WISE
WISE Staff Toolkit
Supporting International Students
Warwick International Student Experience Toolkit (WISE)
The Warwick International Student Experience (WISE) toolkit supports staff in understanding and enhancing the experience of international students at Warwick.
It brings together insights from staff, students, and institutional data to highlight common challenges and practical approaches to supporting international students across teaching, engagement, and support services.
This toolkit will continue to evolve as new resources, examples, and insights are added.
Understanding the international student experience
One in three of our students is international (including those from the EU)*.
Arriving from around the world, these students bring a wide range of backgrounds, cultures, and prior learning experiences. This diversity defies simple categorisation and reminds us that international students are not a homogenous group. Viewing students primarily through the lens of being “international” can inadvertently overlook the knowledge, skills, and achievements they bring.
Understanding the international student experience means recognising that students may engage with the academic environment differently depending on their previous education, expectations, and familiarity with UK academic culture. Appreciating these perspectives helps staff offer more effective support and create inclusive learning environments.
* If we break this down by study level, international students represent 22% of UG students, 70% of PGT students and nearly 50% of PGR students (2025).
Common issues and challenges in their Academic Journey
This section outlines some of the challenges international students may encounter across their academic journey.
Insert Tom's voice over presentation.
Settling in
The first few weeks can feel overwhelming as students adapt to life in a new country while also trying to understand academic expectations. During induction, many experience information overload, so key messages should be prioritised and delivered through appropriate channels at appropriate times.
For students whose first or main language is not English, this period is especially demanding. Many will have learned English through shorter recorded texts and may not be accustomed to extended talks. Heavily structuring presentations and using 10–15 minute blocks with interactive tasks helps students process and retain information.
English language usage
The university sets a high bar for English language proficiency at the admissions stage, and most international students arrive with strong formal skills. However, meeting entry requirements does not remove the challenges of using English in fast‑moving academic and social environments. Everyday communication often involves unfamiliar accents, colloquial expressions and rapid exchanges, all of which can make interactions feel unpredictable and tiring.
In addition to linguistic demands, students may also be navigating differences in cultural capital. British humour, indirect communication styles and references to television, politics or shared childhood experiences can be difficult to interpret without the same cultural reference points. This can leave students feeling slightly out of step in conversations, even when their language proficiency is high.
In teaching situations, students may need additional time to process spoken information while also taking notes or preparing a contribution. Activities that rely on spontaneous discussion or unstructured debate can be particularly demanding. Clear signposting, repetition of key points and short pauses for thinking time help students follow the flow of ideas and participate more confidently.
Engagement beyond the classroom can also be affected by both language and cultural expectations. Some students may worry about making mistakes, missing a joke or slowing others down, which can lead them to withdraw from group work or social opportunities. Creating low‑pressure spaces for interaction and modelling inclusive communication practices supports students in building confidence and forming connections with peers.
Adapting to expectations
Students admitted to Warwick have already achieved academic success using strategies that worked in their previous educational contexts. These strategies may differ from expectations in UK seminars, lectures, or group discussions. For example, a student who does not ask questions may be navigating linguistic demands or coming from an academic culture where questioning in certain contexts is not the norm. Adapting to new expectations takes time. Explicit modelling by peers and staff helps greatly. Students also bring their own preferences and personalities, and these should be recognised alongside cultural influences.
For students working in a second or other language, cognitive load is a key consideration. Processing academic content while preparing for tasks takes considerably more time and energy. Reading academic texts and participating in learning activities is more demanding, so distributing content across the week rather than concentrating it in scheduled teaching helps reduce overload. Students also need repeated opportunities to engage with new vocabulary and concepts.
Preparing for assessments
Students’ prior experience strongly shapes how they approach assessments, especially assessment briefs and related documents. Some may be unfamiliar with using supporting documentation to guide their work. Long, detailed briefs are often well intentioned but may cause confusion about what is required versus what is recommended, so clarity and accessibility are essential.
Examples of differing student and staff perspectives
Student perspective:
I need to receive the tutor’s perspective to know if I am doing this assignment the right way.
