The Institute of International Education is pleased to announce the launch of its blog, Opening Minds. The Opening Minds blog is IIE’s take on how the field of international education continues to change. Here, IIE’s leaders will explore global student mobility, institutional partnerships, international development, and other topics and trends that are shaping higher education around the world. Opening Minds will be a space to examine new ideas, confront challenging issues, reflect on different experiences, and ultimately provide some insight into what IIE's leaders do, why they are doing it, and whether it’s working. 

The growing team of Opening Minds bloggers consists of staff from across IIE’s diverse centers of excellence and domestic and international offices. These bloggers look forward to addressing some of the most important issues in international education today and hope that you will read, share, and comment with us. 

We invite you to explore the first few posts on our new blog: 

• Foreign Language Proficiency for Everyone, by Allan E. Goodman, President and CEO of IIE
• The G7 of Open Doors, by Patricia Chow, Assistant Director of IIE’s Center for Academic Mobility Research
• Partnering over Pao de Queijo in Brazil, by Clare Banks, Senior Manager of IIE’s Center for International Partnerships
• Joint and Double Degree Programs: Location, Location, Location, by Allan E. Goodman
• Building the New Libya through International Education, by Mark Lazar, Vice President for Global Scholarship and Learning Programs at IIE

The Opening Minds blog will be updated several times per month with original content. To read, comment on, and share posts from IIE’s Opening Minds blog, please visit: www.iie.org/blog.

An article in China Daily reports on the numerous international students who are now working on degrees in Chinese universities. "According to the International Students Division Office of International Relations at Peking University, in 2012, 359 international students came for undergraduate programs, 367 for master programs, and 75 for doctoral programs. Most of the international students are majors in social sciences. Majors such as international relations, MBA and Chinese are top choices."

To read the full article, please visit: www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2012-09/01/content_15725825.htm.

An article in the Christian Science Monitor examines how the United States Achievers Program (USAP) "provides funding and moral support for promising but disadvantaged students from 13 countries on four continents to pursue their educational goals." As the article indicates, programs like USAP "help ensure that America’s colleges and universities still draw in the lion’s share of academic talent, and contribute to the economic boost higher education brings to the US economy."

To read the full article, please visit: www.csmonitor.com/World/Africa/2012/0902/Back-to-school-From-rural-Africa-to-the-Ivy-League.

ETS, the creator of the TOEFL test, has just launched the TOEFL Search Service, an online tool that connects higher education institutions with prospective international students worldwide. The new TOEFL Search Service offers admissions officials access to an expanding database of more than 350,000 recent TOEFL test takers who have requested to learn more about higher education opportunities abroad. Admissions officers can search the user-friendly database using more than 26 criteria to customize results and connect with potential targeted applicants.

Major features of the service include:

• Web-based search capabilities that can be automated to secure real-time data about prospective students, driving timely and accurate recruitment decision-making
• Data that easily integrates with leading campus management systems, enabling easy electronic, print or telephone contact with potential students, streamlining outreach efforts
• Insight into the applicant pool by customizing search results by an institution’s preferred criteria, such as country or region of the world, TOEFL scores, planned level of study, planned date of enrollment, or desired field of study.

To learn more about the TOEFL Search Service, please visit https://Toeflsearch.ets.org or email toeflsearch@hobsons.com.

An article in Reuters reports on the initiatives that the Brazilian government has undertaken to increase the number of students who pursue international education. In particular, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff's scholarship program initiative aims to reduce "her nation's skills deficit by sending as many as 101,000 students to study abroad over the next four years," primarily in the science, technology, engineering, and math fields.

To read the full article, please visit: http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/08/28/usa-brazil-education-idINL2E8JOF9320120828.

