American International Journal of Contemporary Research Vol. 8, No. 2, June 2018 doi:10.30845/aijcr.v8n2p3 17 The Challenges of Studying in Australia for Saudis Male International Students Naif Daifullah Alsulami Umm Al-Qura University Mecca Saudi Arabia Abstract This article reports on the analysis of a narrative discussion group facilitated by the author as a part of a larger study. The participants of this study are six male Saudi Arabian international students who are enrolled at different universities in Victoria in Australia. This article aims to answer this question: what are some challenges that male Saudis experience as international students in Australia? Participants announced some challenges that they have experienced as international students in Australia. These challenges include academic challenges, cultural challenges, personal challenges and challenges with the Saudi Cultural Mission (SACM). Recommendations for future researchers and implications for practitioners are provided. Keywords: Saudi international students, Challenges of international students, Australia 1. Introduction The most recent statistics, issued in 2016, indicate that 174,333 Saudis, including both undergraduate and postgraduate students, are currently being sponsored as they study abroad (Ministry of Education 2016). The rapid rise in the number of Saudi international students is likely due to the appeal of the program, which reflects the keenness of the Saudi government to develop the country by sending students to study abroad and then return home with high quality knowledge and skills (Ministry Education 2016). In 2015, more than 7339 students, 77.5 per cent male and 22.5 per cent female, were reported to have enrolled in Australian universities, undertaking higher education courses (SACM 2015). Despite the benefits of studying in Australia, male Saudi Arabian international students immediately meet a country that is completely different from their home country in terms of culture, language, lifestyle and educational systems. In addition to the culture shock they might experience, these male students also have language barriers due to the prominent use of Arabic as their first language. This research aims to explore some challenges encountered by male Saudi Arabian international students studying in Australia. The main research question of this research is: what are some challenges experienced by male Saudis as international students in Australia? Previous studies have discussed the experience of Saudi international students such as (Binsahl and Chang 2012; Binsahl, Chang and Bosua 2015). However, these studies focused on the female Saudi international students. As a male Saudi international student studying in Australia since 2012, the researcher holds adequate knowledge and experience the experiences of male Saudis differ than those of their female counterparts. This research, therefore, is filling the gap in the literature by adding the focus of study on the male Saudis students. Although there were some studies discussing male Saudis experience in Australia such as (Midgely 2009a; 2009b), the number of research subjects was very small (e.g. two male Saudis studying the same major that is Nursing). The present study attempts to contribute to the body of knowledge by working on a larger number of subjects (six male Saudi international students) studying in different fields, such as: business, information technology, emergency care and nursing and educational technology. It also includes various universities in Victoria and different regions in Saudi Arabia (See section 4). This various contexts and uniqueness enhance the research findings and differentiate this study from the previous ones, while at the same time enrich the literature. The structure of this article begins with the contextualisation of the study, followed by the literature review. Consecutively, the article presents the research methodology, findings, and discussions. Finally, this research concludes with some implications and recommendations based on the results.