Role of international students’ organization in the acculturation of international students

This thesis explores the role that international students’ societies can play in the acculturation of international students in Higher Education. By drawing on a single case study of the relatively new Nepalese Students’ Organisation (NSO), it brings into attention the impact such organizations can have on easing the transition of international students to the host country and university. In doing so, this research presents student societies as an important social support mechanism for international students, which helps them to connect to conational students, celebrate their home culture, aid to the better understanding of new cultural context and help them respond to the various stressors they face in the new and foreign context. Interviews were conducted with members of the NSO, its President and a representative of Equity and Diversity unit at the university examined, to provide holistic insight into the research question. This research considers implications and provides practical guidelines in how universities can reconfigure their existing support programs and policies to ease the transition of international students within the new context.