[Part 2] Interview with Shannon Hutcheson – Journey into International Higher Education.

[Part 2] Interview with Shannon Hutcheson – Journey into International Higher Education.

Chris: Wow, you do a lot! That’s incredible that you have opportunities to research issues impacting international students and outlets to improve the international student experience. I’d love to hear more about your research and how you became interested in this topic as it relates to global education.

Shannon: Initially I thought international education was limited to study abroad, but I found out it was so much broader and more complex than that—I became more curious about the human aspect, and international student experience.

Being an international student myself, and having served students studying abroad, I’m aware of the ups and downs of studying in a foreign country. As an international student I’ve felt lost and stressed but also empowered and excited.

Informed by some of my own experiences as an international student and as a service provider for other international students, I signaled policy as a major agent influencing the lives of international students. Within the policy, areas of inequity for international students arise (access to funding and healthcare, precarity around immigration issues, systematic discrimination). These inequities have become all the more apparent with the COVID-19 pandemic. None of us expected or were prepared for the COVID-19 pandemic, but it’s impact on international education was quick and profound.  At this time many international students are in a period of uncertainty—wondering when and if they can cross borders for their studies, and facing last minute university decisions (e.g. having to vacate dorms with short notice). Additionally, as some nations like Canada offer financial supports to Canadian students, as non-citizens, international students have significantly less access to these benefits.

In my research, I also review how the monetization of international education informs the experience of international students. For example, the international student as  “cash cow” rhetoric , and the need for injecting more humanity into international education to counter this rhetoric. With COVID-19 having a significant impact on international higher education, I will be tracing how Global, National, and university responses shape student experiences.

Chris: Thank you, Shannon. I really appreciate you taking the time to do this interview and talk about your work. If people want to learn more, where can they go?

Shannon: You’re welcome to check out my LinkedIn page at linkedin.com/in/shannon-hutcheson-705738a7/. You can also visit the iMPACTS Project website at mcgill.ca/definetheline/impacts.

Chris: Wonderful. Thank you again so much!

Shannon: My pleasure!

Writer's Bio:

Chris is a doctoral candidate at McGill University, researching sexual consent and sexual violence. He has researched the safety, risk, and wellbeing of dating app users and is a research assistant on the IMPACTS Project, which aims to address sexual violence at universities in Canada and internationally. Chris has worked in student affairs at the University of Michigan (USA), Singapore University of Technology & Design (Singapore), and McGill University (Canada). Chris' current role is to oversee the training and education of undergraduate students involved in Orientation and Frosh.