PIRE PROGRAM: INTERNATIONAL

EDUCATION PERSPECTIVE

Kristin Kutella

September 20, 2012

PIRE 2012 Conference

INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION AY 10-11 IIE OPEN DOORS REPORT 2011

Inbound international students to the US

Total students= 723,277

Business (21.5%)

Engineering (18.7%)

Math & CS (8.9%)

Physical & Life Sci. (8.8%)

Social Science (8.8%)

Fine & Applied Art (5.1%)

Health Professions (4.5%)

Intensive English (4.5%)

Education (2.3%)

Humanities (2.2%)

Agriculture (1.4%)

Other (10.5%)

Undeclared (2.8%)

INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION AY 09-10 IIE OPEN DOORS REPORT 2011

Outbound US students studying abroadSocial Sciences (22.3%)Business & Mgmt (20.8%)Humanities (12.1%)Fine & Applied Arts (8.3%)Physical & Life Sci. (7.5%)Foreign Languages (5.8%)Health Professions (4.7%)Education (4.1%)Engineering (3.9%)Math & CS (1.5%)Agriculture (1.3%)Undeclared (3.2%)Other (4.5%)

Total Students= 270,327

INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION IIE OPEN DOORS REPORT 2011

STEM= Science Technology Engineering Math

Inbound int’l students AY10-11

Outbound study abroad students

AY09-10

STEM (41%)Other (59%)

STEM (17%)

Other (83%)

“About 16% of all study abroad students are in the STEM fields compared to about 26% of the general undergraduate population.”~IIE Study Abroad White Paper 5- March 2009

TRENDS IN STEM STUDY ABROAD PARTICIPATION

IIE Study Abroad White Paper 5- March 2009

CHALLENGES FOR STEM STUDENT STUDY ABROAD RECRUITMENT

STEM fields have more difficulty accommodating new elements in already demanding programs For example- introduction of foreign language

requirements Faculty support

Faculty may not see value in sending students abroad (esp. for fields with tightly focused technical skill set)

Difficult to justify without pressure from employers or gov’t agencies

Accrediting agencies Funding

Some believe that STEM field students would be more hesitant to pay for an experience abroad when they are accustomed to being paid for their work

COUNTER POINTS General push for global competency in state-funded

institutions By 2008, 22 states had passed legislation stressing

importance of international education Faculty support

Exchange programs are faculty-driven Collaboration, research, publication

Accrediting agencies Some accrediting agencies have begun to incorporate “global

competence” in assessment criteria For example, ABET 2000 added: “the education necessary to

understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global & societal context”

Funding Scholarships & Grants are available Generally, students in STEM tend to fall in

“underrepresented” categories

“UNDERREPRESENTED” IN STUDY ABROAD Race/Ethnic Heritage

Caucasian students = 80.5% Gender

Female students = 64.2% Field of Study

Social Sciences, Business + Humanities= 55%

LocationEurope = 55%

Term8 weeks or less programs= 55%Percentages are % of national population of study abroad

students from AY08-09 ~Open Doors 2010

PIRE STUDENT ADVANTAGES

Race/Ethnic Heritage- varied Gender- high male population Field of Study- STEM field Location- Traditional location Term- summer, semester or academic

year Language- German language

exposure Program- Specifically related to

students’ field of study & research component

MOVING FORWARD

Funding options are available

PIRE grant is very generous

Experience is worthwhile, even if complete funding cannot be matched

AFTERNOON SESSION TOPICS Is it the case that science students need

to find funding sources to participate in great numbers in study abroad or are there other ways?

How do we best engage science faculty to increase their involvement in study abroad programs (aside from giving them research funding)?