Based on the results of the interview, there are internal motivations and external motivations when continuing their studies in Europe. The five informants shared about their internal motivation and external motivation. There are some forms of internal motivation such as desiring to experience studying far from home, seeking experience, improving language skills, increasing knowledge, wanting to know what it feels like to live abroad, and sharpening work specialization to benefit society.

“Because at that time, in the job regulation, there were benefits if you studied abroad. Especially at that time, I had taken intellectual property rights intending to help the promotion and marketing of Indonesian content abroad.” (Informant 4)

External motivations are shared by the scholarship alumni, such as the presence of colleagues who are motivated to continue their studies in Europe. Another external motivation is a curriculum and reputation owned by the destination campus. This is shown by the data obtained from Informant 1.

“Maybe I start to be motivated around four years later. Starting from some seniors (mentioning some names of colleagues who are currently or finished studying abroad) just came home, all of them are studying abroad.” (Informant 1)

From the results of the interview, there are expectations and realities experienced while in Europe. These expectations and realities are over-expectation and under-expectation. Over-expectations such as the reality of friendship that is dominant occur with Indonesians and not with Europeans, expectations to get high scores are not as high as imagined, and expectations on the use of English are not appropriate.

“GPA (abroad) turns out to have a range not on a scale of 1-4, but 0-10. I expected to get a GPA of 8, but then he (his friend) said getting a GPA of 8 was very difficult, GPA of 7 was already good haha. So yes, it has.” (Informant 2)

Under-expectation is experienced when scholarship alumni face very cold or hot weather that is more than expected at the beginning of leaving for Europe. They also do not expect that there will be a lot of group work in graduate studies.

“And I didn't have any expectations at the beginning (chuckles). I thought it would be like that, but it turns out that there are so many group projects.” (Informant 2)

There are stereotypes felt by scholarship alumni when they continue their studies. Their faces who represent Asian society make them considered passive and shy people. Their classmates assume that Asia people are considered too shy to ask questions during lectures, are smart in mathematics, and are weak in English writing academics. One of the scholarship alumni was even shouted at by a local person.

“Looks like I've experienced it (experienced stereotypes). When I wanted to take the bus, I kept being cheered by, Chinese, COVID COVID. Why? I confused. Hmm, maybe it's because my face is like an Asian." (Informant 5)

During their studies, scholarship alumni found several cultural differences that were felt both in the lecture process and in daily life. They feel the diversity of classmates' backgrounds, the habit of not talking about lectures during holidays, and the use of time when doing assignments.

“It's really different, for them (local students) time is money because time is very valuable and precious. So, if we get group tasks, we are targeted to finish on time. It means what we must achieve, then we focus on having to solve it. I think it’s different compared to Indonesia, sometimes it is a bit wasteful of time to chat or for others, it becomes less effective and efficient” (Informant 3)

There is also an informant who finds differences in alcohol consumption patterns that are generally only consumed at night, it becomes commonplace to be consumed since noon. The use of bicycle transportation as the main transportation and the cultural differences in work life are also real.

Communication between students and lecturers goes two ways. The interaction that occurs between lectures and scholarship alumni in Europe runs dynamically. They can interrupt the conversations in class, ask lecturers, and conduct discussions outside lecture hours.

“The interaction was surprising hmm, for example, if we want to interrupt the lecturer, we can do it at any time. So, when the lecturer is talking, then we interrupt it, no problem, just raise your hand. Yes, raise their hands, The lecturers haven't finished talking, they just interrupt it. And that’s okay.” (Informant 3)

Based on information from one of the informants, students are also free to meet lecturers or professors outside of lecture hours. The meeting happens casually, unlike a formal meeting when facing a person who is higher than us.

“So, they (lecturers and students abroad) always have two-way communication. The professor does not always present the material of the class from the beginning to the end. But they also asked for the opinions of college students. The class discussions are interactive and everyone plays a role in learning.” (Informant 5)

The interaction that occurs between scholarship alumni and lecturers does not only occur in class. The results found that lecturers can be contacted outside of lecture hours. Students who want to discuss outside lecture hours simply make an appointment with the lecturer. As confirmed by informant 5, students who want to discuss outside lecture hours simply make an appointment with the lecturer.