Staff perspective:
Learning in the UK is largely self-directed.
I cannot teach you how to go about your assessment, as this may appear unprofessional.
What would help?:
Students:
Clearer guidance on the independent model in the UK.
Staff:
Providing formative feedback or check-ins before the final submission.
Working with students
Engaging international students directly in shaping services and learning environments can provide valuable insight.
This section will highlight opportunities for co-creation and engagement with international students.
Supporting international students effectively (no content)
Potential to make it into a 'Message Wall' with Padlet???
Staff play a key role in creating inclusive learning environments and supporting international students to succeed.
This section will provide practical guidance and examples of effective approaches, including:
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Inclusive teaching practices
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Quick wins for Digital Accessibility
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Supporting student engagement and participation
- Encouraging questions and academic confidence
Supporting student engagement and participation.
One of the simplest, most powerful ways to build an inclusive learning environment is to take the time to get to know your students as individuals. For international students, who may be navigating a new country, new academic culture, and new social norms, this matters even more.
Learn their names, and say them correctly
A student’s name is often one of the strongest connections they have to their identity and heritage. Making the effort to learn and correctly pronounce their name signals respect, belonging, and recognition. It also tells international students that they are seen as full members of the learning community, not outsiders or temporary visitors.
Show genuine curiosity about their backgrounds
A quick conversation, asking where they feel most at home, what languages they speak, or what motivated them to join the programme, can be transformative. You’re not asking them to represent an entire culture or be the “international voice”; you’re simply learning who they are.
These small moments break down barriers, reduce anxiety, and open the door to richer dialogue.
Build early connections that support later engagement
Students who feel known are more willing to ask questions, share uncertainties, and participate in learning activities. This is particularly true for students from cultures where speaking up, challenging ideas, or approaching staff may be unfamiliar or intimidating.
A few minutes of relationship‑building early in the term pays dividends in confidence and engagement later on.
Use names intentionally in teaching
Calling on students by name in supportive ways—checking how they’re doing, inviting contributions, welcoming them into discussion—helps create a sense of belonging. For international students, hearing their name used respectfully in class is a subtle but powerful affirmation.
Remember that belonging drives learning
Feeling known, valued, and respected is not a “nice extra”; it is core to student success. When students feel connected to their educators, they are more resilient, more likely to seek support, and more motivated to engage deeply with the course.
Quick Win:
Provide each personal tutor with a list of their tutees, (phonetic spelling will help with accurate pronunciation) and a photo (where provided), before students have their first meeting.
Having this information in advance allows tutors to greet students confidently, use their names accurately from the very first interaction, and reduce awkwardness or anxiety, particularly for international students who may already feel unfamiliar with UK academic systems.
This simple, proactive step supports a more welcoming first meeting, fosters trust, and signals to students that their identity is recognised and respected from day one.
You can learn more about Belonging at Warwick here:
Building Belonging Learning Circle
Encouraging questions and academic confidence.
International students bring rich perspectives and valuable intellectual diversity to our classrooms, but many are entering an academic culture that expects behaviours very different from those in their home educational systems. Asking questions, challenging ideas, interrupting gently, or approaching staff for clarification may be unfamiliar—or even feel inappropriate.
As educators, we can create conditions that make engagement feel safe, welcomed, and expected.
Additional guidance will be added as part of the ongoing development of the WISE toolkit.
Using student data and insights
This section will provide guidance on how to interpret and use institutional and departmental data via Data Dashboard, Student Surveys, and qualitative feedback to identify opportunities for improving the international student experience.
1. Data Dashboard
IDG Data Lab team collate and make available large sets of institutional, national and international data.
In particular, the Enrolment Dashboard provides interactive data on how many international students the university, your faculty and department has:
2. University of Warwick Student Survey Data
The University has a central repository of Survey Data covering a wide range of institutional-wide surveys such as NSS, PTES, PRES, Welcome Week, Warwick Student Experience Survey (previously known as Student Feedback Survey) and Graduate Outcomes.
