and encourage them to consider informed options. Through teamwork, problem solving, and strategy discussions, participants…

Paula Dunstan

Abstract:  The substance of this paper was delivered at the 2007 Australian International Education Conference in Melbourne, and presented as a stimulus for discussion about practical approaches to the issues of international student support management. This later version contains additional material that reflects the discussion and panel presentations at the AIEC session.

The impetus for this presentation remains the responses of providers to Standard 6 of…

Gerry Mullins

Abstract: This workshop is designed to help you develop effective strategies for helping international postgraduate research students in your university. What we will do
is spend the time discussing:
• What are the issues?
• What strategies are available?
• What might you do in your university?

Keywords: International students, post graduate research students

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