Cherish my college life: a phenomenological study on the experiences of Chinese undergraduate international students and involvement on-campus

Chinese international undergraduate student experiences at U.S. higher education institutions are often hidden within the larger monolithic narrative of “international students” as a whole. The existing research on the on-campus involvement experiences of Chinese undergraduate international students is relatively minimal particularly in comparison to existing studies on the academic experiences of this population. The aggregation of knowledge on the international student experience creates a narrow perspective on the motivations and challenges of Chinese undergraduate international students in involvement. This qualitative research study explored the diverse range of involvement experiences of eight Chinese undergraduate international students who self-identified as involved students at a large public U.S. university. Specifically, this study used a phenomenological approach to explore what factors participants considered in their choice to become involved on-campus, as well as how students made meaning of and defined involvement. Findings indicated that participants chose unique and varied involvement experiences with high levels of agency, developing their ways of knowing about involvement as they navigated through their college experience.Ph.D.Includes bibliographical reference