Fostering a Climate of Inclusion & Belonging: International Students

by DA Global | Feb 3, 2020 | Articles

Posted: Monday, February 3, 2020 
By: Andrew Gordon – CEO & Founder, Diversity Abroad

Each year thousands of students, young people and scholars from around the world choose to study, pursue research and work-based exchange programs in the United States. According to the Open Doors® report published by the Institute of International Education over one million international students studied in the United States during the 2018/19 year. While international students primarily come from China and India, students from all regions of the world choose the United States as a destination for tertiary education. When international students feel a sense of belonging on campus this not only supports their success, it also supports a rich global learning environment that domestic students benefit from as well. From international food nights and a parade of nations, to celebrating international holidays and identity specific student clubs, institutions across the country engage in a variety of activities to help international students feel included on campus. However, given reports of international students facing xenophobia and racism in the wake of the Coronavirus outbreak, we’re reminded that international students and their sense of belonging at our institutions are critical aspects to diversity, equity and inclusion work in international education. Our international students embody many of the identities that our domestic students do – students of color, first-generation, low-income, LGBTQ, have disabilities and are students of faith – albeit likely through a unique cultural lens informed by their country of origin. As educators we’re deeply committed to the success – academic, interpersonal and otherwise – of all of our students, regardless of country of origin. Thus, here are four ways international education professionals can work to build a climate of inclusion and belonging for inbound international students. 

Build Partnerships Across Campus

It’s not a secret that many of our institutions operate in silos. This operational structure can make it challenging to build meaningful partnership with non-international education colleagues to support international students. That said, partnerships with diversity & inclusion offices, other student affairs units as well as faculty is critical to ensure such professionals are cognizant of their role in fostering a climate of belonging for international students.

What you can do:

Start small, invite colleagues to coffee, a brown bag lunch or a reception to discuss the state of international students on your campus. While many of our colleagues are fully aware that there are international students on campus they may not be as familiar with their countries of origin, unique challenges they may face or the wide array of social identities they embody. Equally important to educating colleagues on the state of international students on campus is our role in learning about the strategic goals of our campus partners. The better we understand our partners priorities the better positioned we are to explore strategic collaboration to support the success of international students. Additionally find professional development opportunities – internal or external – where you and colleagues from diversity & inclusion offices, student affairs units and/or faculty can learn best practices for collaboration for fostering a climate of belonging for international students. One such opportunity is Diversity Abroad’s Strategic Leadership Forum, a unique event that focuses on partnerships for advance inclusive support for international students.

Develop Diversity & Inclusion Competencies 

Like every aspect of work, to be more effective with respect to diversity, equity and inclusion we have to continue to learn. While there are broad diversity and inclusion competencies that are applicable for any field of work, acquiring such skills specific to international education positions professionals in our field to advance the practices and policies that help foster a climate of inclusion and belonging for international students.

What you can do:

While it’s important to celebrate different aspects of diversity, celebrating or appreciating diversity in and of itself is not enough to advance the systemic change needed to build a climate of inclusion and belonging. Acquiring and continuing to hone diversity & inclusion competencies will position you to develop and implement practices and policies that advance this important work. Check if your institutions offers diversity and inclusion training and take advantage of these learning opportunities. Add diversity & inclusion related books to your reading list. Do you prefer listening over reading? Here is a list of podcasts focused on diversity & inclusion. If you want to hone your diversity & inclusion competencies specifically for the field of international education consider attending sessions specific to international students at the annual Diversity Abroad Conference or enroll in the International Education Diversity & Inclusion Certificate Program.

We’ll be ill-suited to help foster a climate of belonging for international students if we’re unaware how their intersectional identities impact their experiences on our campuses. 

Stay Abreast of International Students’ Experience on Campus

International students have a unique lived experience at our colleges and universities. Similar to efforts in education abroad to ensure onsite staff are aware of the experiences diverse students face while studying abroad, it’s important to gather data – quantitative and qualitative – on how campus climate is viewed through the lens of international students. We’ll be ill-suited to help foster a climate of belonging for international students if we’re unaware of their lived experiences on our campuses.

