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Understanding The Lived Experiences Of Saudi Students Enrolled In Canadian Graduate Nursing Programs, Aisha Namshan Aldawsari

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Despite the increased number of students in the field of nursing, there is a great shortage of Saudi nurses in Saudi Arabia (SA). Cultural issues in SA have influenced the development of the nursing profession. For instance, it is not culturally acceptable for female nurses or nursing students to work for long hours and night shifts in a mixed-gender practice environment in SA. Thus, a large proportion of nursing students tend to look for positions other than working in hospital settings upon completion of their undergraduate degree. Pursuing graduate nursing education overseas is also viewed as a viable option. To …

Helping The Transition Through Building New Friendships: A Psychological Perspective On Supporting International Students' Acculturation And Social Integration, Clint E. Thomson

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

In the present research, I developed a program that paired newcomer international students with Canadian student mentors. These pairs met weekly throughout the year. Analysis of pilot quantitative data suggested international student participants did not experience changes in attitudes towards Canadian students or feelings of integration at university as they got to know their mentors, contrary to what I had initially hypothesized. After conducting focus group interviews and reforming the survey measures for the main study, I found that program participants experienced positive changes in sociocultural and psychological adaptation, and a reduction in acculturative stress over time. At the conclusion …

Intercultural Learning For International Students In A Cross-Cultural Environment: A Qualitative Study With A Relational Cosmopolitan Lens, James S. Budrow

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Because of market-driven globalization and reduced public funding brought on by neoliberal government policies, western universities have dramatically increased international student enrolment and consequently face pressures to internationalize educational programming. Navigating international learning environments can build cross-cultural understanding and integration, leading to a more productive university community. This research seeks to illuminate how English for Academic Purposes programs in western universities prepare students from diverse backgrounds to be globally aware individuals with intercultural sensibilities that engage new and creative ways of understanding the world in relation to others.

Cosmopolitanism provides a critical epistemological frame for understanding and engaging difference in …

International Chinese And Canadian Students' Experiences Of Internationalization At A Canadian University, Linda J. Weber

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Internationalization, as a response to globalization, is one of the key drivers and shapers of the fundamental changes transforming the world of higher education. There is a need to understand internationalization within higher education from the vantage point of the domestic and international students who are currently being educated because their experiences testify to the provision of quality education. Using a Case Study approach this research explores ways that the internationalization of higher education impacts students’ intercultural relations, identities, intercultural sensitivity, critical understandings, notions of citizenship and futures. A postcolonial perspective is used to explore how students perceive the influences …