This book offers a comprehensive examination of the experiences of international students as they navigate the complexities of studying and living in a foreign country while pursuing their graduate studies. It delves into the challenges faced by these students, including cultural differences, language barriers, and the impact of COVID-19, and provides insights into how these challenges can be overcome. Through a range of narratives and empirical studies, the book offers a deeper understanding of the socialization experiences of international graduate students, their advising relationships, career employability challenges, and their resilience in the face of adversity. Oder Hardcopies Here | Digital Copies Here

This volume examines the diversified and challenging experiences of Chinese international STEM doctoral students at Australian institutes of higher education, exploring how intersections between research, personal life, and social experiences can be negotiated to achieve academic success and personal transformation. By drawing on a range of qualitative and longitudinal research methods, the book foregrounds student narratives and utilizes a novel three-dimensional multi-world framework as an effective approach for understanding student experiences in a holistic way. It integrates Chinese philosophical perspectives and theories in the fields of educational psychology, international education, and doctoral education to interpret the nuances, complexity, and particularities of the cross-cultural STEM PhD experience, highlighting the importance of the supervisor–mentee relationship and the role of students’ cultural, social, and philosophical values in supporting their successful completion of the PhD degree. The analysis thus provides new insights into the ways in which these experiences vary across students, and might apply in other national contexts, and to non-STEM student cohorts. This book will be a valuable resource for researchers and academics engaged in cross-cultural education, the sociology of education, and international and comparative education. It will be of particular interest to those with a focus on international doctoral education and cultural Asian studies. Hardback | Paperback | eBook