Need for the Intercultural Awareness in Erasmus Mobility -Administrative point of view

Abstract. In recent years, mobility has become one of the most important goals inside the European Union (EU). Different projects and programs support the mobility of students, teachers and other employed persons. From program to program and project to project, goals are different. Through employment, companies have the need for different experts or the need to work with international teams. They can also offer jobs for placements and for young experts for their first employment (like the Leonardo da Vinci program), while for students and teachers, the main goals of mobility are learning and teaching in different environments (like the Erasmus program) as well as learning languages and benefiting from cross-cultural experiences. Both students and teachers come from different cultural environments and the host organisation has to take care of intercultural awareness in all levels of activities, from administration up to teaching and passing exams

Intercultural perceptions among undergraduate students in English for Business and Economics courses.

The practice of intercultural communication should be a primary goal of Language for Specific Purposes (LSP) courses in tertiary education, because, through language instruction, future professionals can become aware of intercultural differences and develop strategies to deal with them, thus equipping themselves with necessary skills for effective cross-cultural communication in a globalized work environment. In this study, the intercultural awareness of first and second year undergraduate students attending an English for Business and Economics course was examined in relation to their interest in the economy and culture of other countries as well as to their preferred sources of information about current economic issues. Their preferences and perceptions regarding the intercultural elements incorporated in the methods and material used in the English course were also explored. The analysis of the Likert-type questionnaire revealed that intercultural awareness needs to be further practiced in class and led to important implications for the teaching methods and tasks used in the LSP courses.

Analysing higher education policy design towards developing a framework of international student experience in Malaysia

In spite of the annual increase in the number of internationally mobile students travelling across borders for higher education, a holistic overview on the students' study and living experiences is lacking. International studentsencounter various difficulties in adjusting to academic, social and lifestyle challenges faced tlu'oughout their duration of study. As such, the main aim of this study is to develop the "international student experience" conceptual framework capable of facilitating higher education practitioners in designings policies and initiatives to support the international student population. The context selected for this study is Malaysia as international student recruitment underlines the country's agenda 111 international ising its higher education system. Towards this aim, five policy documents from four countries well - established in international student recruitment, namely Gennany, the Netherlands, ew Zealand and Australia were coded and analysed following conventions outlined under the discourse analysis method. It was found that higher education institutions play central role in international student management, in collaboration with various participants within and outside the institutions. The design of policies significantly impact interpretation and delivery of "intemational student experience"across higher education systems. This include how each policy statement is written, the inclusion of policy instruments binding the participants to their responsibilities, the level of operation and tangible sanctions outlined, the legitimation and enforcement of policy statements among the participants, and the values and principles projected to the participants through the policies.As such, the design of policies defining the "intemational student experience" in the Malaysian higher education system must take into consideration the overarching principles underlying intemational student recruitment, targeted intemational student population, autonomy to higher education institutions, regulated segments, legal enforcement across public and private higher education institutions, empowered network of participants, and flexibility for future expanSIOn