Perceptions of international students in CACREP-accredited counseling programs

With the increase of international students in American universities, there has also been an increase of international students in CACREP-accredited programs. However, there is limited information available in the literature concerning specific needs of international students enrolled in counseling programs. The purpose of the present qualitative study was to explore the lived experiences of international students in CACREP-accredited counseling programs and to identify student perspectives about the ways in which counseling programs and faculty members could facilitate a successful and supportive educational experience. A phenomenological-heuristic inquiry was utilized for this purpose. Seven international student participants enrolled in CACREP-accredited counseling programs were interviewed for this study. Seven core themes along with their sub-themes emerged through analysis. The seven core themes include: adapting to the foreign land, clinical concerns, academics, multiculturalism and diversity issues, social connectedness, impact of the counselor training program, and the role of counseling faculty and department. Limitations, along with implications for counselors and counselor educators, and suggestions for future research are presented.