Following the gradual post-COVID-19 return of international student flows, it is important to examine how higher education institutions and international students are reacting to their new environment and how they relate to each other. Central to this relationship is the concept of "belonging"; what it means for international students,…

Under the context of the in-country mobility of Hong Kong students studying at Chinese Mainland universities, this paper proposes the notion of 'transborder habitus' to understand Hong Kong students' experiences and perceptions. Through qualitative research with in-depth interviews with 51 Hong Kong students studying in major cities, namely…

As the volume of research on intercultural adaptation of international students (IAIS) increases significantly over the past decades, a systematic review of the diverse literature on a global scale and its development process becomes essential. This study conducted a thorough bibliometric analysis for the knowledge domain of IAIS research using…

The transition to university life is challenging, involving academic adaptation and social and lifestyle adjustment, so it is no surprise that attrition is at its highest in the first year of attending university. Studies have investigated factors influencing students' adjustment, and the formation of a new learner identity within university has…

There is a dramatic increase in the number of mainland Chinese students coming to Hong Kong to attend various courses. With the aim of developing a profound understanding of the adaptation of the mainland Chinese students (N = 210), this study tested the relationship between types of motivation and goal content when studying abroad with a wide…

This study investigates Chinese international students' acculturation strategies and pragmatic intentions to address identity conflicts in Hong Kong study experiences through a developmental lens. We treat conflicts and stressors as indicators of active commitments and the process of engagement as strategic, goal-oriented, intentional investments…

Despite widely reported 'Mainland-Hong Kong conflicts', recent years have witnessed progressive growth of Mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong universities. This study aims to explore the role of Willingness to Communicate (WTC) in the cross-cultural adaptation of such a group of sojourning students. Structural equation modelling showed that the…

Quantitative research on the linguistic acculturation of sojourners in non-Western and multilingual social contexts remains scarce. Revising the Framework of Acculturation Variables (FAV), we propose a parsimonious model exploring the effect of acculturation conditions (trilingual language usage and perceived discrimination), orientations (social…

Over the past few decades, Mainland China has witnessed a massive outflow of students to higher education institutions in Hong Kong. In the context of an up-surge in Mainland Chinese students in Hong Kong, this research aims to explore (1) why Mainland Chinese students choose to study in Hong Kong over other higher education systems, (2)…

Recent studies indicate that the academic and social integration of overseas students in the destination country often plays a major role in their academic performance, employability outcomes and integration into the wider community. This study investigates these issues in more depth from the perspective of overseas Chinese in the Southwest UK,…

Existing research on the psychological and academic experiences of China-born students studying outside of China has mainly been conducted in Western English-speaking countries. Using a coping resources framework, we investigated the predictors of psychological and academic adaptation of 2,201 mainland Chinese students (74% female) studying in…

Increasing numbers of international students are enrolling in Australian universities in early childhood teaching degrees. For many of these students understanding the early childhood education pedagogies and approaches is a different way of viewing teaching and learning from their own cultural perspective. Many of these students struggle to…

In this study we used grounded theory framework to explore how preparation for studying abroad affects the academic success of East Asian undergraduate students in U.S. universities. Based on interviews with 12 participants from China, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan, we found that knowledge of English language and American culture, which is…

Internationalisation of higher education greatly facilitates cross-border student mobility, which has been extensively researched. This comparative study focuses on the relatively under-explored field of intra-regional educational mobility. It compares attitudes towards learning and using English of Mainland Chinese students and Hong Kong Chinese…

Transitioning from school to university is a major development for learners, often accompanied by difficulties. When overseas students arrive at university for the first time these challenges are multiplied. It is suggested, however, that these difficulties can be mitigated to a certain extent via the use of online social networks. The present…