There is limited global research addressing the professional adaptation of migrant social workers in general, and a dearth of scholarship specific to the unique context in Alberta, Canada. While academic attention on the broad topic of professional migration of social workers has gained some traction over the past decade, the emerging literature has so far lacked a comparative gender analysis of the experiences of professional migration among social workers. The purpose of the present study was to develop enhanced understanding of the experiences of professional adaptation of migrant social workers in the Albertan context through a comparative gender analysis. This dissertation emerged from my involvement as a research assistant on a national study on the professional adaptation of migrant social workers in Canada. While coordinating data collection for the Alberta site of the national study, I conducted in-depth interviews with 17 male and female migrant social workers that had migrated to Alberta, Canada within the past decade. From these 17 interviews, 10 transcripts of interviews were selected as cases for secondary analysis in order to answer the question: How do female and male migrant social workers in Alberta experience their professional adaptation to practice in their new context? The research method employed in the secondary study was interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA), a form of qualitative inquiry that examines how people make sense of significant lived experiences. Intersectionality theory and postcolonial feminisms provided the theoretical framework for the study, facilitating attention to both the macro-level factors that structure lived experiences and interactions, and the micro-level processes and interpretations that shape social identities. Engaging with the detailed personal accounts of the participants provided new understandings of how male and female migrant social workers both similarly and differentially interpret and make meaning out of their experiences of professional adaptation. The study makes an important contribution to existing knowledge about professional adaptation in the context of transnational labour mobility. Notably, it is among the first studies to explore the professional adaptation processes of migrant social workers in Alberta, as well as among the earliest works to engage in a qualitative comparative gender analysis that explores these experiences. There is limited global research addressing the professional adaptation of migrant social workers in general, and a dearth of scholarship specific to the unique context in Alberta, Canada. While academic attention on the broad topic of professional migration of social workers has gained some traction over the past decade, the emerging literature has so far lacked a comparative gender analysis of the experiences of professional migration among social workers. The purpose of the present study was to develop enhanced understanding of the experiences of professional adaptation of migrant social workers in the Albertan context through a comparative gender analysis. This dissertation emerged from my involvement as a research assistant on a national study on the professional adaptation of migrant social workers in Canada. While coordinating data collection for the Alberta site of the national study, I conducted in-depth interviews with 17 male and female migrant social workers that had migrated to Alberta, Canada within the past decade. From these 17 interviews, 10 transcripts of interviews were selected as cases for secondary analysis in order to answer the question: How do female and male migrant social workers in Alberta experience their professional adaptation to practice in their new context? The research method employed in the secondary study was interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA), a form of qualitative inquiry that examines how people make sense of significant lived experiences. Intersectionality theory and postcolonial feminisms provided the theoretical framework for the study, facilitating attention to both the macro-level factors that structure lived experiences and interactions, and the micro-level processes and interpretations that shape social identities. Engaging with the detailed personal accounts of the participants provided new understandings of how male and female migrant social workers both similarly and differentially interpret and make meaning out of their experiences of professional adaptation. The study makes an important contribution to existing knowledge about professional adaptation in the context of transnational labour mobility. Notably, it is among the first studies to explore the professional adaptation processes of migrant social workers in Alberta, as well as among the earliest works to engage in a qualitative comparative gender analysis that explores these experiences.
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International students in Canadian universities face an array of sometimes bewildering practical, cultural, academic, and social challenges. Many may not be fully prepared to cope with such challenges without some form of assistance from the university and surrounding community. Such students need assistance and support to face successfully the challenge of a new society and a new environment. It is therefore critical that the institutions admitting international students develop an understanding of what support and assistance can be offered that is most helpful and welcomed by the international student. In this study, undergraduate men and women, from the University of Lethbridge, the University of Calgary and the University of Alberta responded to a questionnaire consisting of thirty-two questions on a five-point lickert scale (“strongly disagree” to “strongly agree”). The questions were grouped into the following categories: first contact with Canada, arrival and orientation, assistance for international students, English language skills, housing and accommodation, academic assistance, and getting to know Canadians. An additional summative thirteen questions, some of which are open-ended, and eight demographic questions were also asked. Follow-up interviews were arranged with a subset of the questionnaire respondents. A total of 131 returned questionnaires and 32 personal interviews were available for data analysis. The most notable findings are as follows: (i) Higher levels (at or above 65%) of satisfaction were found in the areas of assistance requested from professors and fellow students, the teaching and content of their courses, fair treatment from professors, and making friends with and visiting in the homes of Canadians. (ii) Lower levels (at or below 45%) of satisfaction were found in the areas of assistance in obtaining suitable accommodation, the welcome and orientation at their university, time to discuss course work with professors, the lack of international content in their courses, the opportunity to get to know Canadian and other international students in a non-academic setting, and the experience of racism in Canada. This inquiry found that overall, 52.5% (68 students) were satisfied by the welcome and assistance they had received by the university and community. International students in Canadian universities face an array of sometimes bewildering practical, cultural, academic, and social challenges. Many may not be fully prepared to cope with such challenges without some form of assistance from the university and surrounding community. Such students need assistance and support to face successfully the challenge of a new society and a new environment. It is therefore critical that the institutions admitting international students develop an understanding of what support and assistance can be offered that is most helpful and welcomed by the international student. In this study, undergraduate men and women, from the University of Lethbridge, the University of Calgary and the University of Alberta responded to a questionnaire consisting of thirty-two questions on a five-point lickert scale (“strongly disagree” to “strongly agree”). The questions were grouped into the following categories: first contact with Canada, arrival and orientation, assistance for international students, English language skills, housing and accommodation, academic assistance, and getting to know Canadians. An additional summative thirteen questions, some of which are open-ended, and eight demographic questions were also asked. Follow-up interviews were arranged with a subset of the questionnaire respondents. A total of 131 returned questionnaires and 32 personal interviews were available for data analysis. The most notable findings are as follows: (i) Higher levels (at or above 65%) of satisfaction were found in the areas of assistance requested from professors and fellow students, the teaching and content of their courses, fair treatment from professors, and making friends with and visiting in the homes of Canadians. (ii) Lower levels (at or below 45%) of satisfaction were found in the areas of assistance in obtaining suitable accommodation, the welcome and orientation at their university, time to discuss course work with professors, the lack of international content in their courses, the opportunity to get to know Canadian and other international students in a non-academic setting, and the experience of racism in Canada. This inquiry found that overall, 52.5% (68 students) were satisfied by the welcome and assistance they had received by the university and community.
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