Mobilising family support: implications for the academic resilience of international students

Little is known about the importance of family to international students, whether closely connected to their families or not. Problematically this means that those tasked with supporting the retention and success of international students may be doing so with an insufficient awareness of the risks to their social and academic resilience as well as their academic, or other, support needs. This, in turn, has significant implications for retention and success. In order to fill this gap the research set out to evidence the (variable) importance of family support to international students, highlight the points at which family support is of greatest importance, and draw attention to the implications for those who do not have access to family support. The objective of the research is to help inform practice and enhance international students' retention and success.