COD545 Assignment 3: International Student Adjustment Experience

This assignment, submitted by a student, details the experiences of an international student at Murdoch University. It explores the challenges and adjustments faced, including cultural differences, academic structure, and language barriers. The student discusses their initial experiences with enrollment, university culture, and the support services available. The assignment highlights the importance of family support, the need for cultural competency, and the significance of determination and hard work in achieving academic success. The student also reflects on the issues related to the emergence of globalization that gave rise to increasing exchange of culture meant that individuals from different cultures and communities had the opportunity to experience cultures other than their own and the need for adjustment into a new community, including the role of cultural intelligence and biculturalism. The assignment concludes by emphasizing the importance of cultural connection in the field of management and business.

HARDEEP_KAUR_33121561_ASSIGNMENT 3_PART 1
Each year, thousands of students visit Australia for higher study among which many
are from Asian countries as well as from Europe or America (Homeaffairs.gov.au 2018).
Each of these students have different cultural background and different style of learning
which they followed in their home countries. They have differentlanguages and values which
affect their behaviorsof these students. Therefore, the expectations of these abroad
studentsare also different from their native peers. For example, the rules and regulation
regarding education style are followed in India is completely different from that of Australia.
This is the reason why initially I used to get overwhelmed with these contrasts, but gradually
managed to understand these differences and respond accordingly.
It was my childhood dream of gaining higher studies from overseas. The life was full
of complicated emotions while stepping into new community of Australia. The excitement of
gaining master’s degree from Murdoch University and it was very hard for me to bid
goodbye to my near and dear ones in my home country so as to begin a mew journey of life
altogether. The very first day at Murdoch University was full of thrilling sensation as my
dream had come true. I was being escorted by my sibling on the very first day at Murdoch
University. First of all, I went to student center for my enrolment. The staff was very polite
and supportive. As per their instruction I went to library. The thing which surprised me the
most was that they issued me card at the same time which never happened in my home
country. After that, I continued to guild for the smart rider so as to get the advantage of
concession ticket. No doubt, it was not easy for me because everything was new for me
community, academic structure as well as the environment. From that day forward, I went to
the university on the day of orientation as it was exhilarating opportunity to get a taste for
what your life would be in the coming couple of years. At the very initial stage of

international university life, I became very sensitive to the hardships as I have come from
such a different world and it was very hard for me to understand the life of struggle.In the
first week of class, I understood the other’s point of view as learning about experience of
another is very important step in development process and in the second week, I became
more familiar with the faces introduced in the first week and the communications increased
and get to know more about each other.
Murdoch University has its own remarkable culture. There are lots of provisions
provided being provided to the students (Murdoch.edu.au 2018). There is student center
which facilitate them with their problems and provides them with some outstanding
recommendations and encourages students to be independent and self-directed. Medical
services are provided to students free of cost. Apart from this, there is guild and cafe in the
university campus. One of the things which I felt odd about the Murdoch culture is that there
is no dress code for the students and the lectures are more semi-formal which favored the
comfort level of the students and allows them to have more interaction among the class and
with the professor as well. There is active communication via email among students and staff.
One of the things I discovered in Murdoch Cultureis that the faculty is addressed by the
name. However, addressing the faculty by name in my home country shows disrespect.
There are several provisions provided to the students as they can board the bus available at
the door step of campus.
As an international student, it was very hard for me to deal with so many things in the
first semester as I have dealt with completely different academic structure. First semester of
the university was always confusing still it was a great opportunity to learn more about the
different subjects and cleared all the doubts of the subjects I was unsure of. One of the
biggest challenged I had faced is the referencing style and citing the sources as I had never

