Abstract

Background: International students (ISs) face unique challenges that impact their mental health, including cultural adjustment, academic pressure, and social isolation. Despite the growing recognition of mental health needs among this population, the utilisation of university mental health services remains disproportionately low. Barriers such as stigma, lack of awareness, cultural differences, and perceived inadequacy of services contribute to this gap. Understanding these barriers is essential to developing targeted interventions that enhance access and promote the well-being among international students in UK universities.
Methods:
This study employed an interpretivist qualitative design, purposively recruiting 8 ISs (4 males and 4 females) from diverse faculties, programmes, and ethnic backgrounds at a UK university in Northeast England. Semi-structured interviews were conducted between September and November 2025, exploring key themes such as views on mental health, students' attitudes toward accessing university mental health services, the influence of subjective norms (e.g., family and peer pressure), and practical barriers like appointment scheduling. Data was analysed using the Framework Analysis approach to identify recurring themes, patterns, and insights from participants' narratives.
Results: The analysis identified key barriers to mental health service access among ISs. These included negative attitudes toward formal mental health services and a preference for informal support; stigma associated with mental health; and cultural influences on perceptions of mental health and help-seeking behaviour. Additional barriers involved limited awareness of mental health and available services; language barriers, and practical challenges related to service accessibility such as complicated appointment booking system and inflexible service hours. In response to these obstacles many students avoided formal services instead relying on peers, family, religion, and spiritual support. Some participants chose to suppress their mental health concerns altogether.
Conclusion: This study identifies key barriers preventing ISs from accessing university mental health services, including negative attitudes toward formal services, preference for informal support, stigma, cultural influences, limited awareness, language challenges, and practical accessibility issues. Addressing these requires culturally sensitive campaigns, targeted education, and practical measures to enhance access and reduce stigma, fostering better mental health support for international students.
Keywords: Mental health services, mental health, universities, United Kingdom, health services accessibility, and social stigma.