“When lecturers or professors are in their room, students can go discuss directly with them. It's better to make an appointment in advance. But for example, if you don't have time to make an appointment and want to discuss, just meet in the room, casual and informal.” (Informant 5)

After returning to Indonesia, scholarship alumni in Europe brought some new habits that they got after passing the study period in Europe. Some of them continue to use the products they use in the study country, and some have unconsciously adopted relaxed or laidback habits like people in the study country.

“But the Englishman has a habit of laidback. Not relaxed in the sense of how it is, but how to solve problems casually. Maybe that's what makes the cave will be more laidback in the work scope or pressure, it’s more like how to finish your job effectively, so don't worry too much” (Informant 4)

Then, from the results of the study, there is also one of the alumni who became accustomed to not eating bread and not having rice to feel full.

“Ah yes, if you don't eat rice, it doesn't matter. Now the principle is you don't have to eat rice. You can eat anything besides rice, like bread, cheese, vegetables, or any Western food. Before going abroad, eating rice is something that seems mandatory in Indonesia. It's not okay if you don't eat rice. But after returning from college (abroad), it feels no longer.” (Informant 2)

tudying in Europe is not without obstacles. The academic issues and challenges experienced by scholarship alumni can be obstacles in their lectures due to differences in learning culture with Indonesia. Based on data collected from five scholarship alumni in Europe, four scholarship alumni in Europe experienced academic obstacles. There are two academic obstacles experienced, namely internal and external obstacles. Internal constraints consist of obstacles in working on the thesis and obstacles in English.

“The obstacles in the thesis preparation occur during the practicum process. When working on the thesis preparation, there is an experimental part. At that time, when conducting experiments, the results were not always successful. Many of my experiments failed, not according to the expected results.” (Informant 3)

English is also an internal obstacle experienced by scholarship alumni in Europe. Some of the English language barriers experienced include listening or conversing, writing, including concerns about conveying something in English.

“Speaking English was initially an obstacle. I sometimes get constrained when speaking English. When I hear an English conversation, I have a hard time understanding the word (with a chuckle). Inwardly puzzled ‘What did they say?’ Sometimes I want to communicate in English, but I’m afraid of saying a wrong phrase or word" (Informant 1)

External obstacles based on findings from interviews consist of the passive members in the project group, obstacles in finding internship places, and obstacles in implementing online lectures. One informant experienced problems while working on a group project, where the group consisted of various students from various countries. Data found in the field said that not all group members were active in discussions or task work. This is an obstacle because informants find it difficult when one group member does not contribute well and even likes to disappear during group discussions.

“But once the group work, yes there are also those who disappear and left their work irresponsibly. This is very troublesome and disturbing for others.” (Informant 5)

Another finding, namely obstacles when finding an internship place. One informant said that internships are part of the curriculum that students must follow in the final year. The campus gives freedom for students to find their respective internship places according to the topics mastered. Along with the internship time, the COVID-19 pandemic suddenly changed the habits of all lines of life, including the learning process and internship plans. So it was very difficult to find an internship place at that time.

“My obstacle is to find an internship place. That's an obstacle, I have applied for maybe 30 applications. But there is no company that is interested in hiring me as their intern staff.” (Informant 3)

The interview results revealed that several public places and campuses were closed and inaccessible during the pandemic, one of which was the campus library. This makes it difficult for one of the scholarship alumni because they cannot access the reference resources provided by the campus library. This reference will be used as material for preparing a thesis.

“Maybe it's because of the pandemic situation. So, I started the thesis period during the initial pandemic, in early 2020. I wonder because we don't know what's going on. Many libraries continue to close, while many journals can only be accessed on campus, using campus networking. Some places must follow the lockdown policy from the government during the COVID-19 pandemic. That situation limited our movements to find some literature in the campus facilities.” (Informant 5)

The five informants claimed that they were able to attend lectures well, despite differences in academic culture. However, one of the informants said that she experienced excessive anxiety due to poor communication between him and his supervisor. If this is not handled properly, it can hinder the completion of the final task. While another informant said that she was stressed to the point of crying. Stress is a problem and challenge faced further by scholarship alumni in Europe. The stress occurs in the context of lectures and daily life. Even stress in their study makes the scholarship alumni in Europe cry.

“I consulted with a psychologist to overcome my anxiety... I can’t build good communication with the professor. I’m afraid that I can’t finish my thesis.” (Informant 2)

“Hmm... Actually, not that stressful, sis. But once cried too. But I was crying because it's already overwhelming.” (Informant 1)

In addition to the stress experienced during lectures, stress is also experienced by the informants in daily life. Scholarship alumni in Europe had been ill while abroad and had discomfort with living conditions.

