Sense of Belonging Among International and Domestic Students after COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic created unprecedented challenges for university students worldwide, including a sense of belonging, a determinant linked to mental health and academic success. Pandemic-related travel restrictions, online learning, and social isolation compounded existing struggles with cultural adjustment, language barriers, and discrimination. Domestic students from the global majority, historically marginalized racial backgrounds similarly faced declining belonging due to the pandemic's disproportionate impacts. This study examined how academic and social satisfaction influenced these belonging disparities during the crisis while highlighting implications for social work practice.

This study used 2021 data from the Student Experience in the Research University (SERU) survey at the University of Iowa (N = 3,884), International students (n = 118), including both graduate and undergraduate students. This study employed linear regression to analyze belonging differences between international students and their domestic peers. Results revealed racial identity was a stronger predictor of belonging than international status, with African American (b = -0.84, p < .001), Asian (b = -0.42, p < .001), and multiracial students reporting substantially lower belonging than white peers. While the small international student sample showed only a modest negative association with belonging (b = -0.11, ns), the effect size suggests meaningful practical implications for this vulnerable population. Academic (b = 0.69) and social satisfaction (b = 0.55) emerged as potential protective factors, though the small international student sample limited statistical power to detect significant associations. These findings underscore the need for targeted social work interventions that address the academic and social dimensions of student well-being, particularly for the global majority, historically marginalized groups disproportionately affected by pandemic disruptions.

For practice, universities can implement more peer mentorship programs that pair new international students with culturally competent upperclassmen and create identity-affirming spaces where the global majority, of historically marginalized students can share experiences. Social workers should advocate for culturally responsive counseling services that address intersectional stressors related to race, migration status, and pandemic trauma. At the policy level, institutions can develop emergency protocols that specifically support international students. These include guaranteed housing during crises, flexible attendance policies for students in different time zones, and dedicated funding for multilingual mental health resources. Future research can employ mixed-methods designs to capture student narratives while disaggregating international student data by region and race to identify subgroup vulnerabilities. Longitudinal studies could track how pandemic-related belonging gaps affect long-term academic outcomes.