Studying abroad and the effect on international labor market mobility: evidence from the introduction of Erasmus

We investigate the e¤ect of studying abroad on international labor market mobility later in life for German university graduates. As a source of identifying variation, we exploit the introduction and expansion of the ERASMUS student exchange program, which significantly increases a student's probability of studying abroad. Using an Instrument Variable approach we control for unobserved heterogeneity between individuals who studied abroad and those who did not. Our results indicate that student exchange mobility is an important determinant of later international labor market mobility: We find that studying abroad increases an individual's probability of working in a foreign country by about 15 to 20 percentage points, suggesting that study abroad spells are an mportant channel to later outmigration. The results are robust to a number of specification checks

Studying Abroad and the Effect on International Labor Market Mobility: Evidence from the Introduction of Erasmus

We investigate the e¤ect of studying abroad on international labor market mobility later in life for German university graduates. As a source of identifying variation, we exploit the introduction and expansion of the ERASMUS student exchange program, which significantly increases a student's probability of studying abroad. Using an Instrument Variable approach we control for unobserved heterogeneity between individuals who studied abroad and those who did not. Our results indicate that student exchange mobility is an important determinant of later international labor market mobility: We find that studying abroad increases an individual's probability of working in a foreign country by about 15 to 20 percentage points, suggesting that study abroad spells are an mportant channel to later outmigration. The results are robust to a number of specification checks.

Complexity Theory: An Approach to Understanding the Weak Relationships between Valparaiso’s International and Non-International Student Populations

The Valparaiso University campus is becoming more diverse as each year passes. The undergraduate population on campus is experiencing a rise in international admissions. Although the University has many recognized student organizational groups, including VISA (Valparaiso International Student Association), these student organizations are failing to connect with one another, which results in a very fragmented student population rather than an intertwined group of young adults. The prior being the case, this campaign directly targets the international student association known as VISA, and is related to increasing student awareness (both international and national) of the VISA organization, their events, and also increasing student participation and membership within the program. This campaign will likely prove to be mutually beneficial to both the VISA program and to all other campus organizations that form partnerships with VISA. Within the campaign, several questionnaires were circulated to international and national students as well as to key dignitaries within specific and pre-identified campus organizations. With the feedback that was obtained through these questionnaires, plans were formulated to form partnerships with campus organizations, by which VISA and all partnered programs could realize a mutual benefit from the campaign. This benefit included, but was not limited to, increasing publicity and awareness of VISA events during the calendar year. The results of the campaign included the exchange of experiences between VISA and non-VISA organizations on the Valpo campus. The focus groups further confirmed: 1) stereotyping by each group toward the other, 2) the lack of incentive to mix, and 3) the need for leadership to facilitate better understanding and to create opportunities to mix student groups

The Whalesong

Services meet students' special needs -- Safety report good news -- Democracy done right -- Post-Thanksgiving puzzle -- Free-flowing talent show entertains -- When finals reign -- What is your Christmas personality? -- No fun? We're in: Conway performance review -- Perseverance Theatre works to secure endowment -- Loving his work: DJ Lou Dog lays out his style -- Academic exchange: Taking students around the globe -- Professor emphasizes environmental writing -- Santa and his elves? -- Student tells about the funniest time she almost died -- The Power of Babel offers interesting look at world languages' connections -- Kyle Wark examines the art of the human language -- Hope for music program needs demand, fundin

Gender gap in the ERASMUS mobility program

Studying abroad has become very popular among students. The ERASMUS mobility program is one of the largest international student exchange programs in the world, which has supported already more than three million participants since 1987. We analyzed the mobility pattern within this program in 2011-12 and found a gender gap across countries and subject areas. Namely, for almost all participating countries, female students are over-represented in the ERASMUS program when compared to the entire population of tertiary students. The same tendency is observed across different subject areas. We also found a gender asymmetry in the geographical distribution of hosting institutions, with a bias of male students in Scandinavian countries. However, a detailed analysis reveals that this latter asymmetry is rather driven by subject and consistent with the distribution of gender ratios among subject areas

Outbound student exchange at Australian and New Zealand universities: the effects of pre-departure decision-making, in-country experiences and post-sojourn outcomes

