Professor Ahmet Ycduygu writes in a recent article in University World News about the university as a fundamental actor in global cities. "Global cities have emerged as strategic sites for the promotion of knowledge-based communities, advanced capital, and coordinated global economic progress. Universities are the key physical manifestation of the knowledge production that is so central to our global urban lives," writes Ycduygu.

European Parliament / News reports on the European Parliament’s approval of EU’s new Erasmust+ program, which will fund grants for students, teachers, trainers and apprentices to study abroad in the EU. Erasmus+ will also support new partnerships between teaching institutions and firms. "Knowledge alliances and sector skills alliances should permit training in a real working environment, new teaching approaches, and new courses tailored to the world of work."

Inside Higher Ed shares highlights of a new report released by the Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE). Here are a few:

• The number of international students in Canada has increased by 94 percent since 2001, climbing to a total of 265,377 in 2012. 
• The top four countries of origin – China, India, South Korea, and Saudi Arabia – mirror those of the U.S. 
• More than two-thirds of students described opportunities to work full-time in Canada post-graduation and to obtain permanent residency as either "very important" or "essential" factors in their decision to study in Canada.

UW-Madison Professor Kris Olds shares in Inside Higher Ed the product of a mapping exercise he facilitated to make more sense of the emerging global footprints of massive open online course (MOOC) platforms. "While the politics of MOOCs are primarily national in orientation, the developmental agendas of MOOC platforms like EdX, Coursera, FutureLearn, iversity, et al, are scaled beyond the nation, such that they incorporate multiple world regions with respect to partners and students."

The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program invites you to the fourth webinar in the Gilman Web Symposium Series for the 2013-2014 academic year, "Grow Abroad - The STEM Fields" this Thursday, December 5th at 2pm EST/1pm CST.  The web symposium will provide best practices and resources for study abroad advising and outreach for students in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) fields.

This online forum, moderated by Gilman Program staff, will bring together an education abroad advisor and a program representative to share their insights on advising and designing programs for STEM majors.  They will also be joined by a Gilman alumna who will discuss her experience abroad as a STEM major.

Stay tuned to the Gilman Program's Multimedia page at www.iie.org/gilman and future announcements for the scheduled web symposium topics each month. Recordings of previous web symposiums have been posted here as well.

The Gilman International Scholarship Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and administered by the Institute of International Education (IIE).  The Gilman Program diversifies the kinds of U.S. undergraduate students who study and intern abroad and the countries and regions where they go.  To learn more about the Gilman Scholarship Program, please visit the website at www.iie.org/gilman or contact gilmanadvisors@iie.org.

The Institute of International Education (IIE) and Project Atlas invite you to a one-day workshop on best practices in gathering, interpreting, and using student mobility data to inform decision-making about internationalization at the institutional, national and policy levels. The workshop will strengthen the capacity of U.S. and global higher education institutions, government agencies and non-governmental organizations to build comprehensive data collection mechanisms for collecting and utilizing student mobility data to inform policy, research, and enrollment management practices.

Who should participate? Individuals at higher education institutions (from the U.S. or abroad), governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations who are responsible for data collection or research on internationalization. 

Workshop participants that have established data collection systems will be exposed to new directions for data collection, including capturing student participation data in for-credit and not-for-credit educational activities and measuring new forms of mobility such as joint and dual degrees and online learning. Participants that are endeavoring to launch or expand their data collection efforts will learn from workshop colleagues and from global experts who currently lead data collection efforts in their respective countries and/or institutions. 

Workshop facilitators: Leading experts in international higher education research as well as representatives of higher education institutions who have developed exemplary approaches to using mobility data to inform their work. Confirmed workshop facilitators include, among others:

• Dr. Rajika Bhandari, Deputy Vice President (Research and Evaluation), IIE, USA
• Raisa Belyavina, Senior Research Officer, IIE, USA
• Thomas Buntru, Director of International Programs, Universidad de Monterrey, Mexico
• Dr. Nico Jooste, Senior Director of International Education, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University and Deputy President of International Education Association of South Africa (IEASA)
• Steve Nerlich, Director of International Research and Analysis Unit, Australian Government Department of Education

 

The Internationalization Collaborative is a broad network of institutions that are committed to accelerating internationalization on their campuses. For the past decade, the Collaborative has met annually in order to share models of good practice and bring together colleagues from across the nation. All American Council on Education (ACE) member institutions are welcome to participate.

The theme of the 2014 Collaborative is "Leading Internationalization in Financially Challenging Times: Building the Innovative Campus." The 2014 Collaborative is co-sponsored with the Association for International Education Administrators (AIEA), and will meet in conjunction with the AIEA Annual Conference.

