PROFILE OF INTERCULTURAL COMPETENCY IN INDONESIAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Abstract

Higher Education Institutions around the world are seeking to increase the international experience on campus for their students to prepare graduates for a globalised workforce. Intercultural friendships are one crucial setting for developing intercultural competency, but research has shown international students find it difficult to make friends with local students during study overseas. This research investigated the attitudes of local students tasked with assisting new international students as they settle into university study in Indonesia. A mixed-method  questionnaire was sent to local students from the Sahabat DIA program at Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, yielding 25 responses. Questionnaire analysis revealed a profile the hopes and motivations for local students to grow in their intercultural competence as well as acknowledging their high willingness to communicate interculturally. It was found that the primary motivation for intercultural friendship of local students was to increase their future opportunities through networking connections and forming beneficial close relationships, both interculturally and by working together with the Sahabat DIA organisation. A strong focus on organisational solidarity was suggested as most important for these program outcomes.