There is increasing student mobility around the world and a growing focus on transnational education. Until a decade ago in Australia and New Zealand the emphasis was on attracting international students to be full-fee paying (FFP) enrolments. Consequently, much of the research has focused on issues relating to the psychosocial and sociocultural adjustment, and learning and teaching needs of FFP international students. Recently, there has been a growing field of work from the US and Europe examining outbound student mobility programs including cultural and language tours, study abroad and student exchange. Although student exchange is purported to be an effective method for increasing the intercultural competence of domestic students to perform in the global marketplace, there is a paucity of research empirically examining the student exchange experience. Thus, this thesis examined student exchange in the Australian and New Zealand context. This research project investigated the processes and outcomes of the student exchange experience for Australian and New Zealand university students. This thesis examined how many students participate in exchange programs; who these students are; why they participate and what impact this experience has in terms of intercultural competencies and international orientation. This research project is unique as it represents the first detailed national study of student exchange in both Australia and New Zealand. Reflecting the longitudinal study in this thesis, a model was developed spanning the three phases of the exchange sojourn: pre-departure, in-country, post-exchange. The model incorporated the factors that influence Australian and New Zealand students to participate in an exchange program and the variables which affect their experiences in the host country. It was proposed that these factors influence the outcomes of the exchange experience. Two additional models provided further details of the factors influencing the exchange decision-making process and students’ experiences in the host country. Multiple methodologies were adopted across the four studies in this thesis in order to understand the factors at all phases of the exchange experience that may impact upon the outcomes of the sojourn. The first study encompassed an analysis of each institution’s strategic plan in regards to student mobility to consider organisational factors influencing participation in the exchange program. Additionally, Study One examined student exchange participation at Australian and New Zealand universities from 1996-2005. The second study had two purposes. Firstly, it examined the personal characteristics of exchange students before departing on their sojourn in order to establish a baseline of competencies. Second, Study Two compared these traits with those of non-exchange students to investigate personal drivers and barriers of mobility. The third study was comprised of interviews with students who were studying on an exchange program in Canada to identify the significant experiences of students in the host culture and to gain insight into how their experiences may have influenced the outcomes of the sojourn. The final study explored the changes in exchange students’ intercultural competencies by comparing their skills measured at the pre-departure stage with those reported approximately six months after returning home. Study Four also considered students’ pre-departure expectations and experiences in the host country. The findings from Study One revealed that despite increasing attention on outbound student mobility at both the government and university level, in 2001 less than one percent of Australian and New Zealand university students engaged in exchange programs. Furthermore, only 23 out of 40 universities expressed student exchange as a strategic goal. No significant relationship was found between the presence of a strategic goal of student exchange and the proportion of students participating in the exchange program. However, participation is not simply affected by the presence of a specific goal of mobility, but factors such as organisational culture, leadership and resourcing affect how policy is implemented. Further research examining the impact of these organisational factors is warranted. The outcome of implementing a policy relating to student mobility is also dependent on the students. The results from Study Two indicated that a priori exchange and non-exchange students were different groups, particularly in terms of intercultural competencies and demographics. Before their sojourn, exchange students presented with higher levels of cultural empathy, open-mindedness, social initiative, flexibility and emotional stability than their non-mobile peers; that is, exchange students possessed the necessary intercultural competencies to aid their adjustment in the host culture. The typical exchange student was female, from a middle-upper socio-economic background and enrolled in a dual degree. The reasons reported by exchange students for studying overseas included a desire to maximise their educational success and employment opportunities, to travel and to experience a new culture. In contrast, non-exchange students remained at home due to the cost of going abroad and a lack of awareness of exchange opportunities at the home university. Study Three provided the link between the factors influencing a student to participate in the exchange program and the reported outcomes by examining their experiences in a host culture, Canada. Overall students reported satisfaction with their in-country experience and few participants identified that they experienced culture shock. This may reflect the perceived negative connotation of this phenomenon. Before departing on their sojourn, the exchange students reported that they had expected life in Canada to be the same as at home. However, they did report mild difficulties with adjusting to differences in areas such as communication, accommodation, the climate, shopping, teaching and learning methods, and friendships with host nationals. Increasing the perceived value of pre-departure training and ensuring that orientation by the host institution focuses on practical and logistical issues may improve students’ expectations and adjustment. Future studies examining the processes of intercultural sojourn should consider more detailed qualitative analysis of students’ in-country experiences to gain a deeper understanding of the time abroad and how it may cause changes within the individual. Study Four revealed that overall there was no change in exchange students’ levels of intercultural competencies, regardless of their host destination. However, there was a trend for students to become more flexible because of the exchange experience. In acknowledgment of the findings in the literature of the outcomes of exchange programs, it is speculated that students become more aware of pre-existing skills. While no significant changes in intercultural competencies were observed, further investigation of other skills such as intercultural sensitivity, intercultural communication competence and social self-efficacy is warranted. After their time abroad, the exchange students continued to be internationally oriented, expressing high desire for future work and travel overseas. In addition to the theoretical models presented in this thesis, this research also has practical implications. The model and the results of these studies provide universities with a better understanding of how to manage their exchange programs. This work is equally relevant to government policy makers as they seek ways to enhance the international capabilities of future employees

