This article analyses the intercultural competence of students from Turkey who participated in the EuRopean Community Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students (Erasmus). Intercultural competence is an important aspect of 21st-century skills and lifelong learning. The study presented here also considered antecedent factors such as…

This article draws on interview data to report how students of Mandarin in UK universities were exposed to and responded to 'Chinese culture' during their studies. The experiences that the students shared and the ways they responded demonstrated their understanding of cultural complexity, incorporating a fluid and dynamic view of culture as…

This article investigates the increasing prominence of intercultural and global skills assessment in study abroad administration and pedagogy, and how it influences the practice of international education and the roles it plays in the administrative spaces of U.S. higher education. Drawing on a series of interviews with administrators, faculty…

High-impact practices (HIPs) in higher education, such as global community engagement programs, enhance student learning and lead to increased levels of civic involvement among graduates. However, it is unknown if participation in a global community engagement/service-learning program affects the development of cultural competence. The purpose of…

We start this coda with a discussion of the impact of the pandemic on higher education in our contexts. We then highlight the focus of this special issue, namely international students' language learning and intercultural encounters in Chinese universities. Reflecting on the relevant findings reported in this collection of studies, we relate…

Virtual exchange (VE) is an educational practice that involves the engagement of groups of learners in extended periods of online intercultural interaction and collaboration with international peers as an integrated part of their educational programs and under the guidance of educators and/or facilitators. Despite more than 20 years of research…

This mixed-methods case study examined the intercultural development of US students participating in a summer internship abroad program. Using Kelley's (1995) Construct of Cross-Cultural Adaptability and Bennett's (1986, 1993) Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity, the study explored changes in cross-cultural skills and how students…

Intercultural Teaching Competence (ITC) is essential for teaching in increasingly diverse primary schools. However, research has not sufficiently addressed the meaning and development of ITC, including whether study abroad during teacher education contributes to the dimensions included. Therefore, this study seeks to determine which dimensions of…

This qualitative study explores how emotions are experienced and handled during international service-learning (ISL) initiatives. It involved one focus group discussion and in-depth, semi-structured interviews with six college students engaged in a 10-day ISL project in Burkina Faso. Their accounts were analysed using interpretative…

The Year Abroad (YA) is one of the most valuable parts of our language degree programmes. Here we discuss some of the elements that constitute the assessment Nottingham Trent University students carry out to earn a YA diploma. More specifically we compare the two elements (blog and dossier) that we think contribute most to reflective practice, by…

This article presents the results of a study conducted in order to determine whether Chinese students who study in the USA for a portion of their internationalised undergraduate degree programme report differences in intercultural communication competence (ICC) compared to their classmates who remain in China. The results showed no significant…

Virtual mobility experiences provide a valuable option to enrich student learning and development from home. However, there is a lack of evidence of how these online experiences are leveraged in STEM and their potential positive effect on students' critical thinking capabilities. This study explores and details the design of a short-term virtual…

This study is an endeavour to explicate the dissonance of the linguistic quality outcome of study abroad (SA) experiences by exploring the second language (L2) motivation of six academic sojourners in Manchester. A person-in-context approach revealed that developing intimate relationships with 'native-speakers', providing L2-mediated interaction…

The objective of the research is to investigate if certain demographics of students help explain four areas of potential improvements in predominantly short-term study abroad programs. These areas are motivation, experience enhancement, benefits from various learning activities, and students' concerns regarding their experience. Pre-trip and…

Given the critical dynamics between students' national identity and study abroad experiences, this study explores the meanings Chinese international students in the US make of national identity within the context of China's rise on the world stage. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 23 Chinese undergraduate students studying at a US research…