International Students in Transition: Voices of Chinese Doctoral Students in a U.S. Research University

In this study, I focused on international Chinese doctoral students and sought to better understand their lived experience in transition to U.S. higher education. I also aimed to explore strategies that can be employed to improve these students’ academic and sociocultural experiences on American campuses. Guided by the adult transition theory (Goodman, Schlossberg & Anderson, 2006), this study used an interpretive phenomenological method. Qualitative data were collected from in-depth focus group interviews. The findings of this study informed higher education educators and practitioners about unique challenges faced by international Chinese graduates in transition and provided insightful knowledge for new practice, programs, and policies that can be created to improve international students’ transition and succes

The Global Nomad’s Guide to University Transition

The Global Nomad’s Guide to University Transition (Quick, 2010) is specifically written for third culture kids (TCKs) who will begin their journey into university life. TCKs are defined as those who grew up in places outside of their home or passport cultures and have no sense of belonging in neither the home culture nor host culture. These students usually find their sense of belonging in the third culture, which is the community of people who share the experience of living outside their passport cultures. This book also aims to prepare parents of TCKs to better understand their children’s challenges thus assisting them with a smoother transition to college

Using Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Approach to Understand Academic Advising with International Community College Students

This study focuses on advising international students in a Texas community college. Guided by Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model, I explored how academic advising with international students was shaped by individual backgrounds and environmental influences. I utilized a qualitative research design and analyzed information collected from interviews with 20 academic advisors and 15 international students at the community college. The findings of the study revealed factors in each subsystem of the model that may exert an important impact on international students’ experiences in advising and academic success. The findings can provide a valuable lens for advisors to better understand the challenges of working with international students and unveil forthcoming experiences for prospective international student

College Application with or without Assistance of an Education Agent: Experience of International Chinese Undergraduates in the US.

Using third-party education agents is a well-established practice in many countries. As a result, the number of international students placed by agents has grown considerably over the past years. However, in the US, the practice of using agents to increase international enrollment still carries a derogatory connotation in the educational community. Inexperience with agents coupled with incomplete knowledge about students’ experiences using agents may contribute to misunderstandings about agent recruitment practices that may lead to biased institutional decisions. Using both quantitative and qualitative data, this study provides a better understanding of the use of education agents and how they may assist students’ application to a US higher education institution. The study also reveals the potential problems for students using the services of agents

Exploring Students’ Endorsement Enrollment in Texas Public High Schools

To support youth early motivation for college and careers that meet workforce needs, the Texas Legislature in 2013 passed House Bill 5 to adopt a new high school graduation program, which allows students to pursue “endorsements” as they begin 9th grade. Endorsements introduce high-school students to STEM, Business & Industry, Public Services, Arts & Humanities, and Multidisciplinary areas to help them explore specific career pathways. The study was based on analysis of restricted-use Texas longitudinal administrative and transcript data for students enrolled in the academic year of 2015/16. We examined the mapping of Texas 9th graders on endorsements through an equity and inclusion lens associated with student demographic and academic characteristics. The study was guided by the college and career readiness tenets and social equity theories that identify competing goals in Texas educational policies that may produce (or reproduce) persistent socioeconomic differences in student educational transitions.Educatio

Studying Overseas: Factors Impacting Intention of Female Students in Mainland China

The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors that impact Chinese female students’ intention to study overseas. This study also aimed to understand how these factors impact female students’ decision making process. Using a survey questionnaire, data were collected from 96 female undergraduates who enrolled in a 4-year public university in North Central China fall 2010. Descriptive analyses, exploratory factor analyses, and structural equations modeling were utilized to answer the research questions. The results of the study indicated that students’ satisfaction with campus experience, English proficiency, and only child status had significant direct effects on their intention to study overseas. The results also identified parents’ education, Level of Institutional Support, Quality of Campus Relationship as significant indirect effects

Novel Gemini cationic lipids with carbamate groups for gene delivery

Novel Gemini cationic lipids were investigated to show superior gene delivery properties and promising applications in the future

Fatty Acid and Peptide Profiles in Plasma Membrane and Membrane Rafts of PUFA Supplemented RAW264.7 Macrophages

The eukaryotic cell membrane possesses numerous complex functions, which are essential for life. At this, the composition and the structure of the lipid bilayer are of particular importance. Polyunsaturated fatty acids may modulate the physical properties of biological membranes via alteration of membrane lipid composition affecting numerous physiological processes, e.g. in the immune system. In this systematic study we present fatty acid and peptide profiles of cell membrane and membrane rafts of murine macrophages that have been supplemented with saturated fatty acids as well as PUFAs from the n-3, the n-6 and the n-9 family. Using fatty acid composition analysis and mass spectrometry-based peptidome profiling we found that PUFAs from both the n-3 and the n-6 family have an impact on lipid and protein composition of plasma membrane and membrane rafts in a similar manner. In addition, we found a relation between the number of bis-allyl-methylene positions of the PUFA added and the unsaturation index of plasma membrane as well as membrane rafts of supplemented cells. With regard to the proposed significance of lipid microdomains for disease development and treatment our study will help to achieve a targeted dietary modulation of immune cell lipid bilayers

Power Distance in Online Learning: Experience of Chinese Learners in U.S. Higher Education

The purpose of this research study was to explore the influence of Confucian-heritage culture on Chinese learners’ online learning and engagement in online discussion in U.S. higher education. More specifically, this research studied Chinese learners’ perceptions of power distance and its impact on their interactions with instructors and peers in an online setting. This study was conducted at a research university in the southwestern U.S. Twelve undergraduate students from the Confucian-heritage culture, including mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, participated in the study. This study provided evidence that the online setting benefited these Chinese learners’ engagement in class discussion, but it may increase the level of anxiety in their participation. Learning, perceived by the Chinese learners, was more instructor-centered. Instructors were viewed as authorities, major sources of knowledge, and possessed high power to students. As a result, when encountering difficulties in learning, the Chinese learners were intimidated to interact with their instructors. Instead, they tended to seek help from peers, particularly those who shared similar cultural and linguistic backgrounds

Instructional Communication Via Video Program in Distance Learning: The Relationship Between Instructors\u27 Immediacy Behaviors, Student Motivation and Satisfaction

The present study was designed to investigate the relationship between instructor immediacy behavior and university student motivation and satisfaction in instructional video-based courses. In a mid-western state university, a total number of 89 college students who had experiences of distance learning via video programs participated in the present research. The self-report measures were used to determine student motivation levels, satisfaction levels, and perceptions of instructor immediacy behaviors. Pearson Product Moment Correlation revealed moderate relationship between student motivation and instructor immediacy. In line with the hypotheses, results indicated that students have higher motivation and satisfaction levels in the video-based classes in which instructors are perceived as more immediate to students in both verbal and nonverbal behaviors