Background

I was appointed Lecturer in Applied Linguistics at Newcastle University in June 2015, having previously worked as a Research Associate at the Research Centre for Learning and Teaching (CfLaT).

Background

After graduating with an undergraduate degree in Political Science from the University of Salzburg, I went on to study for an MA in Cross-Cultural Communication and Education at Newcastle University. I subsequently studied for a PhD at ECLS, investigating the adjustment and adaptation of international postgraduate students in the UK. I completed my PhD in February 2014. 

I am a member of the British Association for Applied Linguistics (BAAL), the British Educational Research Association (BERA), and the International Association of Language and Social Psychology (IALSP). I served a three-year term as IALSP Secretary from 2014-2017. 

In June 2016 I was awarded the James J Bradac Early Career Prize for my work on the international student experience.

Research

My research interests focus mainly on transnational mobility, in particular international student mobility and the internationalisation of higher education. I am especially interested in international student adjustment and adaptation. I also research in the field of social psychology of communication, in particular the role of 'culture' in professional contexts and the concept of intercultural competence. 

Current funded research:

Principal investigator: 

The 'international student experience' in 2021: The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the academic, psychological and sociocultural adjustment of international students in the UK' funded by the NU Institute for Social Science. 

Co-investigator: 

• Global Citizenship and Multilingual Competences (GCMC), Erasmus   Strategic Partnership (2020-2023): https://gcmc.global 

Recent funded research: 

• Critical Skills for Life and Work (CSLW): Developing the Professional Intercultural Communicative Competence of Highly Skilled Refugees, Erasmus Strategic Partnership (2017-2019): http://cslw.eu 
• Approaches and Tools for Internationalisation at Home (ATIAH), Erasmus Strategic Partnership (2017-2019)

I am happy to supervise doctoral research in the following areas: internationalisation in higher education, international student adjustment and adaptation, intercultural transitions in internationally mobile individuals. I offer expertise in mixed-methods research using both qualitative and quantitative methods of enquiry (e.g. interviews, focus groups, surveys and questionnaires). 

Current PhD projects I supervise: 

• Cross-cultural adaptation and identity change: A study of Asian student sojourners in the UK
• Cross-cultural adaptation of Saudi Arabian international ESL students in UK higher education
• Exploring the level of intercultural competence and language proficiency as factors in international students' adjustment in the UK 
• International students: the jewel in the crown for higher education in preparing the global leader 
• Understanding international postgraduate students' adjustment in a British university: motivations for study abroad and subsequent academic, sociocultural and psychological experiences 
• Improving the personal creativity of international higher education business students 

Teaching

I am module leader for:

• ALC8007 Professional Communication Skills (Semester 2)
• ALC2010 Professional Communication Skills (Semester 1) 

I also contribute to the following modules:

