黑料不打烊

Across a collection of three related studies (Mili & Towers, 2024; Chen, 2025; Coburn et al., 2025) which took place in England between 2018 and 2025 and involved 85 participants, we argue that postgraduate programmes should be about much more than content mastery. Instead, learning and teaching at this level should be a collaborative process where identity, agency and the non-linear nature of postgraduate journeys are taken into account and respected throughout the course of studies.

How postgraduate university students construct their identity as learners in a multicultural classroom

The first study draws on focus groups and interviews involving 31 students comprising participants from different countries, including a large mainland Chinese cohort. In this study, we found that students’ experience of learning is constitutive of the identification work they do in their lectures (Mili & Towers, 2024). Students interpret feedback, peer dynamics and classroom norms as part of developing their sense of belonging. However, often ‘othering’ occurs when students’ backgrounds, including their language, previous study practices or cultural experiences, do not conform with dominant norms and practices of education in an English higher education (HE) setting. If identity is shaped through learning encounters and curriculum and assessment practices, then HE teaching must actively invite participation (MacFarlane, 2018). One way to challenge these narratives is to involve students in the production of knowledge related to their university experiences by providing them with opportunities to share aspects of their identities through dialogue and discussion and by acknowledging that intercultural misunderstandings may occur. It may then be possible to achieve a sense of belonging that goes beyond the ‘integration’ discourse (Mittelmeier, 2025) to actively recognise and respect diverse identities, experiences and knowledge that students bring to the classroom, so that these differences are valued as strengths that enrich the learning experience for everyone. In this richer and more complex way, multicultural classrooms can promote ‘belongingness’ and construct powerful strategies to enhance positive learner identities.

‘Often “othering” occurs when students’ backgrounds, including their language, previous study practices or cultural experiences, do not conform with dominant norms and practices of education in an English higher education (HE) setting.’

Exploring the transitions of students from China on a one-year postgraduate taught programme in an English university

The second study examines mainland Chinese students’ transitions into, through and out of a one-year master’s (MA) programme. Based on three waves of interviews comprising 21 students (63 interviews), this doctoral study shows how Chinese students on a postgraduate taught (PGT) programme are diverse and active co-creators in their learning within an internationalised English HE context. Their transitions – comprising academic, linguistic and sociocultural dimensions – are complex and shaped by individual, cultural and institutional factors. The compressed timeframe of one-year, full-time MA programmes heightens the need for accessible support and ongoing recognition of the varied ways that students participate in their learning. Rather than being a singular event at the start of a programme, transitions are multiple, varied and unfolding throughout students’ academic journeys. Institutional approaches which assume that transition and integration are linear, one-off processes can risk overlooking the complex, messy and non-linear realities of students’ lived experiences (Gravett & Winstone, 2021). In other words, ongoing support stretching beyond induction is needed.  

Navigating postgraduate studies and negotiating the value of ‘capital’

This research project was led mainly by MA students who researched the learning experiences of their peers across a range of education-related programmes in one university. Drawing on 33 semi-structured interviews, the study showed how student participants used aspects of their cultural capital to differentiate themselves from their peers and help navigate their studies. Participants consciously and unconsciously grouped their peers into two main identifier groups – ‘home’ students, who had a strong command over English and a sound knowledge of the UK/Western context, and ‘international’ students with comparatively limited English language and reduced UK-context competence. Findings show that the students, and particularly international students, deployed different forms of capital in an attempt to ‘fit in’ and succeed in their studies. Those from backgrounds with advantaged forms of capital (economic, social and cultural) were generally more able to act as ‘fish in water’.

Key takeaways: Negotiating identity, transition and capital

This research highlights how learning extends beyond content in English HE postgraduate programmes where time is compressed and diversity is the norm. Rather, it is about how identities form, inclusion is enacted and students position themselves. It also highlights how students draw on elements of their own cultural capital as they navigate transitioning into and through their MA learning experiences. Consequently, clear course expectations, including an explicit acknowledgement of intercultural challenges, are vital. Students should have ongoing opportunities to share their prior learning and lived experiences, which in turn can inform dialogue and critical engagement with and between peers and tutors and promote agency and belonging.

This blog post is based on three papers presented as a symposium delivered at the Scottish Educational Research Association (SERA) conference in Aberdeen on 19 November 2025.

References

Chen, X. (2025, November). Exploring the transitions of students from China on a one-year postgraduate taught (PGT) programme in an English university [Paper presentation]. Scottish Educational Research Association (SERA) Conference 2025, Aberdeen, Scotland.

Coburn, C., Hamid. E, Connelley, T. (2025, November). Navigating postgraduate studies and negotiating the value of ‘capital’ [Paper presentation]. Scottish Educational Research Association (SERA) Conference 2025, Aberdeen, Scotland.

Gravett, K., & Winstone, N. E. (2021). Storying students’ becomings into and through higher education. Studies in Higher Education, 46(8), 1578–1589.

MacFarlane, K. (2018). Higher education learner identity for successful student transitions. Higher Education Research & Development, 37(6), 1201–1215.

Mili, & Towers, E. (2024). How postgraduate university students construct their identity as learners in a multicultural classroom. Teaching in Higher Education, 29(6), 1621–1637.

Mittelmeier, J. (2025). Against ‘integration’ in research and practice with international students. Journal of Studies in International Education, 29(4), 603–617.