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Welcome to America? International student perceptions of discrimination

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Abstract

This research explores the experiences of international students at a research university in the U.S. Southwest. Based on interviews of a sample of 24 students from 15 countries, we consider a range of difficulties they encounter which runs from perceptions of unfairness and inhospitality to cultural intolerance and confrontation. Utilizing the conceptual framework of neo-racism to explain many of their experiences, we organize our analysis and discussion around their words and the contexts in which the difficulties they encounter emerge. We find that not all of the issues international students face can be problematized as matters of adjustment, as much research does, but that some of the more serious challenges are due to inadequacies within the host society.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for the Study of Higher Education, University of Arizona, 305 Education Building, Tucson, AZ, 85721, USA

    Jenny J. Lee & Charles Rice

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  1. Jenny J. Lee
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  2. Charles Rice
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Correspondence to Jenny J. Lee.

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Lee, J.J., Rice, C. Welcome to America? International student perceptions of discrimination. High Educ 53, 381–409 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-005-4508-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-005-4508-3

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