Date of Award
2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
College
College of Education and International Services
Program
Leadership PhD
First Advisor
Sharon Aka
Second Advisor
Jay Brand
Third Advisor
Nate Brandstater
Abstract
Problem
The war in Ukraine has disrupted the country’s higher education system, displacing Ukrainian students and affecting their mental well-being. These students encounter numerous challenges while adapting to new academic and cultural environments abroad. Higher education professionals must recognize and address the unique experiences and needs of international students by region of origin to better serve these populations. This study aimed to explore the factors that influence the social and academic integration of Ukrainian international students into a new culture and to inform institutions of the best practices for creating supportive environments for international students.
Method
The qualitative study explored the experiences of displaced Ukrainian students at a Midwestern healthcare college, utilizing a phenomenological research design. The researcher explored the social, linguistic, academic, and psychological experiences and perceptions that affected international student integration into a new educational and cultural environment. Eight individual in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted. The data were analyzed through coding and thematic analysis to identify recurring themes and patterns that reflect the factors, challenges, supports, and initiatives involved in the students' integration experiences.
Results
The integration journey of each student is shaped by a constellation of factors, including language proficiency, personal preferences, worldviews, and support from educational institutions, local communities, and families and friends, among others. The effects of war, particularly regarding students' emotional connections to events in their home country, as well as various fears, also play a significant role.
Conclusions
To succeed in their academic pursuits despite various challenges, Ukrainian international students needed to strengthen their academic resilience. As they adjusted to their new environment, they had to make psychological and behavioral changes to align with the norms of the local culture while still preserving their own identity. Several common forms of support enhanced their ability to progress. These included assistance from the college in improving their language and communication skills. The friendly faculty and staff helped create a welcoming and supportive atmosphere in both classes and extracurricular activities, which greatly aided in their integration. Additionally, social support from church members, colleagues, and networks of friends positively influenced their integration through various interactions. Although this study intentionally excluded the financial aspects of students' lives, the substantial financial support from the college is likely to have alleviated nearly all of their monetary concerns. This allowed the students to focus entirely on their studies. All of these factors, some subtle and others more obvious, contribute to how individuals adapt, each in different ways and to varying degrees.
Subject Area
Ukrainian students--United States; Ukrainian students--Foreign countries; Resilience (Personality trait); Students and war
Recommended Citation
Riapolov, Ivan, "War-Displaced International Students: A Qualitative Study of Factors Influencing the Integration of Ukrainians at a Midwestern Healthcare College" (2025). Dissertations. 1839.
https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dissertations/1839
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.