Possibility of Alienation at University as Experienced by a Specific Group of Myanmar Youths

บทคัดย่อ

This research has been done based on the experiences of student participants from Myanmar who are studying their higher education at different university campuses in the upper Myanmar. The responses given by these participants were made to the question: ‘Can you tell me a bit about what university life has been like for you?’ On the basis of their responses, a thematic analysis was conducted that explored how these participants experienced alienation specific to their setting arising from:1) Loneliness because of:a. isolation from peer groups; andb. a lack of pre-existing friendship groups at university;2) Feeling out of place because of:a. demographic differences from peers,b. residing at a great geographic distance from campus; andc. negative self-concepts in relation to others at university;These experiences engendered different (3) coping strategies involving:a. exiting the institution;b. adapting to their experiences of it; orc. hoping that a change in the future will bring better experiences.These themes and sub-themes are related to other works on alienation in higher education. Finally, this research offers a brief consideration of the limitations of the approach taken here, as well as some implications of the findings for higher education providers and stakeholders.