From Struggle to Support: Why International Students Deserve Honest Career Services

Every year, universities around the world welcome thousands of international students. They arrive with hopes, ambitions, and an eagerness to build meaningful careers. But ask them what they find once they enter career services—and too often, the answer is disappointment.

Why? Because many offices rely on generic programs that ignore the reality of what these students face: visa hurdles, cultural barriers, discrimination, and isolation. A polished CV workshop won’t prepare someone for explaining a gap due to immigration paperwork delays. A networking night doesn’t help if students feel excluded from local professional communities.

The truth is, international students need more than encouragement. They need honest, empathetic guidance—and services designed with their realities in mind.

What honesty looks like in practice

Telling international students the truth—about the labor market, visa restrictions, or cultural challenges—can feel harsh. But honesty, delivered with empathy, is one of the most empowering tools we have. Students deserve to know the obstacles they might face so they can prepare strategically, not stumble into them blindly.

Lucia Vuillermin, International Relations Coordinator & Career Counsellor at Turku University of Applied Sciences, has spent over 20 years working across borders and 8 years empowering internationals in Finland. Her approach blends candor with compassion: naming the challenges clearly, while equipping students with practical tools to navigate them.

Lessons from Finland—for the world

Finland, often praised for its education system, has one of Europe’s most competitive labor markets for internationals. Yet, it’s also a place where grassroots communities and tailored integration projects have shown what’s possible when institutions lean into honest support.

Lucia’s experience offers globally relevant insights:

• Why one-size-fits-all programming fails international students
• How to build career services around student voices, not assumptions
• What “support” really means when students are navigating uncertainty abroad

Why this matters now

Higher education is globalizing faster than ever. Universities recruit internationally not just for revenue, but for diversity, innovation, and global reputation. But if these students struggle to transition into careers, institutions risk more than poor outcomes—they risk their credibility.

Career services sit at the heart of this challenge. By moving beyond surface-level advising and embracing honest, student-centered approaches, we can reshape international student success stories.

Join the conversation

On Thursday, September 4, we’re hosting a free webinar with Lucia Vuillermin and our host, Albert Segura, to dive into this crucial topic.

This isn’t just about Finland. It’s about every university asking: are we truly supporting international students, or just advising them?

From Struggle to Support: Building Career Services That Truly Work for International Talent
📅 September 4, 2025
⏰ 4:00–5:00 PM CET | 10:00–11:00 AM EST

Because international students deserve career services that tell the truth, listen deeply, and help them thrive—wherever they are.

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