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Good Practice Guides

Managing accommodation for international students: a handbook for practitioners

This guide is aimed at staff who deal with international students in residential accommodation in HE and FE institutions and all other staff who support international student in institutions, policy-makers, students’ unions, voluntary organisations providing accommodation services, and commercial providers. The guide:
  • sets out good practice on the provision of accommodation and associated services
  • maps out the issues and points for consideration either where practice is too context-specific for meaningful generalisation or where it has not yet been established in the sector
  • stimulates continuing debate in the education, voluntary and private sectors on evolving good practice
2010, A5, 108pp, ISBN 1 870679 55 5
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International students under 18: guidance and good practice

International students under 18: guidance and good practice

The issues relating to international students under the age of 18 are varied, complex and sensitive, due to legislation, differences between jurisdictions and different obligations on different types of education provider. This guide draws together descriptions of regulatory requirements and examples of good practice, provides sector and country-specific guidance where applicable, and brings together general points of relevance where sectors can learn from one another.
2008, A5, 148pp, ISBN 1 870679 46 6
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Students in financial hardship: an adviser’s guide

Students in financial hardship: an adviser’s guide

International students often find themselves in financial difficulty through no fault of their own. In some cases students can experience hardship as a consequence of poor budgeting or because advice about the cost of living in the UK has been disregarded. This guide aims to help you and your institution to minimise the occurrence of financial hardship and to establish a realistic approach for dealing with requests for help from those students who do experience financial problems.
2008, A5, 48pp, ISBN 1 870679 49 0

International students under 18: guidance and good practice

Mentoring schemes for international students: a practical guide

Mentoring is generally accepted to be a powerful tool for helping people through difficult situations and periods of transition. International students beginning a period of study in the UK face particular challenges in adapting to their new environment, and this guide provides practical support to staff in HE and FE institutions who are considering setting up mentoring schemes specifically for international students. It covers all the major points you should consider before setting up such a scheme and as well as sample documents for you to use as the basis for setting up schemes of your own.
2008, A5, 64pp, ISBN 1 870679 44 X
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International students under 18: guidance and good practice

Planning and running orientation programmes for international students

When they begin their period of study in the UK, international students are removed from the cues, clues and familiar landscape of their own culture. More than home students, they are removed from their usual support networks and mechanisms. Many of your new students will be lacking direction, not knowing where to go, literally or metaphorically. Orientation programmes are an essential way of welcoming international students to the UK and to their new institution, and a valuable way of imparting a wide range of information relevant to their stay. This guide provides guidance, ideas and a list of practical items that you can use as an aid to designing orientation events for your students. 4
2008, A5, 120pp, ISBN 1 870679 47
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International students under 18: guidance and good practice

Volunteering and international students: a practical guide

Experiencing British culture is an important part of an international student’s time in the UK; it is a large part of why they choose to study here. And institutions welcome volunteering schemes as they increase students’ employability, as well as providing a way of strengthening community links. This guide is an overview of the issues that you should think about when starting a volunteering scheme using international students as volunteers. It addresses what you should consider at each stage, from ways in which volunteering is perceived by people from different cultures, to additional risks and legal issues, to issues around recruiting international students.
2008, A5, 76pp, ISBN 1 870679 45 8
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International students under 18: guidance and good practice

International students in crisis
by Neil Gaskin

This guide looks at some of the main factors common to different types of crisis, considering the issues they raise for international students and those around them, including both other students and staff. It also looks at particular types of crisis, such as illness, death, crime and events in the student's home country. The guide aims to provide the international student adviser with a range of practical resources, including checklists of issues to consider, models of good practice and useful publications and organisational contacts for further information. The guide should also be read by managers wishing to ensure that they are prepared for crises involving international students.

International students in crisis

2002, A5, 112pp, ISBN 1 870679 36 9

 

Internationalising students' unions
by Jo Holliday

This booklet considers the specific role of students' unions in relation to their international student members, in terms of both representation and provision of services. It provides guidance on how to carry out an international audit, identifying services that can be offered, possible barriers and implementation strategies. It also gives guidance on the core services and activities which may be provided for international students. Finally, it explores the relationship of the union with the institution.

Only available online as a pdf

1998, A5, 28pp ISBN 1 870679 30 X

If you're interested in this, you might also be interested in the NUS project Internationalising Students' Unions funded by the Prime Minister's Initiative for International Education

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