Learning in an internationalised higher education institution : exploring the perceptions and experiences of international students at two institutions and implications for institutional internationalisation strategy

Abstract

This doctoral thesis presents a qualitative investigation into how international students (ISs) at two higher education institutions (one in Mainland China and one in the UK) perceived and experienced internationalisation. Drawing upon three key elements of internationalisation identified in the Higher Education Academy’s (2014) framework for internationalising HE – “curriculum”, “organisation”, and “people” – the study tracks the operationalisation of internationalisation at the institutional level, the development of the students’ intercultural competence (IC) over time, and the impacts of institutional internationalisation strategies on ISs’ IC. Data were collected in two stages over a 15-month period. Fieldwork and documentary data were collected between October 2013 and January 2014 at the UK university (NEUK) and between March and May 2014 at the Chinese university (SUCN). Stage two involved three rounds of individual interviews with 22 ISs; these were conducted between September 2014 and June 2015. The study revealed different conceptualisations of and operational approaches to internationalisation within the two institutions, namely a “top-down linear approach” at SUCN and a “strategies-focused comprehensive approach” at NEUK. ISs’ experience in the case universities also reflected the differences in how the universities’ communicated their internationalisation strategies to students. The study’s qualitative methods, particularly longitudinal interviews, provided a thick description of internationalisation in practice as perceived by the two groups of ISs and revealed that ISs regarded their IC development as a comprehensive and integrated process in which culture was not always seen as a static entity. The ISs’ experiences of IC development reflect the significant impacts of institutional international strategies on three specific areas: 1) the integration of international and intercultural awareness into curriculum content; 2) intercultural pedagogy; and, 3) activities that enhance intercultural interactions. Finally, by identifying two approaches to internationalisation in each university, this small-scale study provides insights into the central role that university staff play in international curriculum design, delivery, and activities