American international students’ motivation to study abroad in Thailand

ABSTRACT

As the transnational education market continues to grow, Asian universities are experiencing a more significant influx of short-term visiting and exchange students from western nations. This article summarises research on the motivations of American international students studying in Thailand. The purpose of this study is to better understand the impact of push pull factors that influenced the study abroad decision-making process. During 2019–2020 both qualitative and quantitative inquiries were utilised through primary data collecting using in-depth interviews and hard copy surveys. This study aims to contribute to higher education service delivery, the design of nation-specific marketing materials, and assist policymakers regarding appropriate steps needed to facilitate the continuation of this trend in higher education within the Asian context. Although the data were collected longitudinally, generalizability may be limited as this study was conducted in one institute of higher learning prior to the novel coronavirus outbreak.

KEYWORDS:

• US study-abroad students
• push–pull motivations
• Asia
• Thailand higher education

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).