Project Adapting across borders

: A social ecological approach to social exclusion and resilience among international students in the United Kingdom

Abstract

International students bring numerous benefits to British universities and society more broadly, but face challenges including acculturation, deficit narratives, and social exclusion. This thesis explores exclusion and resilience among international students at British universities. The innovative social ecological, mixed methods approach includes three studies: (1) a rapid review of literature on the social policy context in the UK, (2) cross-sectional photo elicitation interviews with 11 students and reflexive thematic analysis, and (3) a longitudinal online survey of 96 students analysed through path analysis. Several methodological, theoretical, and empirical additions to the literature are made. In a novel synthesis, Chapter 4: Study 1 shows how policy both creates barriers to inclusion (e.g. hostile environment migration practices) and supports inclusion/adaptation (e.g. sanctuary scholarships, Graduate Visas), while international students lack equal access to wellbeing-relevant provision. In Chapter 5: Study 2, a creative and participatory approach is used to produce a novel Domain-Process Model. This is the first holistic theoretical model of international student resilience which shows that resilience occurs in interconnected domains of life (academic, acculturative, personal, interpersonal, community, socioeconomic) through various processes (e.g. adjusting to British academia, finding and creating community). This adds to literature by linking social ecological and process-oriented perspectives, providing a framework to understand adversity and resilience together in international students and other groups. Findings from Chapter 6: Study 3 empirically reveal that exclusion is associated with lower social ecological resilience, which through a previously unexplored mediation mechanism predicts poorer wellbeing, life satisfaction, and academic adjustment. Overall, in a cutting-edge social ecological, interdisciplinary, and mixed methods synthesis, this thesis demonstrates how international students show considerable resilience to social exclusion and related adversities, actively engaging with the resources, communities, and systems around them. Nonetheless, results clarify that student resilience is no substitute for tackling structural inequalities and exclusionary policy. To effectively reddress these, findings provide evidence-based recommendations for research, policy, and university practice.

Date of Award	May 2026
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Brighton
Supervisor	Linda Tip (Supervisor), Stephanie Fleischer (Supervisor) & Rebecca Graber (Supervisor)