Investigation of international students - The complexity of academic adaptation and satisfaction in higher education
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17627/ALKPSZICH.2020.4.139Keywords:
international students, receiving university’s atmosphere, academic adaptation, satisfactionAbstract
Corrigendum: A corrigendum to this article was published in 2026. [View the corrigendum.]
Background and aims: In the present interview study, we aim to reveal the experiences of international students studying in Hungary concerning their studies, and to introduce the factors related to their academic adaptation and satisfaction.
Method: Interviews conducted with 62 international students were analyzed with thematic analysis.
Results: Their academic adaptation and satisfaction show different patterns and are related to different factors. In line with the literature, the role of the receiving universities’ attitudes and students’ need to belong to the university proved to be essential. Besides the typical needs that university students would voice in general, their need for care and emotional support is emphazised. The building of social relationship is important from the point of view of academic satisfaction. Not only knowledge acquisition, but also the prospect for building social capital is considered valuable. The perception of discrimination, not being in the information flow of the school, and the separation from local students decrease satisfaction.
Discussion: Language plays a significant role in academic adaptation. Attributing difficulties to their own and their teachers’ language barriers, students often perceive their instruction in English weaker compared to the instruction provided in Hungarian for local students.
