Being an international student is an incredible experience. Each student’s journey is unique and so are their challenges. My intention of writing this blog post is to provide an insight into international PhD students’ experiences. I do not mean to rant on their problems. In fact, I hope this is useful for advisors working with international PhD students so they can be aware of these challenges.
For graduate students still not sure about pursuing a PhD in another country, here are 5 common challenges to expect.
This is not an exhaustive list of challenges but those commonly faced by international PhD students. Challenges differ by country and here is my perspective as an international PhD student in the United States.
Minimum exam requirement
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Universities in the US to have some minimum requirements to be eligible to apply for PhD programs. One among those requirements is Graduate Record Examinations, a.k.a., GRE. Top-ranked universities usually have a minimum requirement of 300 points or even more based on the institution and the field of research. The GRE is based on evaluating English and Math skills.
Although this is required regardless of international student status, it is a common challenge for internationals, especially if they belong to a non-English speaking country. GRE is primarily conducted in English so preparing for the exam and scoring above the threshold is difficult. It often requires additional tutoring and support. It can easily step-up a notch if the goals are to seek admission in top-ranked universities including Ivy League ones as their minimum score requirements can be even higher.
Another common test that the international students have to appear for is IELTS. This is a test to evaluate their English proficiency in reading, listening, speaking, and writing. For international students whose education has been primarily in a language other than English, it is often a major challenge to score the minimum points and get admitted into the program.
Although international students prepare for and pass these exams before applying for a PhD, it is one of the first challenges they have to tackle and can become stressful for many.
Lack of professional network
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Over 5 years of my academic journey in the US, I have observed that undergraduate and graduate students have a good relationship with their advisors. This is something that international students lack. For example, students work as a research assistant in a particular lab during their graduate program or shadow a PhD student. This works towards their advantage as they can continue pursuing a PhD with the same advisor or the department with a foundational network right when they start their doctoral journey.
For international students, the picture is completely opposite. New to the country, culture, education system, laboratory, advisor, and no professional network to begin with. There are opportunities for virtually connecting with the advisor and talking to the current students. However, it is still a big challenge and they have to work their way through from scratch.
For domestic students, it is a privilege to have guidance from the senior researchers. The faculties can also help them choose the right fit to begin their doctoral journey. Another thing that international students lack as they navigate the waters all by themselves, relying on the university websites many times.
All this to say that as international students, you may need to work a little harder than domestic PhD students. Advisors can also be more resourceful for international PhD students, considering the fact that they are new to the education system and may need more time than usual to understand how things work.
Limited funds
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Student life operates on a tight budget for most. However, international students pay more tuition and fees as compared to their domestic counterparts. While many programs waive the tuition for PhD students, some programs might only waive a part of the tuition and students may have to pay the fees. Besides, some programs may not even cover the health insurance.
If you are wondering if it is the same for domestic students, you are right. It is similar. But, here is the catch.
Domestic students can work other jobs to pay off rent and bills and sustain themselves. International student status comes with restricted laws. In the US, international students cannot work more than 20 hours a week legally. For doctoral students, they are already being paid for working 20 hours as a research assistant. So, the student stipend is the ONLY income stream that they have going.
This is often a big challenge, especially if the stipend is less and the cost of living is relatively high. This is why the financial situation is one of the important things to consider for international students when applying for a PhD program.
Social support and loneliness
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This is arguably one of the common challenges. Some international students may have family members living in the country. But, it is very common to not have any family. For students immigrating directly for a PhD, there is no network of friends either. This is a major challenge because PhD programs are longer and mental health often takes a toll due to the lack of social and emotional support.
This is where advisors of international students can play a vital role because they are in a mentoring position and have a considerable impact on the student’s health and well-being.
Wondering, how?
Here is an real-life example. A PhD student shared that their advisor assumed that because the international student doesn’t have family in the country, they would not take any personal time off during holidays. Therefore, they were expected to work. Yes, it is a true incident. Work during holidays.
This is unfair on more than one level and needs to be addressed immediately. To provide perspective, international students get to visit their home, meet friends and family way too less than domestic students who usually drive or catch a flight during long weekends throughout the year. Their mental health and well-being is already at a higher stake than domestic students in this context. This can get worse due to advisors’ unfair or unethical expectations.
So, yes, the advisor’s treatment of their international students impacts their health and well-being. Advisors must build a strong foundation to offer a space where every student’s voice is heard and addressed.
Language barrier and finding identity
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Transitioning into a different country and culture can be easier for Native-English speakers. However, this comes as a big challenge for students from Non-English speaking nations. Yes, the students are expected to get familiar with the language to be able to communicate, and even pass the English test before immigrating to the country.
But, the fact is learning a language requires time and patience. On top of it, there are accents. Both from a speaking and listening perspective. In my opinion, accents are beautiful. But, accents can make it very difficult to have the simplest conversations, let alone talk about your research publicly.
New international students are trying to navigate another country on their own two-feet, learn the ways of the new education system, build relationships, be proactive, manage limited finances, familiarizing with the new language, survive, and trying to find their own identity and potential. All this without any social support.
This is A LOT on one person. All this to say that I hope that domestic students and advisors are considerate and empathetic towards the efforts of international students and provide the necessary support in whatever way they can.
To sum up..
I can go on about how can advisors help their international PhD students but it is a topic for another day. Unknowingly, these challenges are often overlooked by the department, faculties, advisors, and peers as a virtue of the circumstance or the lack of interpersonal relationships and limited knowledge. So, being aware about these challenges is a good starting point towards understanding the complexity of international students’ lives.
If you are a student considering pursuing a PhD abroad, it is likely that you will come across at least some of these challenges. So, it is better to be prepared and practice patience and resilience. You will need a lot of it.
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Featured photo for this blog- Photo by Providence Doucet on Unsplash