What we are doing
Recommendations
We’ve listened to what our international students have told us about their experiences and developed the following recommendations for our International Student Experience Strategy. These recommendations address the challenges identified and build on our strengths in order to provide an environment where all our students can discover, grow and thrive, within inclusive communities and supported by excellent services.
Equality and diversity
Enable more opportunities for cultural exchange – we’ll seek to expand the much-loved Intercultural Café concept to include more varied activities, to encourage broader participation from across our University communities, and provide more opportunities for cultural exchange and community building. Annual Global Festival – we’ll launch an annual University-wide Festival which celebrates the full diversity of our community through arts, culture, food and activities from across the world. Enhance communication and support networks – we’ll address language barriers from the outset making sure all students are aware and can access the English language and educational support they need. We’ll promote further use of our Global Chums initiative and grow our International Student Ambassador team across all campuses. Foster a culture of inclusivity across our communities – we’ll develop an internationalisation programme for our staff and students to grow inter-cultural understanding and look at ways to extend this training to our partners and wider community services. We’ll launch a ‘Say My Name’ campaign. We’ll also enhance our guidance around consideration for religious holidays in timetabled teaching and assessment.
Student voice
Strengthen student voice mechanisms – we’ll make our student voice and feedback processes clearer and more visible to our international students, continuing the Students’ Guild’s International Advisory Board and expanding it to Cornwall, and making sure we promptly share the actions and outcomes that arise from student feedback.
Inclusive student representation – we’ll work together with the Guild and Students’ Union on an inclusive recruitment and training plan for Academic Representatives, and consider how we can incorporate international student representative roles across our campuses.
Enhance career support – we’ll work together to ensure that our international students are aware of and get access to the career and employability services that they need across our campuses; co-creating the particular support that international students need.
Sustainability
Integrate sustainability education – we’ll take action to build sustainability more thoroughly into the curriculum through Curriculum for Change and build on reducing barriers to our international students participating in existing schemes such as Grand Challenges and Green Consultants. We’ll learn from and build on existing initiatives, including the Ecological Citizenship programme at our Penryn Campus.
Address climate change anxiety – we’ll provide wellness support across our campuses to help students manage eco-anxiety and climate change concerns, using learning from and building on the Breathing Space Eco Anxiety Network created by our partners on the Penryn Campus. Promote sustainable campus initiatives – we’ll establish support for more student-led sustainability projects and internships within modules and promote new and existing opportunities to our international students. We’ll aim to increase students’ awareness and participation in sustainability practices, such as recycling, reducing waste, and energy conservation measures, on campus and in their homes. Involve students in decision-making – we’ll ensure international Students are represented in the University’s Climate and Sustainability decision-making groups and can contribute to our sustainability strategies. We must build on the good practice taking place at our Cornwall campuses.
Student services
Enhance service accessibility – we’ll establish a single route for all student enquiries, avoiding the need to navigate through multiple services to resolve a problem or query. We’ll seek to provide more opportunities for drop-in, face-to-face support. International Student Community and Support – we’ll bring together our support services to create a single International Student Community and Support Service, in one place. We will align the services that international students need to support them as they navigate living, studying and working in the UK, from pre-arrival through orientation, and ongoing support and advice through to graduation and beyond. Promote underused services – we’ll address the barriers preventing our international students from accessing some of our less used services, such as wellbeing services, actively addressing any stigma around seeking support. We’ll make sure that our student facing staff are aware of the support available and will provide specific training for Pastoral Mentors.
Targeted support
Bespoke pre-arrival advice – we’ll provide enhanced communications with our international students before they arrive, which will include targeted information to advise our Cornwall arrivals on location and travel.
Optimise arrivals and orientation – we’ll improve our arrivals services for international students to ensure a consistent and thorough welcome and orientation process. We’ll consider how an academic orientation could help international students understand the UK education system, structure and teaching style. This should also address what to expect from assessments and feedback.
Practical workshops and online guides – building on the popular Intercultural Café model, we’ll offer workshops and online video guides for practical skills such as cooking, managing finances and banking, and navigating the UK for international students. Where possible these will be peer-led sessions, delivered by students sharing their own experiences.
Wellbeing support inductions – we’ll incorporate wellbeing induction sessions into international students’ welcome and induction, aiming to breakdown myths and barriers to using these services.
Facilitate community and belonging – we’ll build on the success of the Intercultural Café and create more inclusive social events and spaces to encourage integration and community building among international and home students, in academic and social settings. We’ll consider the particular social needs of our international students, including community-building activities in home countries before arrival and activities in holidays for those who can’t travel home.
Address accommodation and financial concerns – we’ll provide clearer guidance and support for accommodation after the first year, including exploring the feasibility of guarantor support. We’ll provide more information about the costs of living and studying at Exeter.
