Bridging Success: Navigating Challenges and Building Solutions

On 11th May 2023, a workshop, titled "Bridging Success: Navigating Challenges and Building Solutions," was conducted exclusively for our first cohort of 12 international students who transferred to UTS through the transnational education program with Sydney Smart Technology College (SSTC) in China. At UTS, we prioritise the success and wellbeing of our diverse student body, and this workshop was designed to address and overcome the challenges faced by our international students as they transition into the dynamic academic environment at UTS.

Facilitated by faculty members and experienced UTS iAmbassadors, the workshop aimed to identify common issues, foster a sense of community, and collaboratively develop tailored solutions to enhance the overall student experience. Together, we are building a community that values diversity, promotes collaboration, and ensures the success of every student.

Key Highlights

Interactive Discussions

Participants actively engaged in discussions about the academic, cultural, and personal challenges they have encountered since transitioning to UTS. These open conversations created a supportive environment where students felt comfortable sharing their perspectives.

Identifying Challenges

Through collaborative brainstorming sessions, students highlighted key challenges, including language barriers, academic adjustments, cultural differences, and adapting to the Australian educational system.

Developing Solutions

The workshop focused on constructive problem-solving. Students, along with faculty and support staff, worked together to develop practical solutions and strategies to address the identified challenges. This collaborative effort ensures that the solutions are not only effective but also reflective of the unique needs of our transnational education program students.

Key challenges 1: English

Challenges

1. Not much practice speaking in English before coming to Australia.
2. Limited vocabulary. Not be able to complete sentences.
3. Lack of confidence.
4. Not good at listening
5. Often make grammar mistakes. Trying to directly translate words from Chinese into English.
6. Language is definitely a barrier for them to engage and follow classes.
7. Enjoy mathematics focused subjects as symbols or maths are the same in all languages.

Solutions

• Use simple words. Try to speak as simply as possible.
• Check and try to learn new vocabulary in daily life, don’t be shy to ask for explanations.
• Using Grammarly to avoid grammar mistakes.
• Do more reading, translation will last for a long time but will get better when you can master more vocabulary.
• Watch video tutorials or recordings, especially for those with transcripts, and use the slow-motion control function when playing videos.
• Seek help from UTS HELPS to improve English writing in assignments.

Key challenges 2: UTS teaching and learning style

Challenges

1. Lots of experiments at UTS which are difficult.
2. Struggle when working in teams, inability to debate.
3. Not used to essays but rather examinations (not sure about the requirements).
4. Self-directed learning on their own is uncommon for them.
5. Enjoy the interactive teaching style, just can’t make the most of it due to language barriers.
6. The subjects this semester are more difficult, struggling with programming assignments.
7. Have different experiences depending on different tutors, some didn’t give feedback for grades or suggestions for improvements resulting in dissatisfaction.

Solutions

• Follow Marking Criteria.
• Request clarification from the subject coordinator.
• Ask lecturers or tutors to provide templates.
• Try to be brave and take the chance to ask questions and learn to enjoy the interactive part.
• Get to know yourself in terms of how you learn, and how you think, and so on.
• Seek non-credited English language and academic literacy support from UTS HELPS.
• Find people you can work with very well and stick with them.
• Choose elective subjects with people you can work well and help together.
• Join volunteer programs/societies to practice your social skills.
• Use SFS Student Feedback Survey to raise your voice and advocate improvements.

Key challenges 3: Cultural differences

Challenges

1. Hard to connect with people, especially emotionally -> felt like I could not support them properly when they felt bad.
2. Most people in Aus are very nice and extroverts, however, Chinese students feel more comfortable as introverts.
3. Quiet lifestyle and couldn’t find many activities in their spare time.
4. People are a lot busier, and all have their own schedules, which could be challenging when working on team projects, struggle when trying to communicate with other team members.
5. Some people don't respond on time or have inconsistent availabilities/Unclear about group expectations/Struggle when asking groupmates to do more work.
6. Worry about career direction after graduation: life decision/Did not know the existence of CareerHub.
7. Struggling to answer questions during interviews for internships/ Don’t know how to present yourself even though pretty comfortable with English.

Solutions

• Australian people are very accommodating, emphasise the need for them to reach out and talk to them.
• Accept things that you can’t change; try to find people to hang out with will make life more exciting.
• Adjust mindset and value the soft skills developed through teamwork, which is very important in Australia’s working culture.
• Get to know more about your teammates and open yourself, try to make clear expectations, set up a responsibility system, and have consistent meeting structures and schedules to follow up on the progress.
• Attend university events, societies, and volunteer activities, to connect with people and build your network.
• Utilise the services from UTS CareerHub and to find internships, build up a career network is also important, stay connected with people in the industry.
• Attend workshops in UTS Careers Service to develop and strengthen job-search skills in areas such as networking, resume and cover letter writing, and interview techniques.
• Use UTS counselling service when facing personal, psychological, study-related and administrative difficulties.

Building a Supportive Network

Beyond addressing challenges, the workshop emphasised the importance of building a strong support network. Students were encouraged to connect with each other, share resources, and seek assistance from UTS support services.

The valuable insights gained from this workshop will inform the ongoing development of targeted support services for our transnational education program students. UTS remains committed to fostering an inclusive and supportive environment that empowers all students to thrive academically and personally.