No abstract

Findings from this study indicate that more attention must be given to Chinese students’ interpersonal relationships with domestic students, particularly when considering the role of daily cross-cultural interactions in residential living. Participants who wanted American roommates anticipated an easier transition to U.S. culture. However, making meaningful connections with American students proved to be more challenging than anticipated. Participants reported that cultural differences within their residence hall room led to difficulty with communication and social connections.

Using neoracism (Lee & Rice, 2007) as a theoretical framework, this study explored international students’ experiences, challenges, and perceptions of racism and racial discrimination during COVID-19 in the U.S. By conducting three virtual focus group interviews with 18 international students in total, we identified three key themes that encapsulated participants’ challenges and experiences of perceived racism: perceptions of racism—explicit discrimination and fear of threats, feelings of being unwelcome and unsafe, and two faces of quarantine—navigating tensions of relief and isolation. Implications for research and practice to support international students are discussed.

The purpose of this study is to illuminate international students of Color's experiences with a campus racial incident at a predominately White institution (PWI). This study emerged after the release of a YouTube video from a self-proclaimed White supremacist at the participants' institution, who made comments such as "I am the most active white nationalist in [the state]." In this study, we seek to answer the question: How does a campus racialized incident affect international students of Color's experience and perceptions of the campus climate at a PWI? The experiences of this population must be considered, especially due to the rise in incidents on campuses that are related to race, racism, and nativism. Findings from this study include how participants made sense of the incident from personal, institutional, national, and transnational perspectives. Participants share their concerns with discrimination and campus safety, confusion about free speech and institutional responses, and communication with family back home. Implications for practice include how institutions can provide support to international students of color, who have intersecting identities related to race, ethnicity, language, and religion, as they navigate campus racialized incidents in the United States.

International students and scholars in the United States (U.S.) have often been excluded from conversations about race, ethnicity, and migration within U.S. contexts. However, with the issuance of what is commonly known as the Travel Bans, fears emerged from the international education community of the Travel Bans affecting international student recruitment and enrollment. In this study, we highlight the ways in which an official statement from leaders of international higher education organizations employ interest convergence arguments, followed by a discussion of the ways in which convergence in this case is employed as a tool to garner U.S. soft power. The examination of a brief of amicus curiae submitted by the American Council on Education and 32 additional higher education associations revealed the commodification of international students and scholars when using interest convergence as an analytical frame for examining the soft power (Nye, 2008). International students and scholars contribute to U.S. soft power as a means of garnering diversity, contributing to foreign policy, producing knowledge, and generating economic gains.