“A bridge between two worlds “ : A qualitative study about the relationship between international and local student within the Buddy program.

The Linnaeus University in Växjö attracts hundreds of international students from all over the world on a yearly basis. Previous research have investigated international students’ experiences during their studies abroad. However, there is a lack of research examining the aspects of both international- and local students. There is a Buddy program at the Linnaeus University that aims to promote a relationship between local- and international students, which opens up a research gap. Therefore, the main purpose with the study is to investigate the relationship between international and local students, and if there is an elevated level of interaction between the students that voluntarily are active in the Buddy program. The purspose is also to investigate how the participants experience the Buddy program’s work towards promoting a relationship between them. The study follows a qualitative approach for collecting empirical material. A total of twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted, six with local students and six with international students. The empirical material was analyzed with the help of Norbert Elias and John L. Scotson's Theory of Established and Outsiders as well as previous research within the field. The results of this study indicate that there is a division between international and local students even if they voluntarily have chosen to participate in the program that aims to promote a relationship between them. The relationship between the groups lies within the norms and social cohesion, where the groups established and outsider change depending on the context. The results also show that the students have negative experiences of their participation in the Buddy program as both international- and local students experience some kind of exclusion