Housing and international student experience

Transcription

1 Housing and international student experience Sarah Judd University of New South Wales A sense of wellbeing...is supported by personal safety, secure accommodation, meaningful local community engagement, having a say in decision-making and good health...wellbeing is central to a positive study and life experience for international students and to ensuring sustainability of the education sector. - International Students Strategy for Australia,

2 Key terms used here International students Higher education, specifically universities International student housing Not only purpose-built student housing, but also private rental, homestay, etc. Slum conditions, overcrowding and dodgy landlords welcome to foreign student accommodation in Australia s most glamorous city...cheap accommodation is hard to find and rogue landlords entice students into their net with advertisements promising centrally-located quality apartments at reasonable prices. When they turn up, the lodgings bear little resemblance to the promises. (Noyon 2011) 2

3 My research Housing trajectories of Chinese international students in Sydney Interviews with 13 key stakeholders Online survey with 393 Chinese international student respondents from UNSW 2 focus groups with 19 Chinese UNSW students Housing outcomes Particular kinds of conditions and experiences of housing Usually categorised as material (e.g. Dwelling type) or social (e.g. Household relationships) 3

4 Types of housing outcomes MATERIAL Housing Quality Neighbourhood Conditions SOCIAL Housing Density Household Dynamics TRANSACTIONAL Housing Affordability Housing Security TRANSITIONAL Housing Mobility Housing Search Material factors Current accommodation safe and well maintained: 80% (survey respondents) Moved at least once because accommodation poorly maintained and/or unsafe: 23% 4

5 The rain goes into that house. As a result I cannot live in that room. (Survey respondent 276) There were lots of cockroaches in the kitchen...so we have to buy sprays and the things we can buy from the supermarket to deal with them...and we have to wash our cooking stuff before using them to make sure it s clean. (Focus group participant) Lived in a room that was not a proper bedroom at some stage: 41% Half living room in a big house. $150 per week. Chinese landlord...separate the living room by wardrobe...we can heard everything from each other. No privacy. We both leave there later. (Survey respondent no. 195) 5

6 Social factors Enough space & privacy in current accommodation: 76% Lived in accommodation shared by too many people at some stage: 55% If...about ten people share only small area of the internet, there will be some problem for student who want to do their research at home because they want to write the essay, they have to meet the deadline...i had that experience. (Focus group participant) 6

7 Good relationship with current co-sharers: 86% Good relationship with current landlord: 84% Treated unfairly by a landlord at some point in Sydney: 51% The two boys are really nice, and sometimes I can ask questions about life and study and anything, and they re very nice and answer your questions. (Focus group participant) [I] rented a bedroom from a Australian Chinese woman and she stolen my valuable things and humiliated my friends and me quite often, finally forced me to leave without any notification. (Survey respondent no. 389) 7

8 Transactional factors Many types of student housing not covered under the Residential Tenancies Act (NSW) It s very annoying if your landlord ask you to move out before the final is coming...it s very, very horrible...i don t think it s reasonable for students. Cause accommodation should give you a thing like stable, comfortable, like home... (Focus group participant) Can afford current accommodation: 77% Lived in accommodation they couldn t really afford at some point: 65% The share fee in Sydney gets higher and higher so I don t want to give any financial burden to my parents. So I m thinking of leaving Sydney after finishing this semester. (Survey respondent no. 362). 8

9 Transitional factors Moved 2+ times since arriving in Sydney: 56% Finding current accommodation difficult: 24% I ve written numerous times to lecturers going... they have to move at really short notice, they need...some sort of special consideration... you can t go to a class that day, because you don t have anywhere to live. (Interviewee no. 2B) They might be desperate and take the first thing that s available to them because they don t have an understanding of what else could be around, and they don t want to spend their time doing that. (Interviewee no. 9) 9

10 Summary Most survey respondents had adequate current accommodation BUT Most survey respondents had experienced housing problems at some stage while in Sydney Negative housing outcomes were shown to impact students experience and wellbeing Where to from here? Preventing negative outcomes by understanding contributing factors, e.g. Weeding out unscrupulous housing providers Training in housing rights and responsibilities Empowering students to make informed decisions and achieve their housing needs & preferences, e.g. Increased entitlements Better targeted information and service promotion 10

11 Thank you! Sarah Judd 11