“The challenge may be during the first four months. I don't know why, maybe because I was uncomfortable with the accommodation. I didn’t like the housing neighborhood. At that time, it was just stressful for me, I really wanted to move and find another housing where the environment was comfortable.” (Informant 4)

Weather is a new finding revealed by scholarship alumni in Europe. The weather in Europe is a problem that was not previously encountered by scholarship alumni when they studied while in Indonesia. The weather that is a problem and obstacle is cold and hot weather. Cold weather made the atmosphere of discussion in class less active, and cold weather made the mood gray or gloomy.

“I feel that the atmosphere in the classroom is less lively when the weather is gloomy. The weather can affect a person's mood.” (Informant 1)

Hot weather is another problem encountered when scholarship alumni in Europe study there. The hot weather according to information from scholarship alumni in Europe feels very hot and unpleasant.

“Heatwave - this temperature can be 40C, it's hot because there is no fan, and my housing is really hot. So in the end, I went diligently to campus to do something in the cool area.” (Informant 2)

During their studies, all scholarship alumni in Europe have a support system that comes from Indonesians and non-Indonesians in the country where they study. One of the scholarship alumni chose to tell the support system, who is Indonesian, to find solutions for their problems.

“If there is a problem, sometimes I cry in front of my Indo friends. I think the existence of Indo friends is very helpful.” (Informant 1)

The other informant chose to see a professional psychologist, who is not Indonesian, to seek support in overcoming her anxiety. According to the interviews, the anxiety felt by informants was mostly caused by academic problems on campus.

“I consulted to a psychologist (resident) to overcome anxiety. The campus facilitates students related to mental health issues.” (Informant 2)

The results of the research found that scholarship alumni in Europe had interactions with fellow Indonesian students.

"But some Indo students are living there. We often get together like cooking, chatting, sharing, supporting each other. It's exciting to feel like you're not alone here." (Informant 3)

In addition, some informants have interacted with Indonesians who are not students, including interacting with waiters or owners of Indonesian restaurants.

"Where to eat? I often eat at Indo restaurants and often chat with the waiter and owner because they have known each other. So, it's fun for me when I come there, sometimes while telling stories too, continue to be given support such as motivation with the owner" (Informant 2)

Based on the results of the interview, it was also found that all alumni of scholarship recipients fill their free time by traveling around the countries in Europe. Some of them travel abroad because the location of the country where they study is quite strategic.

“Of course, traveling (laughs). Because Germany is quite strategic. The location is in the West. If you want to go anywhere, it's quite near." (Informant 5)

Meanwhile, the interview results also found that there was one of the scholarship alumni in Europe who filled his spare time by watching musical performances.

“It’s a lot. I choose to travel more, travel to other cities usually. I also often watch musical performances in London." (Informant 4)

Self-management is carried out by scholarship alumni in Europe to face daily life and lectures. One of the scholarship alumni expressed the need to learn independently about matters related to lectures.

“Self-learn and self-study by digging myself and because I’ve already been a graduate student.” (Informant 4)

This research finds that one form of self-management is carried out in the form of strategies for survival in academic life. The scholarship alumni said that adaptation is an important thing to survive when studying abroad.

"We have to adapt, follow the surrounding culture, for example drinking warm water. Everything adapts by itself, humans have a sense of survival in certain circumstances, or certain conditions." (Informant 5)

Based on the results of interviews, it is known that each informant has a different strategy in his academic life. The strategies are built from within themselves and also help from those around them. In overcoming academic issues and challenges, self-management and building relationships with others were important, because they can help the informants adapt to their academic life. Various strategies were carried out by the five informants while studying abroad and led them to complete their studies on time.

Figure 1 is an Instagram social media screenshot of the personal account of the scholarship alumni in Europe and the Indonesian student organization followed by one of the scholarship alumni in Europe. Based on observations on these social media accounts, scholarship alumni in Europe uploaded various moments during their studies in Europe. They not only study but also interact with other Indonesian students. Social interaction that is established includes interaction with colleagues in the classroom and Indonesian student association organizations. Interactions were also carried out with students and residents as seen from their social media posts. Apart from the uploaded image, the caption written on the photo shows the existence of a support system formed between scholarship alumni in Europe, both with colleagues in class and Indonesian student association organizations.

