The document discusses research methods for studying international students in higher education. It describes interviewing as a method, noting its strengths in gaining personal insights but weaknesses in selecting interview subjects and formulating questions. The document also examines applying a humanism perspective to acknowledge diversity and understand social events from participants' meanings and culture. Sample interview questions are provided for 10 international students at Indiana University ranging from freshmen to graduate level. Statistics are presented on international student enrollment trends at IU Bloomington and top US institutions, as well as their countries of origin and fields of study.
2. Research Method
Interviewing
Strengths
Opinions
Meanings differ among people (national origin,
social class, sex, gender, socioeconomic)
Personal insights
Learn something new
3. Weaknesses
Who to interview? Friends or strangers?
Establishing trust with a stranger
Transcribing data
Formulating good questions
Needs good communication skills
4. Applied Method
Humanism Perspective
The interpretation and understanding of social
events by analyzing their meanings to the human
participants and their culture
< http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermeneutics#Sociology>
5. Applied Method
Strengths
Accepting diversity
Be open minded to social issues
Encourages people to be ethical
Desire to learn from different perspectives
6. Applied Method
Weaknesses
Are the informants being truthful?
Lacked of empirical data to support the concept
7. The Informants
10 international students
5 male, 5 female
Various nationality
Ranging from freshman to graduate students
8. Sample Questions
Why IU?
If you can choose, where would you prefer to
go?
How do you pay for college?
Major? Why?
How do you deal with cultural barriers?
11. IU Bloomington
Fall 2008
4,313 international students (10.66%)
Top 10 countries
S. Korea (1,092)
China (607)
India (563)
Taiwan (281)
Hong Kong (205)
Japan (131)
Canada (109)
Indonesia (107)
Turkey (102)
Kazakhstan (67)
14. Top US Institutions
1 University of Southern California 7,189
2 NYU 6,404
3 Columbia 6,297
4 University of Illinois‐Champaign 5,933
5 Purdue 5,772
6 University of Michigan‐Ann Arbor
7 UCLA
8 Univ. Texas‐Austin
9 Harvard
10 Boston Univ.
11 UPenn
12 SUNY Buffalo
13 IU Bloomington 4,313
14 Ohio State
15 Michigan State
16 Univ. of Florida
17 Texas A&M
18 Arizona State
19 Cornell
20 Univ. of Wisconsin 3,910
http://opendoors.iienetwork.org/?p=131530
15. US total
2007‐2008
623,805 total international students (3.5%)
The majority concentrated in California,
Massachusetts, New York, Texas, Pennsylvania
and Illinois
16. Fields of Study
Business 20%
Engineering 17%
Social Sciences 9%
Physical Sciences 18%
Others 36%