The effect of international students in developing intercultural communication: The case of YTB Sakarya University students

With the impact of globalization on education, the internationalization of higher education has become inevitable. This makes it attractive for students to study in a country outside their own country. World countries have made significant progress in economic, social, political and cultural fields by increasing international communication and interaction with international student mobility. Turkey, with new revisions brought to the internationalization of higher education and international student mobility has determined its position among the world countries. YTB our country hosts the international student mobility, Turkey Founded in 1992, Büyük Öğrenci Projesi in 2012 has increased the functionality on this issue by converting the system. International students coming to our country to provide all kinds of opportunities and conditions, scholarship program is comprehensive and the amount is higher by considering the cultural activities of students who complete their education when they return to their countries and other countries, political and economic developments in terms of bringing the world a good position in terms of internationalization of internationalization has become a dynamic center. International students from different countries of the world have a very important denominator in terms of the effect of cultural diversity and the development of intercultural communication in our country and gaining intercultural awareness. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of international students who are scholars of YTB scholarship in higher education in Sakarya University in the development of intercultural communication. The factors affecting intercultural communication among students as a result of the interviews conducted with 30 YTB scholarship students from 25 different countries; culture, education, language, religion and social environment. In these themes, the process of adaptation of the students to the Turkish culture, education, language, religious life and social environment in Sakarya University, in the places they live and in the city of Sakarya, the cultural shocks they experienced, the problems and the differences created by the differences were revealed. With the exception of the 5 main themes, students opinions and expectations regarding the YTB were taken and the aim was to guide the work of the relevant institution through the eyes of the students.