What you can do:

Explore if your campus’ climate survey captures insights from international students on their experience and allow such data to inform practices and policies for supporting the success of international students. In addition to campus wide climate surveys, partner with other campus units, particularly diversity & inclusion offices, to host focus groups with international students to better understand their experiences and how they can best be supported. Finally, consider opportunities for international students to serve as peer advisors to other international students and provide forums for peer advisers to share trends regarding international student’s sense of belonging on your campus.

Classroom Climate & Curriculum

Part of fostering a sense of belonging for international students on college and university campuses involves internationalizing the curriculum.  When course content, materials and assignments are developed with a globally diverse student body in mind, international students and their cultures are a part of the learning environment, which helps foster a sense of belonging. Further, the general climate of the classroom, from professors making a conscious effort to properly pronounce the names of international students to domestic students engaging with international students on projects, helps build a classroom climate that is welcoming.

What you can do:

The movement to internationalize the curriculum is predicated on the goal of ensuring content, materials and assignment include sources that reflect the international and interconnected nature of our 21st world, similar to calls to decolonize curriculum focuses on including diverse voices and perspectives in classroom materials. As a starting point review the American Council on Education’s work on Internationalizing the Curriculum and share pertinent information with individual faculty members and department chairs. Consider hosting a panel discussion to allow international students to share with faculty how inclusion of their cultures into relevant content and assignments impacts their sense of belonging. Finally look for opportunities to support faculty on best practices for welcoming international students in the classroom. It’s important that faculty are aware that for some international students English is their second language and/or learning styles may be different from the U.S. higher education academic environment. 

While most of this article has focused on fully matriculated international undergraduate and graduate students in the United States, the principles are applicable to inbound exchange students and young people participating in work-and study-based exchange programs anywhere in the world. As international educators we cannot protect international students from a societal climate that may foment xenophobia or racism. That said, we can work to build a climate of inclusion and belonging on our campuses for international students and ensure that they don’t only hear #YouAreWelcomeHere but also truly feel they belong.

Advancing Post-graduate Success For Students Through Global Learning

by DA Global | Oct 18, 2019 | Articles

Posted: Friday, October 18, 2019  
By: Jill Blondin, Ph.D. – Interim Executive Director of Global Education Office, Virginia Commonwealth University
Christina Marino, M.A. – Assistant Director of Residence Education, VCU Globe, Virginia Commonwealth University

VCU Globe is an innovative, award-winning, and interdisciplinary global education living-learning program at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) that focuses on building students’ cultural agility through coursework, volunteer work, and co-curricular activities.  A key outcome of the program is helping students to prepare for careers in an increasingly globalized world. With more than 300 students in 65 majors participating in the program, VCU Globe is devoted to preparing a diverse group of participants to succeed in their chosen field.  In fact, the student population of VCU Globe has more ethnic diversity than the larger VCU campus at 66% and 43% respectively. Furthermore, 46% of VCU Globe students are Pell Grant eligible, while overall the campus has a 33% Pell Grant eligibility. VCU Globe has graduated 180 students who are pursuing advanced degrees in their fields of study or working in their desired industry.  In this article, we will share strategies for creating professional development opportunities and career readiness in the context of global learning for a diverse population of students. 

In 2015, the Association of American Colleges & Universities (AAC&U) contracted Hart Research Associates to survey employers in order to understand which learning outcomes employers believe are most important to succeed in today’s economy (Hart Research Associates, 2015).  This research revealed that 80% of employers felt that it was very important for recent college graduates to demonstrate the ability to apply learning in real-world settings (Hart Research Associates, 2015, p.6). Experiential learning and career preparedness are at the heart of what VCU Globe provides its students.

Since VCU Globe is an interdisciplinary program, this means that the staff and faculty must be prepared to assist and guide students of all majors.   This assistance takes place early in a participant’s involvement in the program. In the first semester, students take an introductory course in which they are required to complete an “Industry Assignment”: they must interview someone in their prospective field and ask them specific questions about the way in which they developed and benefited from intercultural competence.  This assignment is designed to help students develop professional networks, learn about their desired career from a professional in the field, and begin to connect curricular learning with careers. This interview experience often translates into a longer relationship, and sometimes mentorship or employment, for the student.

