How to Design Courses Specifically for International Undergraduate Students

Dylan Rust, Director of International Student Retention and Inclusion, Northern Arizona University

Dylan Rust, Director of International Student Retention and Inclusion, Northern Arizona University

As a student affairs practitioner working in an international office, I know that there is only so much that institutions can teach international students during orientation when they arrive on campus. These students come to campus jetlagged and have limited ability to retain information. While we would love to teach students everything they need to be successful before the first day of class, international students need effective ongoing education to improve their chances of being academically successful and finding a sense of belonging at the university. At Northern Arizona University, we’ve found the solution to be a first-year experience course specifically designed for international undergraduate students. 

Based on six-year study, we’ve found that our first-year experience course (CIE 100: International Student Success) significantly improved international students’ likelihood of retaining and graduating within four years. This course has been effective for a few reasons. First, each week we bring in guest speakers from student service offices around campus to help international students learn about the services available to them and make connections with campus staff members. Second, assignments require students to attend activities around campus and the surrounding city. These opportunities have students attend activities that they may not otherwise go to but help them build a sense of belonging at the institution. Along with these activities, international students must also interview an American student and learn more about American culture from a peer, hopefully forming a positive acquaintance in the process. Third and finally, the course is only one credit hour over eight weeks. We aim for maximum effectiveness of the material while trying to take the least amount of time away from the students’ other studies. 

“Online students still have to participate in the assignments and activities but learn at their own pace in the course.”

Since the course was found to be so effective, the fall 2023 semester marks the first time that CIE 100 is mandatory for all new degree-seeking international undergraduate students. This has presented a logistical challenge and opportunity for us. As we cannot offer enough in-person class sections for our students, we are offering most of our classes digitally through our CMS partner. Each in-person guest lecture is uploaded into the online sections for students to view at their leisure. Online students still have to participate in the assignments and activities but learn at their own pace in the course. This gives us an excellent opportunity to compare performance between the in-person and online students. In successive semesters, we can study if one class type performs better than another and make changes to better serve the students. As student numbers grow, we can continually refine our online class offering to best assist new international students. 

Also starting this semester, the international office is partnering with academic departments to offer a three-credit course for new international master's degree students. Building on the lessons from the undergraduate course, this course focuses on helping these students adapt to graduate studies in the USA and provides lessons about academic integrity, research methods, and professional networking. As this class develops it will provide another opportunity to use technology to deliver course material effectively. Can we create multiple course sections, each focusing on graduate students in a different academic college? The opportunities for examining how we can support new international students in in-person and online class modalities are exciting, and I encourage other campuses to examine this option.