An article in The Korea Herald examines the many initiatives that the South Korean government has undertaken to globalize their education sector, including "unification of all sorts of government scholarship programs under the name of ‘Global Korea Scholarship,’ extension of the Test of Proficiency in Korean, and the launch of ‘CAMPUS Asia,’ short for Collective Action for Mobility Program of Students in Asia program, which is an East Asian version of the Erasmus Mundus program. Thanks to these efforts, the number of international students in Korea skyrocketed from 17,000 in 2004 to 89,000 in 2011."

To read the full article, please visit: http://hacksam94.appspot.com/t.co/wiwJe282.

The Fall 2012 issue of International Higher Education has just been released. This issue features a series of articles on the complexities of internationalization, such as corruption and its international dimensions, the role of English-taught courses, the increasing reach of for-profit higher education, and others. This issue also focus on both Europe and Africa.

 

International Higher Education is produced by the Boston College Center for International Higher Education, and is available in Spanish, Chinese, Portuguese, and Russian translated editions. To download the Fall 2012 issue, please visit: www.bc.edu/research/cihe/ihe.html.

The Institute of International Education has announced two job openings at its overseas offices: 

The purpose of the Regional Director in Latin America position is to oversee the strategic direction and management of a major IIE international office with a diverse portfolio of donor and corporate-funded scholarship, education, and youth-related projects as well as a large-scale education testing services unit.

The Regional Director is responsible for IIE’s operations in Mexico and the Latin America region, including the overall management and supervision of a 24-person staff. The Director provides overall management and supervision of scholarship and higher education services, a vibrant educational testing services unit, new program development, and other activities. The Director provides strategic direction for the office, including managing program development and public relations initiatives; representing IIE to various governmental, nongovernmental, corporate, and education stakeholders; and liaising with IIE’s home office project staff, corporate headquarters in New York, and International Development and Operations team in Washington, DC. The Director also supervises the Mexico office staff, manages the office’s finances and administration, and directly manages and/or provides targeted technical assistance for selected projects.

The purpose of the Regional Director in the Middle East and North Africa position is to oversee the strategic direction and management of a major IIE international office with a diverse portfolio of donor and corporate-funded scholarship, education, and youth-related projects.

The Director is responsible for IIE’s operations in Cairo, Egypt, including the overall management and supervision of an 18-person staff. The Director oversees scholarship and higher education services, new program development, and other activities (e.g., youth-focused programming) implemented in Egypt and throughout the MENA region. The Director provides strategic direction for the office, including managing program development and public relations initiatives; representing IIE to various governmental, nongovernmental, corporate, and education stakeholders; and liaising with IIE’s home office project staff, corporate headquarters in New York, and International Development and Operations team in Washington, DC. The Director also supervises the Egypt office staff, manages the office’s finances and administration, and directly manages and/or provides targeted technical assistance for selected projects.

For more information about both positions, including essential duties and responsibilities, education and experience, and skills required, please visit: www.iie.org/Careers.

The British Council’s flagship higher education conference, Going Global, will take place in Dubai on March 4-6, 2013, with the theme "Global Education: Knowledge-based Economies for 21st Century Nations." The conference brings together more than 1,000 international higher education leaders from over 80 countries. The deadline for paper proposal submissions is September 17, 2012.  

To learn more, please visit http://ihe.britishcouncil.org/going-global/call-proposals.

The 8th International Congress on Turkish Culture will be held on October 24-27, 2013, with the focus of "Cultural Heritage." The Congress is currently open for applications by interested scholars and researchers, and the deadline to submit abstracts is December 15, 2012.

The Congress, organized every four years by the Ataturk Culture Center, will take place in the city of Eskisehir, which has been declared as the "Cultural Capital of the Turkish World" and the "Capital of Intangible Cultural Heritage" for 2013. 

For information, including how to attend, please visit http://www.akmb.gov.tr, or email akmkongre@gmail.com.

Once again, the Institute of International Education and the Forum on Education Abroad are collaborating to gather top-line data on study abroad enrollments for the 2011/12 academic year in anticipation of International Education Week. This early snapshot data will be followed by the regular, detailed Open Doors Study Abroad Survey data collection early next year.

