A new report, Joint and Double Degree Programs in the Global Context, released by the Institute of International Education (IIE) and the Freie Universität Berlin, finds that a growing number of universities around the world are developing joint and double degree programs, and that nearly two-thirds of the responding institutions reported that they launched these new degree programs in the past decade. The study finds that a development that largely started in Europe in the 1990s has now become an increasingly important global trend, with 95 percent of the nearly 250 respondents in 28 countries saying they want to develop more joint and double degree programs.

The study, based on a survey conducted in spring 2011, assesses the current landscape of joint and double degree programs and identifies the challenges, opportunities, motivations, and impact of developing such programs. The report presents findings from a global perspective, as well as country-specific trends for the six countries with the highest number of institutions responding to the survey: Australia, France, Germany, Italy, the UK, and the U.S.

This study builds on a 2009 policy study by IIE and the Freie Universität Berlin, funded by the EU-U.S. Atlantis Program of the U.S. Department of Education’s Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) and the European Commission. While the earlier survey focused exclusively on transatlantic joint and double degree programs, the new study expands the scope of the research and aims to assess the global landscape of collaborative degree programs. The 2009 project resulted in a survey report, Joint and Double Degree Programs in the Transatlantic Context, and a book, Joint and Double Degree Programs: An Emerging Model for Transatlantic Exchange, which features practical recommendations for developing and delivering collaborative degree programs between U.S. and European universities.

To read the full report, please visit: www.iie.org/Research-and-Publications/Publications-and-Reports/IIE-Bookstore/Joint-Degree-Survey-Report-2011

 

Today, the Institute of International Education's West Coast Center will host a roundtable discussion on "Women-Led Solutions to Local and Global Problems," featuring Tina Tchen, Executive Director of the White House Council on Women and Girls and Chief of Staff to First Lady Michelle Obama. The roundtable is organized by a group of NGOs, including the Global Women's Leadership Network, International Museum of Women, Spark, U.S. National Committee for UN Women, Women's Funding Network, and IIE.

IIE is coordinating the roundtable to coincide with the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Women and the Economy Summit, which is convened by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and takes place this week in San Francisco. At the summit, senior private and public sector players from the 21 APEC countries and 700 delegates will address four key themes related to women and the economy: Access to Capital, Access to Markets, Skills and Capacity Building, and Women's Leadership. Attending the Summit on behalf of IIE as part of the U.S. delegation are Trish Tierney, Director of IIE’s West Coast Center and Executive Director of IIE's Center for Women's Leadership Initiatives, and Heather Ramsey, Director of Global Partnerships.

The IIE roundtable will feature a keynote presentation by Ms. Tchen, who will provide insight into the strategy of the White House Council on Women and Girls and the priorities of the Office of the First Lady of the United States, relating to women and efforts to promote their leadership development. Roundtable participants will represent members of the NGOs’ networks and membership, including women leaders from business, nonprofit, and local government who are actively contributing to women's empowerment in the Bay Area and globally.

For more information, please visit: www.iie.org/Who-We-Are/News-and-Events/Press-Center/Press-Releases/2011/2011-09-14-IIE-Host-Roundtable-Event-APEC-Women-Economy-Summit

 

An article published in the Wall Street Journal reports that over the past decade, the United States’s relationship with the Islamic world has changed significantly, offering hope for stronger ties. The U.S. Department of State has increased its number of Arabic speakers, and doubled the number of foreign service officers in Arabic and Islamic countries. Moreover, the number of U.S. student studying abroad in Arabic-speaking countries has increased five-fold, from 889 students in 2000-01 to 4,485 students in 2008-09, according to statistics from the Institute of International Education.

To read the full article, please visit: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904836104576556831091845232.html

 

An article in The Malaysian Insider reports that the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education aims to attract at least 200,000 international students to Malaysian higher education institutions by 2020. Malaysia currently attracts over 90,000 international students each year. Commenting on the success in increasing their incoming student numbers, the Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin noted: "Malaysia’s strategic regional position forms a melting pot of confluence that allows cross-fertilization of ideas, cultures and civilization dialogism."

