Beyond them and us
The Age
Monday June 8, 2009
A new report highlights why studying in Melbourne isn't always a rich experience for foreign students. By Farrah Tomazin. LISA Hughes admits she didn't find it as hard as many other international students when she arrived from Canada to do a PhD at the University of Melbourne eight years ago.There was no language barrier, and as a graduate student, she was older, independent, and more willing to immerse herself in campus life.Ms Hughes took up an apartment in College Square, opposite the university's Parkville campus, and always tried to attend "broad-based graduate student functions" in a bid to meet people outside her own department.But while she didn't necessarily struggle to adapt, it wasn't always easy."I think the experience as an international student is very much 'do it yourself'. You have to pointedly involve yourself and put yourself out there," says 34-year-old Ms Hughes, who has since completed her studies and now lives in Perth."I can't imagine the extent to which you'd struggle if you're an international student from a dissimilar culture, or if English is a second language, or if it's your first time out of home."In recent weeks - as violence against Indians and claims of rogue colleges placed Australia's relationship with international students under a renewed spotlight - a report by Melbourne University examined the broader policy question: how do we foster a sense of community for international students in the short time they are here? And in turn, how do we bridge the often unintentional divide that underpins their experiences?Based on three years of research, mapping exercises and interviews, the report examined the so-called "university quarter" in the northern fringe of the city, home to two of the city's largest institutions: Melbourne and RMIT universities.It found there is an unintended separation between international and local students - and that the universities, government authorities and property developers are largely responsible.High-density housing is deliberately geared towards the international student market, at the expense of a broader mix. Orientation programs for international students and local students often run at different times. International students pay the full cost for transport, while domestic students get half-price concessions. And at some institutions, separate queues and counters even exist.In essence, many factors are making it harder to foster a real sense of social inclusion between different groups."The university practices, the action of developers and governments, and the design of public space and housing - all these things were fundamentally well motivated. But what we're finding is that they are having unintended consequences," say Dr Kate Shaw, one of the researchers involved in the report, Transnational and Temporary: Students, Community and Place-Making in Central Melbourne."Yet all of this is completely avoidable. We don't have a historically entrenched culture of separation in Melbourne, so we're not stuck with this situation. But if we don't do anything, we really could develop a culture of institutionalised separation - and we can't afford to do that."Australia has about 435,000 international students enrolled in tertiary studies, and international education is Australia's third-largest source of overseas earnings, generating $15.5 billion a year and more than 125,000 jobs. On average, there is about one international student for every four domestic students in Australia's university system - the highest ratio in the OECD. In Victoria, international education is the state's biggest export earner, contributing nearly $4.5 billion last year. But as Education Minister Julia Gillard is quick to point out, the relationship is mutually beneficial."International students do much more than contribute to our economy and create jobs," Ms Gillard told Parliament recently. "They build on Australia's long multicultural history that has created a friendly, tolerant and secular society . . . People coming to Australia to study and Australians studying abroad promote cross-cultural experiences that benefit us both now and in the future."Yet many studies over the years have analysed the experience of international students, and the themes have generally been the same: the students often feel socially disconnected, homesick and lonely. Some rarely mix with locals, let alone get to see the inside of an Australian student's home. And the initial difficulty in making friends with domestic students can often lead to international students giving up the effort altogether.One student interviewed by the Melbourne University researchers put it this way: "Local students tend to stick with local students and international ones with international ones. It's hard to make conversation . . . perspectives are different . . . it's hard to keep the conversation going."Another student surveyed as part of an earlier exit study was more blunt: "I think that there is a big social gap between international and local students. If not for group assignments, there would be even greater social segregation. I still do not have enough local friends despite being fluent in English and being Westernised. I don't know why this is so, but it could possibly be that locals do not understand foreign, particularly Asian, culture sufficiently and most do not seem interested in getting to know us better."PART of the problem, experts say, is the high-density student housing in the university quarter. The apartments are marketed towards