Over the course of a single day, the 2014 Collaborative will bring together presidents, provosts, chief financial officers, SIOs, institutional development officials, and faculty to address a range of connected issues:

• The forces that drive institutional priorities, revenue streams, and resource allocation
• The returns on investments in internationalization (financial and otherwise)
• Faculty energy and innovation as a critical resource for internationalization
• Developing effective strategies for generating and retaining new financial resources for internationalization
• Positioning internationalization to be part of the solution to broad institutional challenges

Please direct questions about the Collaborative and Annual Meeting to cige@acenet.edu.

The International Education Fairs of Turkey (IEFT) has announced that the 2014 IEFT Fairs will take place throughout Turkey on March 8-11, 2014. These Fairs offer a great way to reach out to more than 20,000 Turkish students. IEFT is also offering new promotional and sponsorship opportunities to help you gain maximum exposure in the Turkish market. Please visit www.ieft.net for information.

Fair schedule:

• March 8, 2014, Eskisehir Dedepark Hotel 
• March 9, 2014, Adana Hilton Hotel   
• March 11, 2014, Ankara Sheraton Hotel 
• March 13, 2014, Izmir Hilton Hotel 
• March 15-16, 2014, Istanbul Congress Center (two days, European side) 
• March 17, 2014, Istanbul ByOtell (one extra day, Asian side)  
• March 19, 2014, Northern Cyprus Merit Lefkosia Hotel

Please help IIE demonstrate its vibrancy by submitting engaging photos of IIE programs at work.

This contest is an opportunity for you to:

• Share the importance of your work
• Inspire other grantees
• Gain artistic recognition
• Win prizes! (including gift cards to Amazon or a travel guide book)

The Institute of International Education is requesting your photos for use in printed and Internet-based communications that tell the visual story of IIE and the students, scholars, or teachers that participate in IIE programs. These photos should highlight the international scope of IIE’s work, the diversity of age and ethnicity reached, and the range of disciplines involved. Winning photos will show participants in professional situations that are representative of their field of study or profession.

Only valid contestants will be considered. Valid contestants include any grantees since 2010 from any of IIE's 200+ programs. Winning photos may be used in IIE-related communications such as Annual Report, marketing materials, websites, and videos.

If you have any questions regarding the IIE Photo Contest, please e-mail us at photos@iie.org.

IIE’s USAID-funded Democracy Fellows and Grants (DFG) Program has recently released several new grants and fellowships. Here are three upcoming deadlines. 

Application Deadline: December 10, 2013 | RFA and Application Instructions

The successful applicant will support USAID’s understanding of social movements, with the goal of determining how USAID can identify, understand, and support the informal networks, systems, and leadership that have characterized the social movements of the Arab Spring. 

The researcher will receive an 8-month, $50,000 grant to:

• Draft a case study review of social movements in the Middle East and North Africa region.
• Present the case study at a workshop for peer review and for USAID’s Center of Excellence for Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance (DRG Center).
• Finalize the document based on feedback.

Application Deadline: December 17, 2013 | RFA and Application Instructions

The successful applicant will support USAID in identifying and analyzing theories of change (TOCs) about the factors that contribute to democratic backsliding and using those TOCs to frame a quick reference tool to support USAID field officers in strategic program development.

The TOC Research Project will support USAID’s Center of Excellence for Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance (DRG Center) by producing a review of the extant research on factors that contribute to or deter democratic backsliding and then identifying TOCs that can guide USAID’s efforts to prevent backsliding and sustain democratic reforms. 

The successful applicant will receive a 12-month, $120,000 grant to develop:

• A White Paper that presents and analyzes the factors that contribute to or deter democratic backsliding.
• A Theory Matrix of how those factors could be influenced to prevent backsliding or to sustain democratic reform. 
• Two academic "think sessions" to review, discuss, and revise the White Paper and develop the Theory Matrix.

Application Deadline: December 13, 2013 | Application and Details

IIE is seeking applications from qualified individuals for a part-time Democracy Fellow to help conduct a retrospective analysis of legislative strengthening programs funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).  The Fellow will be contracted as an IIE consultant on a part-time basis (20 hours per week) for 18 months.  U.S. citizenship or permanent residency status required.

The Summer Academy in Leipzig for U.S.-American Faculty in German, co-sponsored by the German-American Fulbright Commission and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), aims to offer professional development in areas relevant to the teaching of German including German languages, literatures, and culture as well in professional and higher education. 