We hope that you will be able to give us some quick feedback (via the online survey form) on study abroad enrollments at your institution during the past academic year. We realize that it is still early, and students returning from study abroad last spring or summer may not have transferred their credits yet. Therefore, we ask you to provide your best early estimates, even if the numbers for your institution are not yet final. 

To complete the survey, please go to: http://tinyurl.com/snapshot2012.

All institutional responses will be kept confidential and only aggregate numbers will be reported. Please respond as soon as possible. Unless we receive your response by Monday, October 1, 2012, we will not be able to include it in the results reported during International Education Week. 

If your institution is a member of both IIENetwork and the Forum, you may receive multiple requests for data sent to different contacts. Please ensure that only one reply is submitted per campus. Comments or questions about the survey may be directed to: iieresearch@iie.org.

Thank you very much for participating in this short survey, which should take no more than 15 minutes to complete, once you have gathered the relevant data.

 

The Western Union Foundation is now accepting applications for its Family Scholarship Program. The Family Scholarship Program provides immigrant/migrant families with an opportunity to move up the economic development ladder through education. Grants are provided to two members of one family to assist with college tuition, language acquisition, technical training, and GED classes. Scholarship applications will be evaluated based on the applicants’ barriers to education, community involvement, goals, and demonstrated financial need. 

A link to the application, as well as a full list of eligibility requirements, can be referenced through the program website: http://foundation.westernunion.com/education_programs.html. Please contact wufoundation@iie.org for additional information about the program.

The Global Young Academy (GYA) has announced that the call for GYA membership for 2013 is now open. The deadline to apply is September 28, 2012.

Members are elected for four-year terms, after which they will move to alumni status. All members are expected to actively contribute to the organization’s goals and activities. They may participate in international science policy development, promote the establishment of national young academies (NYA), and coordinate their cooperation and exchange, support science education at the international level and the young scientist ambassador program. Through GYA, members are linked to the senior international academy network IAP, meet outstanding leaders of the international science community, and may be nominated to contribute to international policy statements and working groups. 

GYA is looking for young, independent researchers who are passionate about their research area and excited to contribute to a global community of young scientists. Nominations and applications are possible for scholars from all disciplines. Applicants from the fields of social science and humanities are especially welcome to apply.

For more information and to apply, please visit: www.globalyoungacademy.net/membership.

If your institution is seeking to develop strategic institutional partnerships with higher education institutions in Brazil, please consider applying for IIE's International Academic Partnership Program. IIE’s Center for International Partnerships is pleased to announce the Brazil international partnership initiative for the 2012-2013 cycle. For more information, please go www.iie.org/iapp. 

Following three years of success, the International Academic Partnership Program (IAPP) will again select a group of U.S. higher education institutions to engage over the course of a year in strategic planning activities focused on implementing partnerships with higher education institutions in Brazil. Since 2009, IAPP has engaged more than 50 U.S. higher education institutions in comprehensive, yearlong programs aimed at increasing the number of partnerships between U.S. higher education institutions and their counterparts abroad. Past participants have increased their faculty exchanges, implemented institutional strategic plans, and expanded study abroad offerings within Brazil. If you are interested in participating in this program, please contact Clare Banks at cbanks@iie.org or visit www.iie.org/iapp.

Application Cycle Begins: September 4, 2012 

Application Deadline: October 1, 2012 

Program Cycle: November 2012–October 2013 

Study Tour to Brazil: April or May 2013 (tentative) 

Program Cost: IIENetwork Members $12,500/Non-members $14,000 (This includes all in-country costs for one representative from your institution to travel on the IAPP study tour, not including international airfare.) 

