CROSS-CULTURAL ADAPTATION OF INTERNATIONAL UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS AT KAZAKHSTANI MEDICAL UNIVERSITIES

Abstract

Kazakhstan has become one of the countries in Central Asia that attracted international students to the country. The students from India take the second position in number among the international students from other countries. Despite the previous studies, there has been limited research on the Indian international students' cross-cultural adaptation in Kazakhstan. Thus, this study aims to explore the cross-cultural adaptation experiences of Indian international undergraduate students studying at medical universities in Kazakhstan. The study was designed through a holistic case study and involved sixteen international Indian undergraduate students and four group supervisors from two Kazakhstani medical universities located in the southern and northern parts of Kazakhstan. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed based on thematic analysis. This thesis argues that Indian undergraduate students' cross-cultural adaptation experiences in Kazakhstan is particularly challenging for them in the initial period of their stay in the country. The key challenges were related to socio-cultural, academic and environmental issues such as difficulty with understanding the host languages, adaptation to the local food and weather. Psychological issues were the least mentioned challenges. The findings suggest that support from senior Indian peers, local friends and faculty were the key mechanisms in coping with the sociocultural, environmental, and psychological challenges. Gender differences were prevalent in sociocultural, environmental, and psychological aspects. Female Indian students more susceptible to health issues caused by climate changes and less disposed to food-related changes than their male counterparts. This study's findings may contribute to prospective and current international students' adaptation in Kazakhstan, in particular, to those international students who plan to study in the programs with English Medium Instruction. Besides, the research might benefit university administrators and higher education policymakers to foresee the possible issues encountered by the international students, and create effective educational programs for international students. Finally, this study might enhance the global and host country research on international students' cross-cultural adaptation. Keywords: internationalization, cross-cultural adaptation, English Medium Instruction (EMI), adjustment, coping strategies, international students.