At the University of Sunderland 39.5% of the students are international students with Nigeria, Romania, China, India and Bulgaria being the most common country of origin (UoS, n.d.). International students may well experience culture shock as they are entering a different culture or way of living which requires extensive adaption (Swallow and Tomalin, 2022).
Culture shock is a phenomenon that people experience who move from a familiar to an unfamiliar culture and involves learning about values, norms and ways of behaviour within the new culture and how it affects their identity and relationships with others (Furnham, 2019; Cupsa, 2019). Inevitably when people move to a new culture, they will experience this.
Induction is an ideal time to provide specialised trauma-informed support in helping international students in dealing with culture shock through discussion and/or signposting to relevant services. Trauma-informed practice is based on six principles: safety, trustworthiness, choice, collaboration, empowerment and cultural consideration (OHID, 2022). It is not aimed at treating trauma, only to recognize it and provide care in a culturally sensitive, inclusive and safe way, by giving hope, empowerment and support (Homes and Grandison, 2021).
This presentation will give insight into the additional support that is provided for BSc(Hons) Nursing top-up programme. The vast majority of students are international students who specifically come to the UK for their studies. It starts in the induction with information about culture shock and the available support services and continuous with regular non-compulsory events with a cultural or social focus. It creates a great sense of belonging, empowers students and enhances their wellbeing.
This presentation hopes to inspire colleagues to implement bespoke interventions for international students for their programmes, to empower students and to transform our interventions to the specific needs of the diverse students’ needs.