Afterword [to the Special Issue: A Spotlight on Newcomer Graduate Students’ Research]

Within academic circles, it is widely accepted that diverse perspectives contribute to a broad knowledge-base in the field, which results in innovative ways forward. The articles in this Special Issue are exemplary of this idea, as each casts light on previously shadowed areas of exploration. Importantly, each article is grounded in personal experience with a focus on supporting the community. This commitment and success in conducting such rewarding research is astonishing given the challenges newcomer scholars can face in academia, as noted by Lena, the lead editor for the Special Issue, in her introduction. We, Maisha and Jon, would like to thank the authors and Lena for their generosity in sharing their experiences and research in service of moving their respective conversations

Foreword [to the Special Issue: Doctoral Seminar 2017 – An International Journey]

[Extract:] Welcome readers to the Emerging Perspectives Special Issue on the International Doctoral Seminar. The International Doctoral Seminar (IDS) is a collaborative project involving three universities, one each in Australia (Queensland University of Technology—QUT), Canada (University of Calgary—UC), and China (Beijing Normal University—BNU). This Special Issue idea began serendipitously on a beautiful evening in Brisbane after a meal of delicious Vietnamese and Chinese food, shared amongst the doctoral seminar participants during the 2017 cycle, at which I was a student participant. We were standing outside the restaurant chatting and saying goodnight when one of the faculty mentors and one of the student participants approached me. They told me that they had been discussing publishing opportunities for international graduate students. The faculty mentor knew I was one of the editors of EPIGREP and exclaimed, “wouldn’t it be neat to publish a Special Issue of our IDS 2017 experience?” We continued to talk about the possibility and let it sit. The next day, we headed to a market and beach. While we were loading the bus, the faculty mentor asked me to pick up the microphone and introduce EPIGREP to everyone, where I asked if they would be interested in collaborating for a Special Issue. Thinking back, the ride was bumpy, and I had to think organically to represent our journal positively. There were some questions and excitement in the air, despite it being a long and somewhat tiring day already

Afterword [to the Special Issue: Doctoral Seminar 2017 – An International Journey]

All the contributors to this special issue offered their insights on the impact of the International Doctoral Seminar (IDS) in their journey as doctoral students. More than this, their collaborative work demonstrates how the participants attained the primary interest of the seminar, which is to promote research collaborations by engaging in collaborative, interdisciplinary, scholarly activities. Reading the manuscripts in this Special Issue, we were honoured to be participants ourselves. We witnessed how authors selected essential details of their transcultural experience and perspectives, reflected on them, and gave them an order to thereby make meaning of what constitutes their international journey. Beyond what these manuscripts tell us about transculturalism, the importance lies in the multiple ways in which they worked through dialogue and collaborative work. Undoubtedly, papers presented in this Special Issue have helped to shed light on the positive impact this seminar has for doctoral students

The Challenges Encountered During a Needs Assessment of International Student Partners: Considerations for Future Evaluations

This article describes the challenges encountered during a needs assessment of partners of international students as well as how the research team addressed these challenges. The needs assessment was conducted at the request of the university’s international student centre, which recognized that partners of international students would benefit from increased support. The needs assessment was also supported by an existing gap in international student literature, which identifies partners as experiencing significant barriers and lack of support in their transition as a newcomer (e.g., Martens & Grant, 2008 ). Implications for attaining and maintaining connections with this population are discussed. L’article décrit les défis liés à l’évaluation des besoins des conjoints d’étudiants étrangers, de même qu’à la façon dont les chercheurs ont considéré ces défis. L’évaluation des besoins a été effectuée à la demande du centre des étudiants étrangers de l’université, qui reconnaît que les conjoints d’étudiants étrangers pourraient profiter de mesures d’appui supplémentaires. L’évaluation des besoins a aussi été jugée nécessaire par des lacunes dans la littérature liée aux étudiants étrangers, qui signale que les conjoints font face à des barrières importantes et à un manque d’appui réel dans leur transition comme nouvel arrivant (p. ex., Martens & Grant, 2008). Les répercussions liées à la création et au maintien de liens avec cette population sont explorées

Critical Reflections in International Contexts: PolyEthnographic Accounts of an International Doctoral Research Seminar

As the world becomes more globally interconnected, international partnerships, including those within higher education, have increased. In an exemplar of these international partnerships from an academic standpoint, selected doctoral students and faculty from Australian, Chinese, and Canadian universities participated in an International Doctoral Research Seminar held in China in December 2015. The objective of this seminar was to have academic debate regarding educational reform. A critical by-product of this seminar was the meaning made by the participants from this experience. This paper reviews the critical polyethnographic reflections of the Canadian participants for three salient and influential topics including the role of culture, power dynamics, and organizational systems, all in relation to this international academic partnership experience. These reflections have ramifications for future programs specifically for enhancing the international development of doctoral students under the broader umbrella of international academic partnerships

The forgotten half: understanding the unique needs of international student partners

With the increasing enrollment of international students in North American universities, the need to support the adjustment of international students has also increased. One factor consistently identified as essential to successful student adjustment is having a strong support network, including familial support. Previous research investigating the needs of international students’ partners is limited and has suggested that partners may face greater barriers to adjustment than international students. The current study was conducted to better understand the needs of partners as well as potential barriers they face when attempting to access services. Although limited by sample size, the results suggested that partners are interested in increased support in helping their transition to local living and mainstream culture

Critical reflections in international contexts: polyethnographic accounts of an international doctoral research seminar

As the world becomes more globally interconnected, international partnerships, including those within higher education, have increased. In an exemplar of these international partnerships from an academic standpoint, selected doctoral students and faculty from Australian, Chinese, and Canadian universities participated in an International Doctoral Research Seminar held in China in December 2015. The objective of this seminar was to have academic debate regarding educational reform. A critical by-product of this seminar was the meaning made by the participants from this experience. This paper reviews the critical polyethnographic reflections of the Canadian participants for three salient and influential topics including the role of culture, power dynamics, and organizational systems, all in relation to this international academic partnership experience. These reflections have ramifications for future programs specifically for enhancing the international development of doctoral students under the broader umbrella of international academic partnerships