Other social media posts show that scholarship alumni in Europe are often traveling, both within the city and outside the city or in other countries besides the country of study. They don't go traveling alone, but together with colleagues in the Indonesian Student Association Organization. Based on the caption on their social media, it is known that scholarship alumni in Europe traveled on the sidelines of a busy college life. Other pictures show that scholarship alumni in Europe travel outside the country where they study to enjoy the scenery of the country. All Instagram screenshots support the research data, where social interaction with Indonesians, support systems, and traveling are strategies or academic solutions carried out by scholarship alumni in Europe.

The four themes in Figure 2 were obtained from the results of thematic analysis. Four interconnected themes were found to identify the experiences of scholarship alumni in Europe. These themes include the fantasy of studying abroad, a touch of foreign culture, academic problems and challenges, and academic strategies or solutions.

The concept of motivation to study in Europe and expectations vs the reality faced after arriving in Europe form a theme that is classified into the fantasy theme of studying abroad. The concepts of stereotypes, cultural differences, power distance, and new habits are grouped into themes of foreign cultural touch. The concept of academic constraints during lectures, stress in daily and academic life, and the concept of European weather form the theme of academic problems and challenges. The concept of a support system, social interaction with Indonesians, traveling activities during study in Europe, and selfmanagement owned by scholarship alumni are grouped into the theme of academic strategies or solutions. Researchers grouped the four themes above into a big theme, Navigating Educational Crossroads: Unveiling the Cultural Journey of Indonesian Graduate Students in European Scholarship Programs namely the experience of alumni scholarship recipients in Europe.

The results of field data collection show that there is a motivation that encourages scholarship alumni to continue their studies in Europe. In addition to motivation, expectations that clash with reality are other things that are encountered and experienced by them. While studying in Europe, scholarship alumni feel a new touch through interaction with new cultures in the destination country. Scholarship alumni in Europe also find new experiences when interacting in class with lecturers and other students. During the interaction process, there were also various academic problems and challenges encountered while studying in Europe. The scholarship alumni in Europe have carried out several strategies or solutions to overcome these problems and challenges. This strategy or solution has indirectly formed new habits that are then carried by scholarship alumni in Europe when returning to Indonesia.

The research found that there are motivations that generate expectations from scholarship alumni in Europe. This motivation comes both from internal and external. In addition, researchers also found a clash between expectations and the reality faced by scholarship alumni in Europe. Expectations in studying abroad were previously discussed in a study conducted by (Pacheco, 2020) which found that cultural stuttering can be minimized if there is a match between expectations and reality. In contrast to previous research, this study found that expectations that do not match reality do not necessarily make scholarship alumni culture-shocked. These inappropriate expectations and realities are not a source of problems in college and daily life. Motivation, expectations, and reality build the fantasy of studying abroad with scholarship alumni in Europe and then becoming part of the experience during their studies.

During their studies in Europe, scholarship alumni feel a touch of foreign culture, both in college and daily life. The scholarship alumni in Europe felt the difference in power distance between Indonesia and Europe. Power distance itself has two different degrees, high power distance and low power distance (Alshahrani, 2017) (Cortina et al., 2017) (Hofstede et al., 2010). In this study, scholarship alumni in Europe did not feel the existence of high-power distance as felt in Indonesia. The power distance they found in Europe was so low, that the students' relationships with lecturers felt more casual. Students and lecturers can talk or discuss casually, and even students can interrupt the lecturers when teaching in class. Alumni who received scholarships in Europe explained that their lecturers are also more flexible to meet outside the classroom, in contrast to the academic culture in Indonesia.

In daily life, interaction with the local culture provides an unpleasant experience. Previous research discussed prejudice from lecturers and local students regarding the language skills of international students (King & Bailey, 2021)(Zhai & Razali, 2022). This study found something similar but in the form of stereotypes related to students' national and racial identities.

However, not all experiences related to cultural differences bring unpleasant experiences. Cultural differences also construct new habits that scholarship alumni in Europe feel when they return to Indonesia.

