First Year Experience: How We Can Better Assist First-Year International Students in Higher Education

Authors

  • Zi Yan Merrimack College
  • Patricia Sendall Merrimack College

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v6i1.395

Keywords:

First year experience, Higher education, International students

Abstract

While many American colleges and universities are providing a First Year Experience (FYE) course or program for their first year students, those programs are not often customized to take into account international students’ (IS) unique challenges. Using quantitative and qualitative methods, this study evaluated a FYE course that was customized for IS in a college setting. Nineteen IS and eight domestic students (DS) who attended FYE classes completed a survey; 18 of the 19 IS were interviewed. Overall, the FYE class was successful in terms of helping IS to familiarize themselves with academic resources and expectations, understanding American culture, making more American friends, and improving their English language skills. Suggestions for future integration of IS into FYE programs are discussed.

Author Biographies

  • Zi Yan, Merrimack College

    Zi Yan, PhD, MPH, is an Assistant Professor of Health Sciences at Merrimack College. 

  • Patricia Sendall, Merrimack College

    Patricia Sendall, PhD, is a Professor of Management at Merrimack College. 

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Published

2016-01-01

Issue

Vol. 6 No. 1 (2016)

Section

Research Articles (English)

License

All published articles are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 Unported License.

How to Cite

First Year Experience: How We Can Better Assist First-Year International Students in Higher Education. (2016). Journal of International Students, 6(1), 35-51. https://doi.org/10.32674/jis.v6i1.395