International Students - Research Paper Example

 An international student can be described as any student that travels across his/her nation’s boundaries in order to gain an education. Oftentimes, individuals themselves, family members, loans, or government aid/sponsorship is responsible for these individuals studying overseas/abroad. In recent years, the number of international students within the Canadian system has ballooned to over 175,000 individuals within 2008 alone. In hoping to understand this trend, as well as some of the benefits and drawbacks that this provides, the following essay will analyze these pros and cons that the individual faces as well is seeking to understand why universities, local governments, and the federal system within Canada is so particularly interested in continuing to attract such a large number of foreign students to study at their universities. Although it might be convenient to think that the main reason for many universities and governments to attracts a higher percentage and/or ratio of international students to their universities might have to do with the fact that they are attempting to promote diversity and understanding between peoples, the fact the matter is that the economics surrounding international exchange students tells quite a different story (Marginson, 2012). Whereas the local students might receive stipends, scholarships, and a variety of different aid to pursue higher education, the international student is almost always without any of these benefits; and left to rely fully upon their own ability to fund such an endeavor. Moreover, the amount of money at the local student discharged, not even counting the scholarship aid or other funds which might be applied to assist them, is invariably much cheaper than the amount of money that the international student pays per semester/per year (Rose-Redwood, 2010). Oftentimes the differential intuition is nearly double. The many schools would like to promote themselves as liberal centers of learning that pride themselves upon a diverse and ethnically varied student body, the fact the matter is that the economics ultimately drive the push towards more and more international students within the system (Denson, 2010). The reason for this is the fact that growing a university based upon the local resources of students does not provide a rapid degree of growth. Instead, it is necessary to reach out to other people from around the globe in order to attract them to these universities as a means of providing jobs for the local economy, professors for the university itself, and a massive influx of funds within the system (Smith & Ota, 2013). Unfortunately, in this way the international student is used to promote development first, and receive an education second. Although the information contained above may seem as something of a depressing view of the situation the fact of the matter is is that having international students greatly furthers the goals of education and diversity itself (Attrill et al, 2012). This is due to the fact that students within the do plastic environment, as well as other international students, are introduced to a variety of cultures, languages, and ideas that they otherwise would not have met with during the course of their education. In this way, the very essence of a liberal education is realized; in that an exchange of ideas is facilitated between a large group of people. However like any situation, the exchange of international students across national borders and cultures is not only have positive or negative benefits for the institution itself. Some of the negative effects that might be realized within the individual student themselves is most obviously culture shock. Regardless of Powell educated, well-adjusted, or optimistic person might be, they may be faced with a situation in which they become depressed and sad as a result of being so far away from home and it within such a very strange environment. Homesickness is part of this; however, is unique unto itself. A very ugly side of the international exchange is discrimination (Karuppan & Barari, 2011). Although one may view discrimination as something of an active process, the fact the matter is that many forms of discovery nation take place between international students without these stakeholders realizing that they are discriminated. One does not have to think back very far to realize that they had been in situations within classrooms where groups were divided and individuals expressed concern or anger at the fact that they are group/team member with someone they felt they could not work with. Oftentimes these judgments are made prematurely and based on nothing more than racial or ethnic stereotypes (Davis, 2009). One of the best ways to combat discrimination among students is to seek to promote the basic understanding that international students as well as domestic students are both working together to achieve the same goals within the same institution with the same purpose; providing themselves and their families a better life upon graduation. However before attacking such a process too strongly, it should be realized and understood that many within international education in exchange fully understand these drawbacks and make this choice even still. This is oftentimes due to the fact that these individuals are not only interested within the educational standpoint; rather, they are also interested in seeking refuge, citizenship, or extended immigration status within the host nation upon graduation (Davis, 2009). Although this understanding does not make the situation any better, the fact of the matter is that it does help with regards to the understanding of the economics that define the international student exchange that currently exist within Canada so many other nations around world. In order to make the process more equitable, it is the belief of this particular student that the international exchange student program within Canada, as well is within its universities, must at least attempts to present some type of economic equity among all shareholders within the process. Although no one wants to have their tuition raised in order to meet a specific standard, it doesn’t seem to make any sense for international students to pay such a very high premium for their education as compared to domestic students. Although it makes sense to pay premium for not residing within the country and coming to study their, paying twice more (and often times much, much more than this) is most certainly not an equitable way to deal with educating individuals posted domestically or from overseas. References Attrill, S., Lincoln, M., & McAllister, S. (2012). Student diversity and implications for clinical competency development amongst domestic and international speech-language pathology students. International Journal Of Speech-Language Pathology, 14(3), 260-270. doi:10.3109/17549507.2011.652172 Davis, G. (2009). The English Empire? Global Higher Education. Round Table, 98(405), 753-765. doi:10.1080/00358530903371437 Denson, N., & Zhang, S. (2010). The impact of student experiences with diversity on developing graduate attributes. Studies In Higher Education, 35(5), 529-543. doi:10.1080/03075070903222658 Karuppan, C. M., & Barari, M. (2011). Perceived discrimination and international students' learning: an empirical investigation. Journal Of Higher Education Policy & Management, 33(1), 67-83. doi:10.1080/1360080X.2011.537013 Marginson, S. (2012). Including the other: regulation of the human rights of mobile students in a nation-bound world. Higher Education, 63(4), 497-512. Rose-Redwood, C. R. (2010). THE CHALLENGE OF FOSTERING CROSS-CULTURAL INTERACTIONS: A CASE STUDY OF INTERNATIONAL GRADUATE STUDENTS' PERCEPTIONS OF DIVERSITY INITIATIVES. College Student Journal, 44(2), 389-399. doi:10.1007/s10734-011-9454-7 Smith, M. J., & Ota, A. (2013). Matching International Enthusiasm With Diversity Commitment. (Cover story). Journal Of College Admission, (218), 16-21. Read More