The Cultural Identity of International Students in Norway - A case study of Indonesian and Vietnamese students at the University of Oslo and BI Norwegian Business School

This study explores the cultural identity of international students from Indonesia and Vietnam before and after they came to Norway. Various exposures to new sociocultural environments may affect the identity of international students. This is especially the case when the student is coming from a developing country to a developed country, as these contexts have vast difference when it comes to culture, education, economy, social and political aspects. More specifically, this study examines how students develop their cultural identity from before and after arriving in Norway. Most of the literature on students’ cultural identity focuses on the psychological aspects. Little is known about how students perceive their own cultural identity and how their cultural identity develops. This thesis seeks to understand the development of the international students’ cultural identities, ranging from national identity, family relations, gender, political, religious and professional identity. The research design of this study consists of a case study with qualitative strategy applied. This study is focused on international students from Indonesia and Vietnam who were at the time of research enrolled in a master’s program at the University of Oslo (UiO) and BI Norwegian Business School Oslo (BI). The data in this study was collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews. Participants were recruited through a purposive random sampling with a total of eight students. An analytical framework adopted from Baumeister (1986) and Kim (2012) was used for the analysis of the data. The findings reveal that before the students came to Norway, family is seen as the most important identity dimension, followed by religious and professional identity. Whilst after they came to Norway, changes occur in all their cultural identity, and especially their professional identity became stronger, as well as their national and gender identity. In general, the students seemed to develop a ‘new’ cultural identity after they came to Norway. The exposure to the Norwegian culture and society have been affecting their cultural identity in the sense that they value pluralism and diversity. Some factors such as the interaction with others, motivation, gender, technology, emotional and social support have influenced this development. In conclusion, most students have developed a better understanding of their own cultural identity and have broadened their insight of multicultural society