To read the full article, please visit: www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/government-aims-to-attract-200000-international-students-by-2020/

 

An article in the Chronicle of Higher Education reports that Green River Community College outside of Seattle has managed to increase its international student enrollments by 10 percent over the past two decades by "positioning itself as a gateway to highly competitive programs in top universities across the United States." Nearly all of the international students enrolled in Green River Community College end up at a university. As the article notes, "For international students who may lack the money, high-school grades, or English-language ability to be directly admitted to an American university, community colleges provide another route to a bachelor's degree." By positioning itself as an institution that will prepare international students to transfer to a university in two years, Green River Community College has managed to attract increasing numbers of international students.

To read the entire article, please visit: http://chronicle.com/article/Community-College-Draws/128927/

 

March 31 – April 2, 2012
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Call for Proposals Submission Deadline: November 15th, 2011

The EducationUSA East Asia & Pacific Regional Conference will gather U.S. higher education representatives and over 70 EducationUSA advisors representing over 25 countries and territories in East Asia Pacific for an intensive three-day training conference in Kuala Lumpur. The conference will focus on successful recruitment strategies for U.S. universities in East Asia Pacific, collaboration with the EducationUSA network, new technologies, and recent trends in U.S. higher education.

This conference is designed to strengthen the EducationUSA advising network in East Asia Pacific and to enhance the quality and portfolio of services provided to prospective international students and the U.S. higher education community.

For more details, see: www.educationusa.info/conferences/KL_2012 or contact kl2012@educationusa.info.

 

IIE-USIEF U.S. HIGHER EDUCATION FAIRS IN INDIA 2011
New Delhi, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, and Mumbai
November 4 – 14, 2011
Final Registration Deadline: September 16, 2011

The fair series in India, organized by IIE and the U.S.-India Educational Foundation (USIEF), offer excellent opportunities for Indian students to meet U.S. university representatives. The fair schedule is perfectly timed for school and college visits: Mid-term exams are over at most schools, the Indian festival season is past, and students are ready to turn their attention toward U.S. admissions in 2012.

IIE offers other options that allow U.S. colleges to take advantage of our fairs:

• Use your alumni: Save on your international travel costs by asking your local alumni to represent your institution at the IIE fairs.
• Literature-only: Can’t travel? Simply send us your brochures and materials and we will distribute them at the fair for you.

Please visit www.iiehongkong.org/ufair/ for detailed information, including fair schedule and local market trends. You may also contact info@iiehongkong.org.

 

Application Deadline: October 21, 2011

The IIE Scholar Rescue Fund (SRF) is pleased to announce a call for applications for threatened academics whose lives or work are in danger in their home countries. Fellowships support temporary academic positions at safe universities and colleges anywhere in the world.

Who Can Apply
Professors, researchers, and lecturers from any country or field may apply. Please refer eligible candidates and forward this announcement to any academic colleagues who may be interested.

• Qualifying applicants are currently facing or have recently fled from direct and immediate threats
• Professors, established researchers, and other senior academics from any country, field, or discipline
• Preference is given to scholars with a Ph.D. or other highest degree in their field, who have extensive teaching or research experience at a university, college, or other institution of higher learning
• We strongly encourage applications from female scholars and under-represented groups

Students or professionals seeking funding to pursue academic studies or training are not eligible.

To Apply
Please download the application materials from: www.scholarrescuefund.org/pages/for-scholars.php

To Host a SRF Scholar
Please visit: www.scholarrescuefund.org/pages/for-hosts.php
Contact SRF@iie.org for questions.

How the Scholar Rescue Fund Works

Fellowships support visiting academic positions for up to one calendar year. Awards are issued for up to US $25,000, plus individual health insurance coverage.

Fellowships are disbursed through dedicated host academic institutions, which provide direct support and a safe haven for SRF scholar-grantees. In most cases, host campuses are asked to match the SRF fellowship award by providing partial salary/stipend support and/or housing, material support for researching/publications, and other in-kind assistance.

For a decision by the end of November, please submit application materials by October 21, 2011.

Applications are accepted at any time and can be considered on an emergency basis.
Visit www.scholarrescuefund.org for more details.

 

March 13-15, 2012
The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre, London
Deadline for Submitting Proposals: September 16, 2011, at 17:00 BST.