Academic problems and challenges in studying abroad have been discussed in some literature (Amiri & Puteh, 2018)(Gong et al., 2021)(Haneda, 2014)(Zhai & Razali, 2022). This research finds the existence of academic constraints, stress, and weather as a background to the academic problems and challenges of scholarship alumni in Europe. There were difficulties in speaking English in previous studies (Amiri & Puteh, 2018)(Haneda, 2014)(Zhai & Razali, 2022), also found in this study. Some English language barriers are experienced such as difficulties in communicating and writing, and worries about conveying something in English. In addition, other obstacles that were found in this study include obstacles in working on the thesis, passivity of members in group projects, and obstacles in finding an internship. The implementation of online lectures turned out to be an obstacle felt by scholarship alumni in Europe.

According to academic obstacles, scholarship alumni in Europe also experience stress while living there. (Gong et al., 2021) found that differences in education and teaching systems represent academic challenges experienced by international students. These challenges put pressure on the scholarship alumni in Europe to experience stress. From the findings of this study, there are differences in the education and teaching system between Indonesia and Europe, including too many courses and assignments and incompatibility between supervisors when preparing the thesis. These were found to be stress triggers for scholarship alumni in Europe. Further findings in the study found that there were other stressors, such as experiencing pain and discomfort with living conditions. European weather conditions were a distinctive finding that became another problem and academic challenge. Hot weather is felt very hot and unpleasant, while cold weather makes the mood of scholarship alumni in Europe and people around gloomy. These weather conditions then change the atmosphere of discussion and classroom learning becomes passive.

In the face of the academic problems and challenges experienced by scholarship alumni in Europe, they have a variety of academic strategies or solutions. Academic strategies and solutions from previous research can include learning the local language with locals, finding a language teacher, and deepening knowledge of local culture (Gong et al., 2021)(Leung & Yu, 2022)(Zhai & Razali, 2022). In contrast to previous studies, the findings in this study revealed the distinctive academic strategies or solutions of scholarship alumni in Europe. These academic strategies or solutions include the presence of a support system, the emergence of social interaction with other Indonesians, traveling while studying in Europe, and self-management. Support from fellow Indonesians and foreigners is used as a support system for alumni scholarship recipients in Europe. The existence of a support system is supported by social interaction between scholarship alumni in Europe, both with fellow students and nonstudents. The interactions include making friends with Indonesians, joining the Indonesian Student Association (PPI), interacting with Indonesians in student dormitories, and interacting with church communities, waiters, or Indonesian restaurant owners in Europe.

Academic strategies or solutions that become unique findings in this study are traveling activities during college and self-management carried out by scholarship alumni in Europe. Scholarship alumni in Europe traveled to the city center or other countries with Indonesian friends who became their support system to fill their free time and long holidays. The purpose of other traveling activities carried out by scholarship alumni while in Europe such as doing assignments or theses and watching musical performances.

Academic strategies or solutions are not only supported from outside themselves but also from within themselves in the building of self-management. Self-management carried out in lecture activities and daily life includes management of completing assignments or thesis activities independently (self-paced), management for self-learning (self-learn), and stress management by reading books (self-help). They also manage themselves by setting lecture targets, self-reflection in every course, financial management, survival strategies, time management, prioritizing various activities, and always focusing on the targets they want to achieve while in Europe.

Based on the discussion above, the motivation that generates expectations clashes with the reality faced by scholarship alumni in Europe. The touch of foreign culture that they feel during college and daily life, makes them have to deal with several problems and challenges. Strategies and solutions are also needed to ease the study process to complete lectures on time. The initial assumption of this study is that the strategy or solution needed only focuses on academic life. But in reality, the strategies and solutions used by scholarship alumni in Europe are not only in academic life but also in daily life. All of these things then construct the adaptation experience of scholarship alumni in Europe.

The process of adaptation in the new country was previously proposed by Lysgaard in 1955(Samovar et al., 2013). He found that the process of adaptation to the new culture takes place in four phases, namely the exhilaration stage, disenchantment stage, and adjustment stage until finally, the newcomers can function effectively in the new environment (effective functional stage). Unlike the adaptation process by Lysgaard, this study does not see the occurrence of the adaptation process immediately in line with the phases of Lysgaard. If it is associated with the Lysgaard phase, there is indeed anticipation by alumni of scholarship recipients in Europe in the form of motivation and expectations. In addition, adjustments also occur in the college life of scholarship alumni in Europe. However, these adjustments continued and not only stopped at the effective functional stage but also gave birth to habits that eventually carried back to Indonesia.