practiced the Chicago style in my assignments. The firm actions are taken by schools and
university in order to prevent plagiarism.So, it was hard for me to make the assignments
within specific deadlines with the unfamiliar academic structure. Apart from this,
accommodating myself with the online information pretty hard for me as in our home country
we were much relied on the hard copies rather than online information (Pinar 2018).
For an international student, language is not only a communication tool but also a
significant factor that affects academic achievement. In order to cope with this language
barrier, I have to read academic literature twice or thrice so that I can understand it
completely. Also, curriculum content is another barrier and it made me more stressful and I
am not able to fully understand curriculum content as it is more based on Australian Culture
and Education (Potts 2015). Besides friends, family is another important source of support to
an international student as family provides emotional support. So, I call them regularly and
enjoy talking with them. I know they cannot assist me cope with practice problems as like in
my home country still provides me an emotional support which is much more valuable for me
to cope with the difficulties in Australian Culture.
No doubt, entering into a new country could be an overwhelming experience but
staying concentrated towards the study and making study the most important and first
consideration can free from all the distractions and homesickness as we all know that we all
have spent a lot of hard cash and travelled so far away from our family. Lastly, it is very
essential to keep in mind that it is ultimately your determination and hard efforts that will
make the university’s life successful and worth fruitful.The limits of one's nation are never
again a hindrance in one's improvement. Individuals have the flexibility of circling all the
more unreservedly among nations and societies and the adjustments in their requirements
frequently decide them to exploit that opportunity.

References:
Homeaffairs.gov.au. 2018. "2015–16 At A Glance". Homeaffairs.Gov.Au.
https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about/reports-publications/research-statistics/statistics/year-
at-a-glance/2015-16
Murdoch.edu.au. 2018. "Life At Murdoch | Murdoch University". Murdoch.Edu.Au.
http://www.murdoch.edu.au/life-at-murdoch.
Pinar, Alex. "Learning Languages Abroad: The Influence of the Length of Stay on
Communicative Competence." In Study Abroad Contexts for Enhanced Foreign Language
Learning, pp. 23-43. IGI Global, 2018.
Potts, Davina. "Understanding the early career benefits of learning abroad
programs." Journal of Studies in International Education 19, no. 5 (2015): 441-459.

HARDEEP _KAUR _COD545_ASSIGNMENT 3_PART 2
The emergence of globalization that gave rise to increasing exchange of culture meant
that individuals from different cultures and communities had the opportunity to experience
cultures other than their own. It affected every area of life starting from education to politics
to business and social life.
Entering a new community requires extensive research and training on part of the
entrant because coming into a new community means one has to mold oneself with that
community. The biggest obstacle that people face coming into a new community is the
culture shock. As explained by Gunn (2017 p. 5), “culture shock is the effect that the
emersion in strange cultures has on the unprepared visitor”. Further, the author explains that
individuals receive cultural shock when coming into a new community because they are
confronted with psychological cues that are totally strange and unfathomable. These
psychological cues help individuals play their respective roles in the society properly but a
sudden withdrawal of these cues deservingly provides a cultural shock to them. In order to
avoid this shock and get along smoothly in a new community, individuals must learn the art
of adjustment. While mentioning the issues related with international students adjusting to a
new community, some experts state that international students who fail to adjust with the new
culture are often observed experiencing emotional distress that affect their academic
performance as well (Terrazas-Carrillo et al. 2014). Some authors talk about the moderating
role of cultural intelligence in reducing the cultural shock in case of international students
(Presbitero 2016). According to them, cultural intelligence (CQ) serves as “a moderator in
lessening the impact of culture shock”.
Communities across the world have elements inherent to their culture that allows
outsiders to enter without much difficulty. It is but important that the communities possess

