From Offshore ELB at home to tertiary mainstream study overseas

An academic journey

Abstract

International students significantly contribute to the economies of some countries, particularly those that are English-speaking. For this reason, initiatives to enhance the academic performance of international students in several host countries have been focused on. Their enhanced performance can contribute to the university’s global ranking and overall reputation, revenue generation, and student enrolment growth. The present study examines the efficacy of an offshore academic enabling program, Offshore English Language Bridging (ELB), in preparing students for mainstream studies at Curtin University in Australia, focusing on two key areas: student exam performance and student perception of the program’s effectiveness. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the performance of 684 Chinese students across four sets of grades: ELB results (in the home institution), Semester 1 results, Semester 2 results and Course Weighed Averages (CWAs) at Curtin University. The program’s efficacy was investigated through focus group interviews. The results indicated that the ELB students performed extremely well as a cohort in both their onshore semesters of study after completing the ELB course. Three types of perceived efficacies – academic, affective and socio-cultural – were identified in the interview transcripts. The study reveals that offshore ELB programs can help international students to perform strongly in host university courses.