1. Strategic planning process, including guidelines for assessing on-campus international partnership capacity and developing practical strategic plans for partnership activities in the focus country. 
2. Expert advice and guidance on developing or expanding a strategic plan for partnerships with the focus country by one of the members of the IAPP Advisory Board and IIE staff in the United States and abroad. 
3. A study tour to the focus country that will include visits to select higher education institutions, the U.S. Embassy, EducationUSA Advising Centers, the Fulbright Commission, and other educational exchange organizations. All in-country expenses for one representative from each institution will be covered as part of the program fees. Participants are responsible for covering their international airfare. 
4. A series of training webinars, focused on topics such as implementing strategic partnerships, faculty engagement, developing a consolidated partnership strategy, and higher education in the focus country. 
5. A suite of information resources on the higher education system in the focus country, and IIE publications and policy research reports. 

Clare Banks 

Senior Manager, Center for International Partnerships 

Institute of International Education 

Tel: +1 (212) 984 5481 

Email: cbanks@iie.org 

For more information, or to download the IAPP application or Special Partnership Initiatives, please go to: www.iie.org/iapp.

IIE welcomes new member institutions to the IIENetwork, connecting over 7,000 individuals at more than 1,100 member institutions with a commitment to internationalization. For more information about IIE's membership program, please visit: www.iie.org/IIENetwork. 

All new IIE members will be added to the next edition of the IIENetwork Handbook for International Educators. This resource includes comprehensive listings and resources for networking and internationalizing your campus, and is available online for members: www.iie.org/Research-and-Publications/Publications-and-Reports/IIE-Bookstore/IIENetwork-Handbook-Educators-2012. To order copies of the IIENetwork Handbook, please go to: www.iiebooks.org/iienmemdir.html.

Ball State University    

Membership Contact: Lana Nannie, Office Manager 

CQUniversity Australia           

Membership Contact: Tamara Crathan, Regional Manager 

Entrepreneurs' Organization 

Membership Contact: Emily Egan, Vice President of Emerging Programs 

Guilford College         

Membership Contact: Tanya Madenyika, Assistant Director of Admissions 

Kennedy University      

Membership Contact: Tim Martin, Administration Manager 

Oregon Health & Science University   

Membership Contact: Alison Roache Jones, Director of International Services 

Presbyterian College 

Membership Contact: Viet Ha, Director of International Programs 

Randolph-Macon College    

Membership Contact: Charter Lindley, Sr., Assistant Director of Admissions 

SKEMA Business School            

Membership Contact: Pascal Vidal, U.S. Campus Director 

Waseda University, Japan

Membership Contact: Takehiro Maeno, Waseda USA Representative 

Wilkes University             

Membership Contact: Xiaoqiao Zhang, International Student Coordinator

To mark its 10th anniversary, IIE's Scholar Rescue Fund (SRF) is featuring the inspiring stories of 10 threatened scholars whose lives and academic work have been saved by the Fund. 

Professor Daniel Coronell, a renowned journalist from Colombia, received death threats for his reports linking Colombian drug traffickers, local self-defense forces and government officials. His SRF fellowship allowed him to pursue research on the origins of political violence in Colombia at the University of California, Berkeley. Now Senior Vice President and Executive News Director at Univision, he continues to report and research in the United States. 

Read more about Professor Coronell’s life and work on the SRF tenth anniversary website: www.scholarrescuefund.org/pages/posts/professor-daniel-coronell64.php.

Dr. Walid Shomaly’s research focuses on sensitive topics surrounding the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. An assistant professor of chemistry at Bethlehem University in the West Bank for the past 22 years, he has also been the Executive Director of the Palestinian Center for Research and Cultural Dialogue since 2003. When Dr. Shomaly’s work environment grew increasingly perilous, he applied to the Scholar Rescue Fund in 2005. On the fellowship, he became the first SRF scholar to be hosted at the Amman Center for Peace and Development in Jordan, a country that later would provide a safe academic environment to SRF fellowship recipients from Iraq. 

To read more about SRF’s Summer Featured Scholar, please visit: www.scholarrescuefund.org/pages/about-us/featured-scholar.php.