The emotional geographies of Vietnamese Students in Australia

As globalisation deepens, student mobility and migration have not only impacted on the economic and social landscape of the host societies but has also infused desires and imaginaries into individuals’ minds. Although in prior literature, the benefits and challenges of international study that international students gain and encounter are well explored, understanding of Vietnamese students’ affective experiences at different points of times in their study overseas receives less attention from researchers. To be specific, little examination has been given to how international students experience and respond to the emotional geographies that arise before, during, and after their international study and how the emotional geographies affect students’ perceptions of “place”. Using emotional geography theory of Hargreaves (2001), this study explores first, Vietnamese students’ perceptions and emotions of international mobility studying in Australian higher education institutions, and second, how students used academic and social strategies to enhance their experiences of personal and scholarly development. Based on in-depth interviews with nine Vietnamese students who enrolled in Australian institutions and majored in different disciplines, the study reveals their unique challenges, opportunities, and experiences, and their emotional geographies that gave rise to their learning strategies to be used in navigating their transnational education and social space.