America's Doors: International Students Adjustment to American Institutions of Higher Education

Abstract

International students have a difficult time adjusting to the American collegiate system due to facing many stressors such as linguistic, academic, interpersonal, and financial problems (Mori, 2000). International students underutilize counseling services to aid them in their adjustment. In this study the investigator tried to show that group counseling and interactive activities would improve the overall adjustment of international students with a treatment and control group of 10. The investigator conducted four-group sessions to show that international students' adjustment to the American collegiate system would be improved. The outcomes of the treatment group (n = 10) were compared to a control group (n=10). The College Student Experience Questionnaire (CSEQ) and the International Student Adjustment Questionnaire (ISAQ), a questionnaire developed by the investigator, were used as dependent variables in measuring the changes. In the findings, no significant changes were found as a result of the group sessions. Limitations for the study and implications for future research were discussed.