• ALC8001 Social Psychology of Communication
  
• ALC8003 Research Portfolio

Publications

• Liang Y, Schartner A. Culturally Mixed Group Work and the Development of Students’ Intercultural Competence. Journal of Studies in International Education 2020, epub ahead of print.
• Schartner A, Young TJ. Intercultural Transitions in Higher Education: International Student Adjustment and Adaptation. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2020.
• Young TJ, Schartner A, Ganassin S, Walsh S. Displacement and Professional Reintegration – ‘Success Stories’ from the European Refugee Crisis. In: European Association of Social Psychology Annual Conference. 2019, University of Bologna, Italy.
• Pho H, Schartner A. Social contact patterns of international students and their impact on academic adaptation. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development 2019, epub ahead of print.
• Valentine RA, Wakeling LA, Ferrie LJ, Schartner A, Guilding C, Peterson J. Students on Student Induction – A Cross-Disciplinary Action Research Project. ARELCS 2019, 16(2), 1-29.
• Ganassin S, Walsh S, Young TJ, Schartner A. The Critical Skills for Life and Work Project: Intercultural Communicative Competence and the Reintegration of Refugee Professionals in Europe. In: International Association for Intercultural Research 11th Biannual Conference. 2019, Shanghai, China.
• Young TJ, Tullo AS, Schartner A, Smith D, Shanmugaraja P, Ong G, Goodson ML. Communication, person-centeredness and the care of people with dementia: Perspectives of medical students in the UK and Malaysia. In: American Association for Applied Linguistics Conference. 2018, Chicago, Illinois: American Association for Applied Linguistics.
• Robson S, Almeida J, Schartner A. Internationalization at Home: time for review and development?. European Journal of Higher Education 2018, 8(1), 19-35.
• Schartner A, Cho Y. 'Empty signifiers' and 'dreamy ideals'. Perceptions of the 'international university' among higher education students and staff at a British university. Higher Education 2017, 74(3), 455-472.
• Young TJ, Tullo ES, Schartner A. How transculturally appropriate is person-centred communication in the care people living with dementia? Perspectives of medical students in the UK and Malaysia. In: The 67th Annual Conference of the International Communication Association (ICA 2017). 2017, San Diego, California: ICA.
• Young TJ, Tullo ET, Schartner A. Person-Centred communication and the care of people with dementia: exploring the perspectives of medical students in the UK and Malaysia. In: 17th Alzheimer's Association International Conference. 2017, London, UK.
• Young TJ, Handford M, Schartner A. The Internationalising University – An Intercultural Endeavour?. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development 2017, 38(3), 189-191.
• Young TJ, Handford M, Schartner A. The internationalising university: an intercultural endeavour?. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development 2017, 38(3), 189-191.
• Young TJ, Schartner A, Brandt A. Cross-Cultural Communication and Engineering Education. In: Invited talk to Tokyo University staff and Japanese Engineering Employers. 2016.
• Young TJ, Schartner A, Tullo E. Intergroup and intercultural perspectives on communication and living with dementia. In: British Association for Applied Linguistics Intercultural Communication SIG Annual Seminar. 2016, Open University, London.
• Young TJ, Schartner A, Brandt A. Internationalisation of Higher Education: A UK Perspective. In: Invited talk to Tokyo University staff. 2016, Tokyo University, Japan.
• Young TJ, Tullo ES, Schartner A. Person-Centred communication and the care of people living with dementia: exploring the perspectives of medical students in the UK and Malaysia. In: 15th International Conference on Language and Social Psychology (ICLASP15). 2016, Bangkok, Thailand: International Association of Language and Social Psychology.
• Schartner A. The effect of study abroad on intercultural competence: a longitudinal case study of international postgraduate students at a British university. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development 2016, 37(4), 402-418.
• Schartner A, Young TJ. The Internationalising University: An Intercultural Endeavour? Perspectives From Around the Globe. In: International Conference on Language and Social Psychology (ICLASP15). 2016, University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, Bangkok, Thailand.
• Schartner A, Young TJ. Towards an integrated conceptual model of international student adjustment and adaptation. European Journal of Higher Education 2016, 6(4), 372-386.
• Young TJ, Walsh S, Schartner A. Which English? Whose English? Teachers’ beliefs, attitudes and practices. London: British Council, 2016. ELT Research Papers 16.04.
• Schartner A. A longitudinal case study of the cross-cultural adjustment and adaptation of international postgraduate students in the UK. In: European Conference on Educational Research. 2015, Corvinus University, Budapest, Hungary.
• Schartner A, Young TJ. Culture Shock or Love at First Sight? Exploring the 'Honeymoon' Stage of the International Student Sojourn. In: Fabricius, AH; Preisler, B, ed. Transcultural Interaction and Linguistic Diversity in Higher Education. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave MacMillan, 2015, pp.12-33.
• Young TJ, Schartner A. Does Cross-Cultural Communication Education ‘work’? An Investigation of International Higher Education Students in the U.K. In: World Conference on Education. 2015, Dublin. In Press.
• Schartner A, Cho Y. Perceptions of ‘internationalisation at home’ and ‘global citizenship’ among higher education students and staff. In: 48th Annual Meeting of the British Association for Applied Linguistics. 2015, Aston University, Birmingham.
• Athanasopoulos P, Bylund E, Montero-Melis G, Damjanovic L, Schartner A, Kibbe A, Riches N, Thierry G. Two languages, two minds: Flexible cognitive processing driven by language of operation. Psychological Science 2015, 26(4), 518-526.
• Schartner A. 'You cannot talk with all of the strangers in a pub': a longitudinal case study of international postgraduate students' social ties at a British university. Higher Education 2015, 69(2), 225-241.
• Schartner A. Are we really communicating cross-culturally? The learning and teaching experiences of international postgraduate students on a MA programme in Cross-cultural Communication. In: 7th Annual NE Universities (3 Rivers Consortium) Regional Learning and Teaching Conference. 2014, Collingwood College, Durham University.
• Young TJ, Schartner A. Sojourner Adjustment, Adaptation and Performance and the Study of Inter/Cross-Cultural Communication. In: Annual Seminar of the British Association for Applied Linguistics Special Interest Group in Intercultural Communication. 2014, Edinburgh University: British Association for Applied Linguistics.
• Young TJ, Schartner A. The effects of cross-cultural communication education on international students' adjustment and adaptation. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development 2014, 35(6), 547-562.
• Young TJ, Schartner A, Windeatt S. The Internationalizing University: An Intercultural Endeavor? Retrospective accounts of the 'international student experience'. In: The 14th International Conference on Language and Social Psychology (ICLASP). 2014, Honolulu, Hawaii: Department of Communicology, University of Hawaii at Manoa.
• Wright C, Schartner A. ‘I can’t...I won’t?’ International students at the threshold of social interaction. Journal of Research in International Education 2013, 12(2), 113-128.
• Schartner A. ‘I don’t need the British to communicate in English.’ A longitudinal analysis of international postgraduate students’ social networks. In: 46th Annual Meeting of the British Association of Applied Linguistics. 2013, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.
• Young TJ, Schartner A. 'After all this I try to not put people in a box': The effects of cross-cultural communication education on academic adjustment and adaptation. In: 46th Annual Meeting of the British Association of Applied Linguistics. 2013, Herriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.
• Young TJ, Sercombe PG, Sachdev I, Naeb R, Schartner A. Success factors for international postgraduate students' adjustment: exploring the roles of intercultural competence, language proficiency, social contact and social support. European Journal of Higher Education 2013, 3(2), 151-171.
• Schartner A. From the decision to study abroad to the arrival in the host country: Exploring the role of pre-arrival factors in the international student experience. In: 13th International Conference of Language and Social Psychology (ICLASP). 2012, Leeuwarden, the Netherlands.
• Wright C, Schartner A. 'I can’t...I won't?' International students at the threshold of social interaction. In: 45th Annual Meeting of the British Association of Applied Linguistics. 2012, University of Southampton: British Association of Applied Linguistics.