3. Student Opportunity Event Attendance Dashboard
Student Opportunity events are held in MyAdvantage and headline information about student engagement with Student Opportunity services are displayed in a Dashboard, accessible by staff members only. This data gives you an indicator as to how active your students are in engaging in activities that are aimed to enable them to develop skills and career services.
4. International Student Roundtable
The International Student Support & Experience team hosts a series of roundtable discussions to better understand international students' expectation and lived experiences. The views shared during the roundtable enable the team to triangulate and extrapolate information, and use these as part of the evidence base when designing solutions and interventions.
International Student Roundtable reports
How to use Student Roundtable as an engagement tool - a case study
Inclusive Teaching Practices - Practical tips
1. Supporting Academic Transition
- Offer early workshops on referencing, criticality, and UK academic culture.
- Use scaffolded tasks and early, low‑stakes opportunities for feedback.
- Break down complex assessments into manageable stages.
- Use clear, plain English; avoid idioms and culturally specific references.
- Provide written summaries of key points and instructions.
- Offer multiple participation options (chat, polls, think–pair–share).
- Check understanding with anonymous tools rather than direct questioning.
3. Curriculum & Assessment
- Integrate global case studies and diverse sources.
- Provide explicit marking criteria and exemplars.
- Clarify academic integrity, critical thinking expectations, and writing norms.
- Provide examples of high‑quality work and step‑by‑step submission guidance.
4. Assessment Feedback
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Avoid correcting every language error. This does not contribute to grading decisions and is unlikely to support language development.
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Instead, use the PALS approach: Prioritised, Actionable, Limited, and Specific.
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Target a small, manageable set of issues, such as focusing on one page of an essay and asking students to address only three areas.
5. Inclusive Learning Environments
- Structure mixed‑cultural groupwork with clear roles and expectations.
- Avoid positioning students as cultural representatives.
- Encourage bilingual glossaries and discussion of key terms.
- Create a respectful space where diverse perspectives are valued.
6. Personalised Support & Wellbeing
- Explain office hours, how to seek help, and what support services offer.
- Proactively invite contact for questions or concerns.
- Connect students to language support, peer mentoring, and study skills.
- Recognise cultural differences in help‑seeking behaviours.
7. Belonging & Community
- Create peer networks and mixed‑group activities.
- Acknowledge cultural and religious holidays.
- Design social‑academic events that encourage intercultural interaction.
- Establish online discussion spaces for ongoing connection.
Click here for more Inclusive Classroom ExamplesLink opens in a new window
Existing activities to support international students
Add the Slides here.
Further resources:
For staff:
For students
For students
Quick Wins for Digital Accessibility
1. Use clear, consistent digital layouts
- Keep the structure of your Moodle pages, lecture slides, and assessment briefs predictable.
- Use headings, bullets, and short paragraphs so students navigating in a second language (or with assistive tech) can scan easily.
2. Caption and transcribe all video/audio content
- Ensure auto-captions are turned on for recordings and livestreams.
- Offer transcripts where possible—hugely helpful for language processing, revision, and translation tools.
3. Reduce cognitive load with accessible formatting
- High-contrast text, readable font sizes, and minimal clutter.
- Avoid text-heavy slides; break content into digestible chunks with whitespace.
- Ensure hyperlinks describe their destination (e.g., “Assessment Guide (PDF)” instead of “Click here”).
4. Provide multilingual‑friendly file types
- Upload materials in formats that work well with translation and text‑to‑speech tools:
- PDFs saved as readable text (not image scans)
- Word documents with styles applied
- Alt text for images
5. Use simple, plain English in all digital instructions
- Avoid idioms, colloquialisms, and culture‑specific references in online briefs or announcements.
- Keep instructions step‑by‑step and explicitly linked (e.g., “Submit via Moodle > Assignment 1 > Upload file > Submit”).
Case study - co-create with students to solve problems (Emily)
Presumably you want to write a real life example of hiring students to engage other students?
Insight from the WISE workshop?
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