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International students transitioning to university undergo dramatic changes in social identity, with a need to adapt to a new culture, language, environment, and way of living. This paper explores the impact of this social identity change on academic performance, academic retention, mental health, and life satisfaction. The Social Identity Model of Identity Change (SIMIC) predicts that during life transitions of this form, an individual's group memberships and associated social identities can protect them from the negative effects of life change. This longitudinal study tested SIMIC among international students (N = 210) transitioning to study overseas, with data collected at three time points across a Foundation Year programme in a large Australian university. Consistent with SIMIC, continuity of social identities predicted higher academic performance and better life satisfaction, and indirectly predicted student retention over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

What role does academic development have to play in responding to radical cultural shifts in the global landscape? Whose voices and identities are contributing to institutional change? This reflective essay encompasses the perspectives of the four international panellists in the opening plenary of the International Consortium for Educational Development (ICED) 2018 conference in Atlanta, Georgia, USA – Torgny Roxå on ideologies; Chng Huang Hoon on agency and empowerment; Joy Mighty on voices and identities; and Mary Deane Sorcinelli on evidence and outcomes. These perspectives set the stage for the conference, and, brought together in this paper now, they address key conference themes, offer coordinates for reflection, and pose further questions about our profession. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]