international students, some convinced by agents to reside there before they have even entered the country. They are more expensive than the average inner-city share-house, so domestic students are not drawn to them.With their proximity to Melbourne and RMIT, they give students few opportunities to venture out of their comfort zone, explore the rest of the city, and perhaps build new connections. Some have few communal spaces - not exactly conducive to interacting with life beyond the campus zone.Then there are other dividers: the tram shunting yard on Swanston Street outside Melbourne University, which, the report argues, reduces access to the institution and creates a barrier between the campus and Lygon Street. Or the separate university queues, which divide students according to their "administrative type". Or even public transport fares, under which domestic students can pay $52.80 a month to travel around the city, while international students pay $109.60.Maloti Ray, an education officer at Melbourne's Graduate Student Association, says these factors immediately stamp foreign students as being different. Ms Ray came to Melbourne more than five years ago from Malaysia, and is doing a doctorate degree. Describing herself as "someone who has been on both sides and managed to cross the cultural divide", she says it can be tough for international students, particularly those who struggle with the language or the local culture. Even the great Australian pastime - a beer at the pub - can be uncomfortable territory for some."There are some international students who come from a national background where they wouldn't necessarily drink. So there's a divide straightaway, because it's quite common for Australians to go for a drink and head to the pub," she says.But Ms Ray says it's not just a matter of changing physical spaces: "It's also a matter of changing perceptions."You have these students come from overseas. They're here for a very short period. Are they just going to form perceptions of each other, and then subsequently return back home not having formed any sort of attachment to Victoria or Melbourne? That's an incredibly wasted opportunity. We have the potential to create a real global, social network."So what can authorities do to ensure a greater sense of social inclusion and community for people who are both transnational and temporary?Dr Shaw and her colleagues - Ruth Fincher, Paolo Tombesi, Paul Carter and Andrew Martel - argue that the solution is multi-faceted. They say measures should be taken to remove the labelling of students as "local or international". Universities should offer more field trips taking students of different backgrounds to each others' places of interest. International student organisations should encourage more "cross-cultural and fusion" activities. More affordable and diverse housing should be provided - in and away from the central city. Agencies should be more tightly regulated and universities could also rethink how to make it easier for people to meet and gather on campus grounds.Melbourne's vice-chancellor of global relations, John Dewar, says the university has already taken some steps. It has sought, for instance, to "internationalise the curriculum" - partly by exposing students to international themes within subjects offered under the Melbourne Model, and partly by giving students opportunities to spend time overseas.International students also get extra language support when required, and a deal was recently struck to develop affordable housing for students in Footscray, west of the city."There isn't as much integration between different student groups as is ideal," Professor Dewar admits. "That's something that we all need to work on, and we're making it a high priority at this university. We've already got a lot of good practices in place, but as I said, we can always improve."David Campbell, chief executive for the Office of Knowledge Capital, says it is imperative all parties lift their game - and even small gestures count. Earlier this year, the office trialled a welcoming booth at Melbourne Airport, in which volunteers greeted students at the gate and presented them with a show-bag containing "pretty much everything they need to know about surviving and thriving in Melbourne"."We need to understand different cultures and perspectives as part of how we do business and relate," says Mr Campbell. "So there's actually a public good in all of this."BRINGING STUDENTS TOGETHER Universities should get rid of separate queues, orientation programs and service provisions for local and international students. Remove the labelling of students as "local" or "international". The role of agents (who recruit overseas students for Australian universities) should be more tightly regulated, particularly with regard to advising students where to live. Cost of student housing to be at least commensurate with equivalent market rentals in order to be attractive to both international students and locals. Different models of housing provision, including affordable housing away from the central city. Make public transport concessions available for all students. More arts organisations to establish common-interest activities between racial groups. Create more gathering places around campus. Redesign Swanston Street as a community hub rather than a thoroughfare. Relocate the tram shunting yard on Swanston Street or remove it altogether.Source: Transnational and Temporary: students, community and place making in central Melbourne
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