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Dissertation
International Doctoral Students’ Experiences with Persistence at a U.S. University
University of West Florida Libraries
Doctor of Education (EDD), University of West Florida
2025
Abstract
The United States attracts a large number of international students. However, despite the upsurge of international doctoral students, their persistence has not seen a commensurate increase. International doctoral students experience personal and institutional factors that impact their persistence. The purpose of this qualitative interpretive phenomenological study was to explore international doctoral students’ experiences with persistence at a university in the southeastern United States. Tinto’s (1993) institutional departure model constructs of preentry attributes, goals/commitment, institutional experiences, academic integration, and social integration served as the theoretical foundation for this study. The model explains why some students remain in college and graduate and others leave before completing their degrees. Participant selection for this study was based on snowball sampling. The participants for the study consisted of seven international doctoral students who completed their comprehensive examinations. The results demonstrated that preentry attributes, goals/commitment, institutional experiences, academic integration, and social integration were crucial in shaping international doctoral students’ decisions to persist and succeed in their doctoral studies. By addressing the challenges and fostering supportive environments, universities can enhance the experiences of international doctoral students and promote their academic success and persistence. Future researchers can conduct comparative studies across different countries and regions to understand variations in international doctoral students’ experiences and persistence factors.
Details
- Title
- International Doctoral Students’ Experiences with Persistence at a U.S. University
- Resource Type
- Dissertation
- Contributors
- Kwame Owusu Daaku (Committee Member)Jian Su (Committee Member)Patrick Yang (Committee Chair)
- Publisher
- University of West Florida Libraries
- Format
- pdf
- Number of pages
- 228
- Copyright
- Unpublished work © Emmanuel Oduro Nyarko
- Identifiers
- 99381469453806600
- Academic Unit
- School of Education
- Language
- English
- Awarding Institution
- University of West Florida; Doctor of Education (EDD)
- Theses and Dissertations
- Doctor of Education (EDD), University of West Florida