organizations that work towards exposing the community to an alien culture and to welcome
an individual from other culture and help him or her adjust. According to the views of some
scholars, there is no magical solution or formula for creating a cultural connection that may
lead to mutual community deeds (Derex, Maxime and Robert Boyd 2016). However, it is
possible for communities to create an environment where outsiders could have a chance of
meeting and conversing with native people and feel welcomed. Events like fairs and festivals
could prove to be excellent opportunities for the community to assist people from outside
cultures to mix well with them. It is but imperative to state that more than the native cultures
and communities, the ones who come into a new community have to make that extra effort to
adjust and stay without any worry.
Student exchange programs, academic tours to different countries, internationalization
of curriculum and study abroad concepts are all indicators of the importance of cultural
competency. Soria, Krista and Troisi (2014) however find in their study that students who
participate in internationalization activities within the campus might produce better results
and “greater perceived benefits” than students who opt for studying abroad. Although the
authors have made a valid point but it must be argued that many students do not get the
opportunity to interact with students from new cultures in their own country and hence they
have to opt for study abroad. In such cases, it becomes extremely crucial for them to learn the
art of adjusting into a new community. To cite an example, a student from Asian ethnicity
opting to study in an Australian university has to have prior training and knowledge regarding
the culture and custom of the country. If he or she fails to do so then he or she might have to
face great hardships. studies on biculturalism and its effectiveness on adjusting to a new
culture has been referred to by scholars for explaining the cultural problems (Nguyen and
Benet-Martínez 2013). As per the authors, biculturalism has a “strong, significant and
positive association” with adjustment, whether psychological or socio-cultural. Students who

are bicultural thus, might easily adapt to new community than students who have one culture.
Coming into a new community with a bicultural background therefore would be easier but
still then; individuals will have to make some efforts to adjust completely. Lee and Ciftci
(2014) further conducted studies on the influence of multicultural personalities, social support
and academic self-efficacy on international students (ISs) hailing from Asia and found some
interesting results. According to the study that used the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM)
analysis, “both multicultural personality and assertiveness were associated with socio-cultural
adaptation”.
In the field of management, cultural connection is the most important and crucial part
of an organization especially in today’s global economy. The level of importance attached to
cultural competency in organizations could be evident from the increasing focus by
universities and schools to train students on how to be culturally competent. In the real world
of competitive business, coming to a new community and adapting quickly to its ways is very
crucial and even decides the fate of the business. As evident from the observations of Marlin
and Budhwar (2013) especially in the tourism industry, cultural adaptation is extremely
important because this industry is all about exploring new cultures. The authors describe,
“Culturally, tourism is considered as an element of community enrichment, which is
attributed to the meeting of different cultures”. Nonetheless, touring into a new community is
completely different from coming into a new community. Hence, a tourist might not have to
learn the art of adjusting but an individual who wishes to stay in that community must.
In the end, it must be added that when an individual enters a new community, he or
she has to look after all the aspects including cultural, legal and ethical. Training hard and
knowing about different cultures of the community an individual plans to enter, provides a
strong base from where it becomes easier to adjust. In the essay, views of different experts
and scholars on the art of coming into a new community have been mentioned. Further, the

essay has also highlighted the different studies conducted in the specific field that gives
insights into the hardships of international students who have to study abroad and adjust into
a new community.

References:
Derex, Maxime, and Robert Boyd. "Partial connectivity increases cultural accumulation
within groups." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 113, no. 11 (2016): 2982-
2987.
Gunn, Stan. Globalisation, education and culture shock. Taylor & Francis, 2017.
Lee, Ji-yeon, and Ayse Ciftci. "Asian international students’ socio-cultural adaptation:
Influence of multicultural personality, assertiveness, academic self-efficacy, and social
support." International Journal of Intercultural Relations 38 (2014): 97-105.
Malek, Marlin Abdul, and Pawan Budhwar. "Cultural intelligence as a predictor of expatriate
adjustment and performance in Malaysia." Journal of world business 48, no. 2 (2013): 222-
231.
Nguyen, Angela-MinhTu D., and Verónica Benet-Martínez. "Biculturalism and adjustment:
A meta-analysis." Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology 44, no. 1 (2013): 122-159.
Presbitero, Alfred. "Culture shock and reverse culture shock: The moderating role of cultural
intelligence in international students’ adaptation." International Journal of Intercultural
Relations 53 (2016): 28-38.
Soria, Krista M., and Jordan Troisi. "Internationalization at home alternatives to study
abroad: Implications for students’ development of global, international, and intercultural
competencies." Journal of Studies in International Education18, no. 3 (2014): 261-280.
Terrazas-Carrillo, Elizabeth C., Ji Y. Hong, and Terry M. Pace. "Adjusting to new places:
International student adjustment and place attachment." Journal of College Student
Development55, no. 7 (2014): 693-706.