Open Journal of Social Sciences, 2024, 12, 318-329 https://www.scirp.org/journal/jss ISSN Online: 2327-5960 ISSN Print: 2327-5952 DOI: 10.4236/jss.2024.128020 Aug. 22, 2024 318 Open Journal of Social Sciences Challenges and Strategies for the Adaptation of International Students to the Canadian Workplace Nam Phuong Le, Adnan Sarwar ACSS Department, University Canada West, Vancouver, Canada Abstract International students have a significant impact on the host country’s econ- omy. In Canada, they can help create jobs, contribute to the GDP, and solve the problem of labour shortages. Despite their significant contribution, inter- national students have undergone a lot of challenges without appropriate sup- port. Many international students reported being discriminated against due to many factors ranging from the language barrier to the lack of local experience. Thus, they experience mental distress and physical health issues. This study will explore the challenges that international students are facing and the strat- egies that they implemented to adapt to the Canadian workplace. The signifi- cance of the student can help policymakers develop plans to support interna- tional student workers, which ultimately contribute to the Canadian economy. The study result confirms the challenges faced by international student work- ers in previous literature. Several adaptation strategies were identified, such as 1) building networks, 2) gaining local working experience through volunteer- ing, internship or on-campus jobs, 3) utilizing support from the university or professors, 4) leveraging family or friend support, and 5) upgrade their skill and knowledge to better fit with the new working environment. Keywords International Students, Migrant Workers, Globalization 1. Introduction Migration workers have become a global phenomenon lately. The total number of migration workers has increased significantly in the last couple of decades to ap- proximately 281 million, which is roughly 3.6 percent of the world population How to cite this paper: Le, N. P., & Sarwar, A. (2024). Challenges and Strategies for the Adaptation of International Students to the Canadian Workplace. Open Journal of So- cial Sciences, 12, 318-329. https://doi.org/10.4236/jss.2024.128020 Received: July 10, 2024 Accepted: August 19, 2024 Published: August 22, 2024 Copyright © 2024 by author(s) and Scientific Research Publishing Inc. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY 4.0). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Open Access