Would you like to study overseas? Perhaps you want
to learn a foreign language, gain international experience, or see the historic
sites. 150 U.S. colleges are seeking to
double the amount of students studying overseas through international and
educational exchanges. The five-year initiative by the Institute of
International Education hopes to increase the amount of international students from
295,000 to around 600,000.
With only 10% of students gaining international
experience the U.S. is suffering from a lack of global marketplace knowledge.
Being separated by great oceans once helped protect our borders but may now be
a detriment to our economic growth. Our students, and the next generation of
leaders, do not have enough familiarity with foreign cultures to effectively
compete in this arena.
In business, international experience is also very
important for effectiveness. Multinational firms have distribution networks
that reach into multiple countries. Management may find themselves in a number
of different cultures throughout their lifetimes and will need some method of
formulating an understanding of international culture to be successful.
Even though sending students overseas is great there
is also a higher cost associated with such opportunities. Research on virtual
teams and international online classrooms helps support the idea that many of
these benefits can be obtained without the expense of international travel.
Students can see other perspectives, collaborate on projects, gain experience,
and understand international laws better.
Whether colleges support travel or virtual work
groups will depend on their personal strategies. In either event, students are
likely to gain needed knowledge of how the international environment works and
will be able to apply that knowledge to future jobs. It is these skills that
help American businesses become more competitive the globe round.
