Understanding the study abroad experience of university students

The connection between experience and learning: student perspectives on the significance of international study

“…The findings in this research also echo the outcomes of Gemignani's (2009) study that established participants' culture learning was concentrated on perspectivesrecognition of different perspectives and changes to their own perspectivesand that this learning came from interactions with people from the host culture. A study by Park (2002) found that through assimilation, participants shifted their meaning schemes; this finding aligns with the results from this study on participant realisations as a key impact of their experiences.…”

“…This research also found that, while the participants' experiences were deeply personal, it was possible to categorise what and how their experiences were significant, thus demonstrating the conditions for learning that the context creates and the broader interpretations of the participants' experiences. This research also found that experiences were often shaped by unusual or happenstance events or unanticipated factors, as noted by Gemignani (2009), thus showing the haphazard and unstructured nature of informal or life-experience learning (Marsick & Watkins 2018).…”

“…"Pre-designed metrics of academic success or economic benefit" (Schroeder particularly in the Australian context, is an experience unique to the student and may be meaningful in ways that speak to the students' individualised experiences outside of the classroom. Gemignani's (2009) study demonstrated the individualised nature of interpretations of international study experiences. Her study also highlighted the way that the study abroad experience can be significantly impacted by unusual, unpredictable or happenstance events or situations.…”

“…In two other studies of international study learning, students are asked to consider what they have learned from their experiences, despite the research aims of these studies being framed around what was meaningful to students from their experiences (Gemignani 2009;Sherman Johnson 2016). Merriam and Clark's (1993) work on significance provides the study with an alternative approach to uncovering the meaning of experiences.…”

“…Previous doctoral studies on understanding study abroad experiences have shown that the experience is highly individualised but that it is possible to identify common themes from the data (Gemignani 2009;Sherman Johnson 2016). This research also found that, while the participants' experiences were deeply personal, it was possible to categorise what and how their experiences were significant, thus demonstrating the conditions for learning that the context creates and the broader interpretations of the participants' experiences.…”