The program is geared towards U.S.-American Faculty in German, preferably teaching full-time at smaller colleges or institutions that offer German as a major or a German/ German Studies degree. Preference will be given to younger faculty members who have not had a similar experience in the last five years.

All program costs, including accommodation in private homes, costs for instruction, field trips, materials and health insurance, will be covered. In addition, up to $1,400 per participant for international travel costs will be provided. Participants will also receive a per diem for meals but should expect to incur moderate daily expenses.

IIE has selected 16 U.S. colleges and universities for the 2013-2014 Brazil initiative of IIE’s International Academic Partnership Program (IAPP). They will participate in a year-long program comprised of training activities designed to assist each institution in implementing and sustaining partnerships with counterparts in Brazil. The program includes a week-long study tour to Brazil in spring 2014 to learn first-hand about the Brazilian higher education system and meet with potential partner campuses. 

The participating U.S. campuses are: Dartmouth College, Farleigh Dickinson University, Lakeland College, The City of New York’s Lehman College, Medaille College, Rice University, Stetson University, Troy University, University of Arizona, University of Michigan-Dearborn, University of Missouri, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Wisconsin-Stout, University of Wisconsin- Whitewater, Wayne State University, and Western New Mexico University.

 

The applications for the 2014-2015 David L. Boren Scholarships and Fellowships are now available at www.borenawards.org. Boren Awards, an initiative of the National Security Education Program, provide unique funding opportunities for U.S. undergraduate and graduate students to study in Africa, Asia, Central & Eastern Europe, Eurasia, Latin America, and the Middle East, where they can add important international and language components to their educations.

 

For the fourth year in a row, funding is available for Boren Scholars and Fellows through the African Languages Initiative to study one of the following languages at the University of Florida’s summer 2014 program prior to commencing their overseas Boren-funded programs.

• Akan/Twi 
• French (requires intermediate-high or above proficiency)
• Hausa
• Swahili 
• Wolof 
• Yoruba 
• Zulu 

In addition, African Languages Initiative overseas programs are available for intensive language and cultural study during fall semester 2014 in the following countries.

• Senegal (French)
• Mozambique (Portuguese) 
• Tanzania (Swahili) 

For a full explanation of the African Languages Initiative, including information on the domestic and overseas programs, please go to www.borenawards.org and look under announcements on the left side of the page.  

 

For more information about the Boren Awards and the African Languages Initiative, to register for one of our upcoming webinars, and to access the online application, please visit www.borenawards.org. You can also contact the Boren Awards staff at boren@iie.org or 1-800-618-NSEP with questions.

"We must see to it that our children develop the flexible qualities of character and mind necessary to handle the challenges that globalization poses. But how does a parent do that?" asks Stacie Berdan, co-author of A Student Guide to Study Abroad. In her recent article in the Huffington Post, Berdan offers helpful recommendations for ways parents and teachers can help prepare children to interact with and succeed in an interconnected world.

HSS Chateaubriand is a fellowship program offered by the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the United States. It targets outstanding Ph.D. students from American universities who seek to engage in research in France, in any discipline of the Humanities and Social Sciences. Fellows are selected through a merit-based competition, through a binational collaborative process involving expert evaluators from both countries. HSS Chateaubriand grantees are applicants who answer the program’s criteria of excellence and whose sojourn in France will support the program’s philosophy. 

Eligibility:

• Candidates must be currently working on their Ph.D.
• Candidates do not have to be U.S. citizens, but they must be enrolled in an American university. However, French citizens are not eligible to apply.

Fellowships offered:

• Fall Fellowship: 4 months, starts October 1st.
• Spring Fellowship: 4 months, starts February 1st.
• Year-long Fellowship: 8 months, starts October 1st.

HSS Chateaubriand fellows receive:

• A monthly stipend of 1500 €
• Health insurance for the entire duration of the fellowship
• A round-trip ticket to France with welcome package

IIE-Scholar Rescue Fund Chairman Mr. Mark Angelson and IIE President and CEO Dr. Allan E. Goodman join "Richard Heffner’s Open Mind" television show to discuss the Institute of International Education’s legacy of rescuing threatened scholars and its current work through IIE’s Scholar Rescue Fund. 

In collaboration with IIE and IIE-Scholar Rescue Fund, New Jersey colleges, including Montclair State University, Felician College, and Fairleigh Dickinson University, are making major contributions to assist Syrian scholars and students. NewJersey.com reports on how these colleges are changing the lives of Syrian scholars by providing opportunities to study and teach at their universities.