Introduction
Exploring the transition of international students to UK Higher Education (HE) and how they adapt to studying on a masters programme.
You are being invited to take part in this research study on transition to UK Higher Education. Before you decide whether you wish to participate, it is important for you to understand why the study is being conducted and what it will involve. Please take some time to read the information provided and discuss it with others if you wish. Please ask if there is anything that is not clear, or if you would like more information.
All the information on this page is available to download in the Fellowship Participant Information Sheet, alongside the full contact details if you need them. Please use your UON email address to contact us.
What is the purpose of the study?
The research is seeking to answer two main questions:
- What supports and impedes international student adaptation to MSc Public Health at UON?
- How can I (the Academic Librarian) support international student transition better to UK Higher Education (HE) and future practice?
Why have I been invited?
You have been asked to take part in the study because as an international student on the MSc Public Health programme, you offer a unique insight into the experience of students coming to the UK to study at postgraduate level.
Do I have to take part?
No. Taking part is entirely voluntary. If you decide to take part you will be asked to sign a consent form to confirm that you understand the project and are happy to participate. If you decide to take part and then change your mind, it may be impossible to completely remove all traces of the data/information you have contributed. Depending on the stage at which you choose to withdraw, we may be able to remove the photographs, but because your thoughts and experience may already have contributed to our understanding of the research topic, we may not be able to remove all information. Once the focus groups/interviews have taken place you cannot withdraw your data as the researcher will be unable to identify you in the focus groups/interviews. You retrain the right not to answer questions you do not want to.
What will my participation involve?
Once you have agreed to take part in the study you will need to take part in a brief training workshop, where you will learn more about the project and how to take photographs that represent your experiences. You will then be asked to take and upload a selection of photographs representing your experiences of being an international student to a private project website where you can add captions and annotations to them. Then either in individual interviews or focus groups, you will select some photographs that best represent your experience coming to study at the University of Northampton. With your permission, these photographs and captions will be exhibited at the University to represent the experience of postgraduate students and allow university staff supporting you to understand your experience and develop better ways of supporting your studies. You will choose whether you would like your name to be used as the creator of the images, or if you would prefer a pseudonym to be used. You will retain copyright of the images you create, but you will be asked to license their use by the researcher for use in this project and related publications and dissemination.
What are the possible benefits of taking part?
The information obtained from this study will be used by the Academic Librarian to adapt and develop the support offered to the students on the MSc Public Health programme. The research will be publicised within the University so the programme team and University community can learn about the experience of international students. You will gain experience using a visual research method, photovoice which is popular within public health research.
What are the possible risks or disadvantages of taking part?
You will take part in a workshop that explains the importance of maintaining your own personal safety when taking part in the project and about the ethics of taking photographs, especially of individuals. You will be using your own personal device to take photographs and will be encouraged to use the University Wi-Fi to upload your photographs to the research website, rather than your own personal data.
What if something goes wrong?
If you have any concerns about any aspect of the way you have been approached or treated during the course of this study, then please contact George Dimmock.
What will happen to the information I provide?
All the information collected for this study will be anonymised and stored in a secure, password-protected space approved by the University of Northampton Research Ethics Committee. You will be asked if you would like to be identified by your given name or a pseudonym and what name you would like to be attributed to your photographs. Publications of the results will include anonymised data. The anonymised data will be made available via creative commons license in our research repository, PURE.
What will happen to the results of the study?
The results from this study will be used in the following ways: the photographs and captions collected will be used for a public exhibition at the University of Northampton. Findings will also be presented at scholarly and professional conferences and in publications (for example journal articles and books). If you would like to receive a summary of the findings, then please indicate this on the consent form or contact the lead researcher.
How will my data be processed?
This study has been reviewed by an ethics committee to check that your personal data will be kept secure and used only in the way you have been told it will be. Your consent will be sought for processing your data in this way. The ethics committee has also checked that data collection is “in the public interest, scientific or historical research purposes or statistical purposes… proportionate to the aim pursued” as required by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) (2016, Article 9).
Under the GDPR all researchers must have a legal basis for processing any personal data about you. During the study you will be asked for information about your age, gender, programme, and country of origin. The University of Northampton confirms that processing of your personal data will be handled in a lawful manner as required by GDPR article 89(1) and the Data Protection Act 2018 sections 19(1)(b) and (c). We therefore confirm that the processing of your data in this project is in the public interest, has due regard for your rights and freedoms as a participant (‘data subject’) and will be stored and processed in a secure manner. The University of Northampton is the Data Controller for this project. If you have any concerns about the collection, use and storage of data in this project please contact the University of Northampton’s Data Protection Officer DPO@northampton.ac.uk
Who has reviewed the study?
This study has been reviewed and approved by the LLS Research Ethics Committee.
Contact for further information.
If you have any questions about this study or your possible involvement, then please contact me using the contact details in the Fellowship Participant Information Sheet. Please use your UON email address to contact us.
Gillian Siddall
Academic Librarian
Thank you for considering taking part in this study.