"Proud to Be Me": How Identity Acceptance Shapes International Libyan Graduate Students' Sense of Belonging

• In Event: Inclusion and Belonging in Global Educational Contexts

Abstract

This study explored whether and how 11 international Libyan graduate students in a U.S. higher education institution experienced a sense of belonging (SB). Using an SB framework of identity acceptance, the study employed in-depth interviews and student journals over an academic year to examine experiences that impacted the participants’ SB, why they perceived these experiences as impactful, and how they reacted to the experiences. Findings include that, although some participants were able to construct spaces of belonging, such spaces were sometimes “thin” and “tenuous.” The findings contribute to the growing body of work highlighting the unheard voices and experiences of students often marginalized and homogenized in academic settings.

Author

• Mohamed Elhess, Minnesota State University - Mankato