Contextualization of Saudi international students' experience in facing the challenge of moving to mixed gender environments

This paper is part of a larger study that investigated the experiences of international students from Saudi Arabia. One of the major challenges these students faced was moving from a gender segregated environment to mixed gender environments. Gender segregation is a defining element of Saudi political and religious life. We explore gender segregation as a topic that is increasingly debated within Saudi society as a balance between a modernizing state and traditional/conservative Islamic practices is sought. For some there is also a perceived threat from western ideas as the Saudi population engages with the global community through international education and digital technology. In this article we provide context for the development of the practice of gender segregation by giving the historical background and identifying the major discourses surrounding the practice. We argue that in a context where Wahhabi ideology is dominant in both religious, political and cultural spheres practices, however recently acquired, are a powerful influence on the formation of a Saudi individual and on internal and external relationships within the culture and with other cultures.