Best questions for student survey about international student support

Here are some of the best questions for a student survey about international student support, plus key tips on how to design them. You can use Specific to build a survey like this in seconds—let’s dig into what really works.

Best open-ended questions for student survey about international student support

If you want to uncover real insights about international student support, open-ended questions are our go-to. They let students voice stories, challenges, or compliments in their own words—far beyond a simple yes or no. These are invaluable for surfacing issues or suggestions you never thought to ask. With 94% of international students in U.S. programs reporting positive feelings about their support services, thoughtful open questions help explain the “why” behind that satisfaction—and highlight where you could improve even more. [1]

1. What has been your most helpful experience with international student support services so far?

2. Which resources do you wish were available but currently aren’t?

3. Describe any challenges you’ve faced accessing support as an international student.

4. How has your arrival and adjustment period been? Were you offered enough support?

5. Can you share an example where student support staff went above or beyond your expectations?

6. How do you find information about support resources (events, counseling, accommodation help)?

7. If you could change one thing about international student support, what would it be?

8. Are there any cultural or language barriers you’ve experienced when seeking support?

9. What advice would you give to new international students starting this year?

10. Anything else you’d want us to know about your student support experience?

Best single-select multiple-choice questions for student survey about international student support

Single-select multiple-choice questions come into play when you want to get clear, quantifiable data and spot patterns quickly. These are perfect for checking the prevalence of experiences or satisfaction—and help kickstart a deeper conversation. Sometimes, it’s easier for students to pick from options before you dig deeper with follow-ups.

Here are a few examples with choices:

Question: How satisfied are you with the international student support services?

• Very satisfied

• Satisfied

• Neutral

• Dissatisfied

• Very dissatisfied

Question: Which support service do you use most often?

• Academic support/advising

• Career services

• Personal/wellbeing counseling

• Visa or immigration guidance

• Accommodation assistance

• Other

Question: How easy is it to find information about support services here?

• Very easy

• Somewhat easy

• Neutral

• Somewhat difficult

• Very difficult

When to follow up with “why?” Anytime a student picks a less-than-positive option (“Dissatisfied” or “Somewhat difficult”), follow up with “Why do you feel this way?” or “Can you describe what could be improved?” That’s how you get actionable details—and it’s where conversational AI really shines, organically prompting for more.

When and why to add the “Other” choice? Always allow for “Other” when you suspect your list isn’t exhaustive. It’s an open door for unexpected feedback, letting students explain unique situations, which automated follow-up questions can then explore in depth.

NPS for student support—should you use it?

The Net Promoter Score (NPS) question is a proven way to measure whether students would recommend your institution to others—a strong indicator of their overall satisfaction and how well your support stack up. This is especially powerful in the context of international student support: research shows that satisfaction with learning and support services directly impacts whether students become promoters or detractors. [3] An NPS-style question (0 to 10, “How likely are you to recommend our support services to another international student?”) paired with a follow-up “What’s the main reason for your score?” helps you see patterns at scale. You can instantly generate an NPS survey for student support with Specific and start collecting actionable feedback in minutes.

The power of follow-up questions

Follow-up questions turn so-so survey answers into gold. Instead of settling for vague feedback, AI-powered surveys like Specific’s can instantly prompt students for clarification, detail, or concrete examples—right in the same flow. This means richer insights without chasing people down with emails. Specific’s automated follow-ups are designed to “think” like a researcher, always chasing the real story.

• Student: “I had issues understanding the accommodation rules.”

• AI follow-up: “Can you tell me more about which rules were unclear, and how we could make them easier to understand?”

How many followups to ask? Two to three follow-ups are usually enough to dig deep without fatiguing respondents. Specific lets you set limits and stop asking once you’ve got what you need, making it easy to balance depth with respect for time.

This makes it a conversational survey: The experience feels like a genuine back-and-forth, not a cold form—respondents often open up more in a chat-style exchange.

AI response analysis, qualitative insights: Even when follow-ups produce long-form, unstructured text, it’s simple to analyze every response using AI. No more sifting manually—the tech summarizes, finds trends, and generates actionable recommendations on the spot.

Automated AI follow-ups are a game-changer—try generating a survey just to see how conversational feedback collection should feel.

How to write ChatGPT prompts for student survey about international student support

If you want to use AI tools like GPT for writing survey questions, the better your prompt, the better your survey. To quickly get started, keep it simple at first:

Suggest 10 open-ended questions for student survey about international student support.

But, if you feed the AI more about your context and goals, you get much stronger and more relevant questions:

Suggest 10 open-ended questions for a survey targeting international students at a U.S. university, aiming to understand which support services (wellbeing, visa, accommodation) are most effective and what gaps still exist for new arrivals.

Next step: categorize and build out your survey structure:

Look at the questions and categorize them. Output categories with the questions under them.

Finally, you can ask for more depth in any area:

Generate 10 questions for categories such as Arrival Experience, Academic Support, Wellbeing Resources.

Think of your survey prompt as a mini-brief—the more you give, the more you get back!

What is a conversational survey?

A conversational survey is not just ticking boxes—it adapts to the respondent, follows up naturally, and feels personal. Unlike static survey forms, an AI survey generator like Specific gives you not just better questions, but a smarter, real-time chat experience that gets to the root of each issue.

Why use AI for student surveys? It’s a difference you feel as much as see—responses are more thoughtful, you discover unexpected patterns, and you can get results right away. Try any AI survey example to see the shift from old-school to conversational insight. Specific’s conversational surveys boost both the respondent and creator experience (and let you create a survey in minutes with no training curve).

See this international student support survey example now

Want to see what conversational survey feedback really looks like? Try an international student support survey with Specific right now—capture deeper insights, save time, and elevate your feedback process with AI-powered follow-up and analysis.