Propuesta para un programa de intercambio de alumnos de escuelas de ingeniería en países de Latinoamérica y el Caribe

The evolution of industrial society to a knowledge society has provided the ideal scenario for the evolution of higher education which has undergone severe changes in the last quarter century. Some of these events are setting new trends, with mobility and academic exchange being some of them. This article aims to formulate a proposal for an exchange program for students from engineering schools in Latin America and the Caribbean, taking as reference the ATHENS Program developed in Europe with considerable success. The proposal is mainly characterized by being a student mobility program to develop intensive courses for short periods of time in various subject areas in the field of engineering, with the aim of making available to more students the benefits of academic mobility for the integral development of the participants. Keywords ? Academic mobility, Student mobility program, ATHENS Programme, Schools of engineering

Studying Abroad and the Effect on International Labor Market Mobility: Evidence from the Introduction of ERASMUS

We investigate the effect of studying abroad on international labor market mobility later in life for university graduates. As a source of identifying variation, we exploit the introduction and expansion of the European ERASMUS student exchange program, which significantly increases a student’s probability of studying abroad. Using an Instrument Variable approach we control for unobserved heterogeneity between individuals who studied abroad and those who did not. Our results indicate that student exchange mobility is an important determinant of later international labor market mobility: We find that studying abroad increases an individual’s probability of working in a foreign country by about 15 to 20 percentage points, suggesting that study abroad spells are an important channel to later migration. We investigate heterogeneity in returns and find that studying abroad has a stronger effect for credit constrained students. Furthermore, we suggest mechanisms through which the effect of studying abroad may operate. Our results are robust to a number of specification checks.international mobility, migration, student exchange, education

The Vienna Diplomatic Program: Goals and Outcomes in a Non-Traditional Study Abroad Program

The University of Illinois??? Vienna Diplomatic Program provides a nontraditional, semester-long study abroad opportunity for students interested in international organizations. It is grounded in a philosophy of experiential learning that combines study abroad and learning-by- doing in a capstone research project. The VDP is one of several programs using the administrative auspices of the University???s Austria-Illinois Exchange Program for its infrastructure. Students in the VDP may take English-language courses on international relations at our Vienna partner universities, or take German-language courses if their skills are sufficiently advanced. While in Vienna, each student writes a major research paper on one of the international organizations in Vienna. The Organization for Security Cooperation in Europe, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law, and the European Union have been the most popular subjects for research. Students report very high levels of satisfaction with the program. Students tend to come from political science, economics, and history, and appreciate having a study abroad program with a social-science and public policy focus. Student satisfaction is evident in the important role of word-of-mouth in publicizing the program. Graduates have gone on to both research-oriented and policy-oriented positions. Another group seems to have benefited from immersion into the transnational community of the expatriate, leading them to careers based on cross-cultural exchange and globalized society. Because the program is less than ten years old, we do not yet know its effect on the long-term career paths of its alumni.published or submitted for publicationnot peer reviewe

The Last Word: Impressions of China

In September of 1984 Joyce Leung was part of a delegation from Bridgewater State College that traveled to China to negotiate a faculty-student exchange program with Shanxi Teachers’ University. While in China she visited five cities in the northern part of the country including the capital of Beijing