Saudi Arabian International Graduate Students' Lived Experiences Studying for the First Time in a Mixed-Gender, Non-Segregated U.S University

Abstract

Enrollment of Saudi Arabian International students’ in United
States institutions of higher learning has increased substantially over the
years since King Abdullah initially launched the Saudi scholarship
program in 2005 that was renewed in 2010 and funded an outward flow
of Saudi student, including females, to universities worldwide. A
commitment to education for women is evident in that the program also
provides funding for an accompanying male relative for every Saudi
female awarded a scholarship. As a result, a number of Saudi females
are able to receive a similar cross-cultural experience along with their
male counterparts. The majority of Saudi students are sent to English
speaking countries, with the U.S. universities having the largest number
of enrollees. Consequently, there is a social and cultural impact as well
as an academic one results as these Saudi international male and female
students move through the acculturation process that accompanies their
studies in the U.S. Since Saudi women were not encouraged to study
abroad prior to 2010 they have not been the focus of multiple research
studies. Given that male students have been both scholars and
participants in multiple research studies in the past decades, the
inclusion of Saudi Women International Graduate Students in this
study, along with their male counterparts, has presented a unique
opportunity for findings to emerge regarding gender-related issues in
society and academia between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia as these female
SA students are studying for the first time in mixed-gender environment
and male SA students are interacting for the first time along with SA
females in a mixed-gender environment.