Students are also required to attend a number of career-focused workshops. From resume writing to networking to applying for national scholarships, such as the Fulbright, opportunities are provided to each VCU Globe student.  These workshops bring experts to the students where they live and this helps to eliminate barriers and promote learning. These workshops are as diverse as our students and we try to bring in as many relevant opportunities during their VCU Globe experience. VCU Globe partners with VCU’s National Scholarship Office, VCU Career Services, VCU Libraries, and many other units to lead the workshops and share the services of their offices with our students. These workshops are required: in fact, they are tied into the curriculum as a graded assignment in specific courses.  This highlights a comprehensive investment in our student’s professional lives: our goal is to ensure that each VCU Globe graduate is ready and able to compete for their dream job.

The capstone course of the program requires reflection, resume writing, and the completion of an electronic portfolio (e-portfolio) that documents a students learning while also being something tangible a student can share that demonstrates their career readiness.  The e-portfolio in particular allows students to tell their stories of volunteer, curricular work, study abroad experiences, and co-curricular experiences that they have had. Hart Research Associates found that 80% of employers would find an e-portfolio useful in determining success (2015, pg. 13). The capstone course also works with students to encourage their own individual reflection on the program and begin translating their growth and experiences to potential employers or graduate programs.  In the capstone course, we do a comprehensive review of all of each student’s resume and cover letter or professional statement. Through this process we work to ensure that the student has materials that are concise, tailored to their potential career path, and descriptive of their experiences. The capstone course also brings in campus experts from VCU University Relations and Career Services to discuss how social media impacts careers and how self assessments can assist in the job search and graduate school search process. Overall the capstone course really attempts to help students explain in professional documents the work they have done while at VCU and relate it to their desired careers.

VCU Globe is a Peace Corps Prep program and 78% of VCU Globe students are also working on certificates of completion from the Peace Corps.  This Peace Corps Prep certificate is another way for students to highlight to potential employers that they have had a hands-on learning experience, served a diverse population, and focused on professional preparedness.  There are opportunities to engage with Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs) and speak with them about the challenges and successes of living and working abroad. As a Peace Corps Prep program, we work closely with the Peace Corps Recruiter in the area and provide a variety of opportunities for students to learn more about serving in the Peace Corps.  Many of the VCU Globe students also work on campus as Campus Ambassadors for the Peace Corps. Furthermore, there is a competitive advantage for students if they decide to apply to the Peace Corps. Even if the student is not planning to work for the Peace Corps, this certificate highlights the cultural agility skills that the student has spent a significant amount of time working intentionally to improve.

The program also provides special career development opportunities that are designed to enhance a students’ resume, build leadership skills as well as communication skills.  VCU Globe staff members work to utilize the resources in the Richmond metropolitan area to foster new relationships with employers, faculty, and non-profit organizations. Each year, for example, VCU Globe offers engaging visits to local Fortune 500 companies with global interests, such as Canon in Newport News, Ocean Network Express (ONE) in Richmond, and even U.S. Embassy visits for students participating in study abroad programs.  The program also works with nearly a dozen non-profit organizations that serve the immigrant and refugee populations to place students as volunteers. Many of our students work with English as a Second Language (ESL) students in local Richmond Schools or Adult Education programs. There are unique opportunities for VCU Globe students to utilize their Spanish or Arabic language abilities in local clinics and community centers.

All of these strategies create professional development opportunities and career readiness in the context of global learning, and can be applied or adapted at different institutions depending on curriculum, faculty expertise, and students’ needs.  Such student-focused career development opportunities embedded into global learning, prepares students for careers in an increasingly globalized world. VCU Globe students have a mean GPA 3.09 compared to 2.94 for the larger university. Since the first participants graduated from VCU in May of 2016, the success of VCU Globe’s professional development strategies has yielded 3 Fulbright Scholarship recipients; 1 Goldwater Honorable Mention; 7 Peace Corps Volunteers; 7 jobs with service organizations, such as AmeriCorps and Teach for America; 57 working in their desired field; and 33 pursuing advanced education in graduate or professional school.  

Works Cited (APA Style)

Hart Research Associates (2015).  Falling Short? College Learning and Career Success Selected Findings from Online Surveys of Employers and College Students Conducted on Behalf of the Association of American Colleges & Universities.  Washington, D.C.: Hart Research Associates.