A Descriptive Survey Study of International Students’ Experiences at a Canadian University: Challenges, Supports and Suggested Improvements

Abstract

Every year a growing number of international students move abroad, predominantly to western countries, to pursue university education. They are motivated by various factors both in their home country as well in the prospective host countries and universities. Many of these reasons can be generally characterized in term of push-pull factors, impelling students to leave home and incentivizing them to pursue university education in other countries. However, upon arrival, international students may encounter a myriad of challenges over the course of their university studies. A substantial body of research has documented international student challenges but few studies have focused on their experiences in the Canadian context. The current descriptive survey study focuses on international students’ experiences – challenges, personal and institutional supports – during studies at a Canadian university, as well as their suggestions for what additional supports they think would be helpful. An online survey (n = 712) examined international students challenges within a number of domains: language, financial, academic, environmental and cultural, and personal-social. The majority of the international students reported financial, personal-social challenges. Covid-19 presented additional challenges for most international students. Student employment of various coping strategies (e.g. staying in touch with family) and institutional supports (e.g. international students centre) were also examined. Finally, summarizing the suggestions of student respondents a number of recommendations are made regarding how to improve supports for international students. Study limitations and suggestions for future research are discussed.