The proposition of the Going Global 2012 conference is that education has the ability to shape and connect the lives of people around the world. But doing this would require us to radically rethink the nature of our universities and colleges. Just how radical must that vision be? Are traditional institutions equipped to create this new reality or does it call for freer and more dynamic thinking? How can we move from vision to reality?

The conference will focus on three key themes: the future world, the connected world, and winners and losers. The British Council welcomes proposals from around the world for the conference. The deadline for submitting a proposal is: Friday, September 16, 2011, at 17:00 BST.

For more information, please visit: www.britishcouncil.org/goingglobal.htm

 

A new report commissioned by the Australian Education International (AEI) North America examines the impact of recent resource declines on U.S. college and university internationalization policies. Relying on interviews with academic, corporate, and governmental experts in international education, the report concludes that the fiscal challenges that most U.S. universities are facing have led to greater recruitment efforts of international students as a revenue source, along with fewer, more strategic partnerships with international universities.

Nevertheless, the report concludes that "no matter how dire the funding situation, it is unlikely that U.S. higher education institutions, especially research universities, will retreat from expanding their international focus."

To read the full report, please visit: www.aei.gov.au/International-network/northamerica/PolicyUpdates-USA/Documents/Internationalisation%20of%20US%20Higher%20Education%20in%20a%20Time%20of%20Declining%20Resources.pdf

 

Deadline to Submit Proposals: December 15, 2011

The UNCF Special Programs Corporation (UNCFSP) seeks a partner organization or higher education institution to administer the Sophomore Summer Policy Institute (SSPI) component of its Institute for International Public Policy Fellowship Program. UNCFSP administers the Institute under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Education. As the first of six Fellowship Program components, SSPI provides an introduction to international affairs concepts and practices to a cohort of 25 student Fellows who have just completed their sophomore year of college. The 25 Fellows are selected through a national competition. Upon acceptance to the fellowship, new Fellows begin the program with a seven-week residential academic program.

The SSPI will introduce Fellows to the basics of international policy development, foreign affairs, study abroad, cultural competence, careers in these fields, and options for graduate study. To assist Fellows in putting what they learn at SSPI into context, the awardee will coordinate a field experience in Washington, DC, called the Study Mission, which exposes Fellows to a variety of international affairs organizations, including government agencies and nonprofit organizations/NGOs. The SSPI program runs annually from early June through mid-July.

Please visit www.uncfsp.org/iipp-sspi to download the full announcement.

 

Spring 2012 Application Deadline: October 4, 2011.

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Gilman Scholarship Program, we are proud to announce the launch of our new application system. We anticipate this will streamline the application process. Please encourage your students to seek your guidance and utilize all available Gilman resources. For more information about the Gilman Scholarship, please visit the Gilman website at www.iie.org/gilman.

The online application for students studying abroad in the Spring 2012 term is now open. Advisor certification begins next week.

For students applying for any academic term (Academic Year, Fall, Spring, or Summer), please find the eligibility requirements below:

• Enrolled as an undergraduate student at a two or four-year U.S. institution
• United States citizen
• Receiving a Federal Pell Grant at the time of application or during the term of study abroad
• Participating in a study abroad program that is no less than 4 weeks (28 days) in one country and no more than an academic year
• Receiving academic credit
• Study in any country not currently under a U.S. State Department Travel Warning or Cuba

For more information, please contact the appropriate person below:

Advisors:
gilmanadvisors@iie.org
832-369-3483

Applicants (last name A-K):
gilman@iie.org
832-369-3484

Applicants (last name L-Z):
gilmanapp@iie.org
832-369-3485

Recipients/Alumni
gilman_scholars@iie.org
832-369-3481/832-369-3496

 

Student Application Deadline: October 12, 2011
Adviser Endorsement Deadline: October 19, 2011

Freeman Awards for Study in Asia (Freeman-ASIA) provides scholarships for U.S. undergraduate students with demonstrated financial need to study abroad in East or Southeast Asia. Applicants should have a minimum 2.8 GPA. The program's goal is to increase the number of Americans with first-hand exposure to and understanding of Asia and its peoples and cultures. Awards of up to $5,000 are available for spring programs. Award recipients are required to share their experiences with their home campuses or communities to encourage study abroad by others.

For more information, eligibility requirements, and the online application, please visit: www.iie.org/freeman-asia