Page 86 - Movers, Shapers, and Everything in Between: Influencers of the International Student Experience

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Chapter 4
that Academic Engagement varied significantly between universities after controlling for gender, stage of study, and enrollment type.
A Qualitative Interpretation of the Results through ISB Student Comments
Comments from the International Student Barometer help understand how the experiences of international students differ, helping to explain the quantitative findings. Summative comment analysis revealed different proportions of comments from international students at home campuses and IBCs, with 23% of the IBC sample and 16% of the home campus sample writing in comments in the learning experience section of the survey (190 and 225 comments, respectively). On the whole, 61% of comments written in were negative in sentiment (i.e., complaints about academic facilities, lecturer’s teaching styles, program content, etc.). Looking at sentiment by enrollment type, 66% of comments from students enrolled at IBCs were negative, compared to 57% of comments from students enrolled at home campuses. Positive sentiment was identified in 16% of comments from IBC-enrolled students and 27% of home campus-enrolled students. The remaining comments were categorized as mixed or neutral in sentiment. Overall, this supports the notion that international students enrolled at IBCs have lower satisfaction with their academic experience than students at home campuses. See Table 4.9 for an index of frequency and sentiment by enrollment type (IBC/Home Campus).
Students enrolled at IBCs sometimes commented on perceived differences between the home campus and IBC, whereas no such comparisons were found in comments from students enrolled at home campuses. For example, a student at an IBC noted “The fact that [IBC Name] is an international branch of [Institution Name], I expected the same services and facilities, that will allow the students to experience robust learning and understanding. But, having met many exchange students from [Home Campus Name], I got to acknowledge the differences in both campuses; regardless of the lecturing/knowledge delivering skills incompetence.” Another IBC student noted that “The optional modules are too little limited compared to [Home Institution