JFK at 20 and his 1937 Adventure Through Europe

Link to the "Jack and Lem’s Excellent European Adventure, Summer 1937" The National Archives JFK Libraries Archives Blog An Inside Look article by Maryrose Grossman, Audiovisual Reference Archivist is available via the embedded tweet below:

When JFK was 20 years old, he took a road trip through Europe with his best friend and a Dachshund named Dunker. Jack and Lem's Excellent Adventure - Summer 1937: https://t.co/7Wvws0X22p #ArchivesRoadTrip @JFKLibrary @USNatArchives pic.twitter.com/rbJN99kwV7

— OurPresidents (@OurPresidents) June 1, 2018

Are U.S. Students who Study in Non-Western Countries More Serious Students?

I posted the following to IHEC Blog’s Facebook page a short time ago and thought I would post here to see what readers think.

I recently read an article that suggested that  U.S. students who study abroad in the Middle East or in Asia or in Africa or in Latin America are more serious students than those who study in Europe or Australia.  I think the point they were making is that many U.S. students who go to Europe and Australia are there to party while those students who select non-Western locations are more focused on the educational experience/opportunities.

What are your thoughts on this?  I think there is a bit of truth to this statement as I was an exchange student in Germany twice during high school (a month long program through my high school both times) and I "studied" abroad in Spain for a semester during my undergraduate studies.

International Student Support in European Higher Education. Needs, Solutions, and Challenges ~ New ACA Publication

The Academic Cooperation Association (ACA) announces a new publication entitled International Student Support in European Higher Education: Needs, Solutions, and Challenges by Maria Kelo, Tim Rogers (with Laura E. Rumbley).  I learned about this new publication from Laura Rumbley, Deputy Director of the Academic Cooperation Association, and I think many IHEC Blog readers might find it of interest.  I have copied and pasted most of the press release about this new publication below:

A new publication by the Academic Cooperation Association (ACA) examines the international student services landscape in six different countries and suggests a ‘code of good practice’ for international student support within European higher education. ACA finds that appropriate support for full-degree international students make for both good policy and practice.

The Academic Cooperation Association (ACA), a Brussels-based higher education think tank, has just published a study on international student services in European higher education. This publication is an outcome of a Commission-funded project undertaken by ACA in the period 2008-2010, under the name ENATIS - Enhancing attractiveness through international student services. The study focused on six European countries—Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, United Kingdom—with regard

to support services provision to full-degree students coming from outside Europe. The role of national-level organisations and advisory bodies was examined, as were the experiences of 3-5 institutions in each country. International students were also consulted directly, through student focus group sessions as well as via a quantitative survey that garnered 1278 responses from international students studying in the six countries included in the study.

Notable findings include the fact that some 80 percent of students regard the availability of services as either “very important” or “partly important” when it comes to making a decision about where to study. Meanwhile, individual institutions and national-level organisations appear to be increasingly responsive to the needs of international students, with the study countries and institutions providing many examples of creative and effective approaches to meeting student needs. The use of information and communication technologies to connect with international students, the involvement of fellow students (domestic and international) to assist the international student population, and the proactive steps to ease the burden of administrative red tape and legal complexities are important examples of positive trends seen in a variety of contexts.

Key challenges remain, however. Among the most prominent, the study finds that information for students must be paced more appropriately, or made available in a more à la carte fashion. Careful attention must also be paid so that certain types of full-degree international students are not ‘lost through the cracks’ (for example, those who matriculate directly into degree programmes and are therefore not overtly identified as ‘international’ with distinct needs). Additionally—and quite notably—

institutions offering English-taught programmes in non-English speaking countries face a special responsibility to develop communication and support strategies that meet the needs of students who are not proficient in the host country language.

Ultimately, if Europe is to position itself as a destination of choice for large numbers of international students from around the world, the investment made by students to come to Europe needs to be matched by a meaningful response on the part of host countries and institutions to provide useful guidance for the ‘whole student’. More information on the book can be found on the ACA website here.

  

Inquiries for the authors can be addressed to:

Laura E. Rumbley

Deputy Director

Academic Cooperation Association

15 rue d’Egmont / Egmontstraat

B-1000 Brussels, Belgium

Email: laura.rumbley@aca-secretariat.be

The book can be ordered from:

Lemmens Medien GmbH

Matthias-Grünewald-Str. 1-3, D-53175 Bonn

Tel.: ++49 228 42 13 70

Fax: +49 228 42 13 729, E-Mail: info@lemmens.de

Mobility Barometer of the Let’s Go Campaign

Those of you conducting research on global student/scholar mobility trends may find the Mobility Barometer on the Let’s Go Campaign to be helpful. The Mobility Barometer highlights the specific mobility situation for students and higher education and research personnel in 46 countries within the European region. You can access the Mobility Barometer here: http://tinyurl.com/5pnkoe

The Lets Go Campaign was launched by Education International and the European Students’ Union (ESU). You can access the main website for the Let’s Go Campaign here: http://www.letsgocampaign.net/

European Commission: Young People Mobility

From the Vol. 5, No.7, September 2008 IAU E-Bulletin

The High Level Expert Forum on Mobility set up by the European Commission presented its final report Learning Mobility, an Opportunity for All in July. The task of this Forum was to reflect and make recommendations on how to promote, improve and create more opportunities for the mobility of all European young people aged 16-29. http://ec.europa.eu/education/doc/2008/mobilityreport_en.pdf

The European Quality Assurance Register (EQAR)

On August 8, 2008 the European Quality Assurance Register (EQAR) published the “Procedures for Applications” and the “Guide for Applicants” for quality assurance agencies to apply for inclusion on EQAR. You can lean more about the EQAR here: www.eqar.eu.

The European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR)

On March 4, 2008, the European Quality Assurance Register for Higher Education (EQAR) was officially launched in Brussels as a move to improve the quality of European higher education and to promote greater student mobility. This register was mandated by the Education Ministers from the 46 countries involved in the Bologna Process and was established by the "E4 Group" which is comprised of the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA), the European Students Union (ESU), the European University Association (EUA) and the European Association of Institutions in Higher Education (EURASHE).

The EQAR press release can be viewed here: http://www.eua.be/fileadmin/user_upload/files/Press/EQARlaunchpr-FINAL.pdf

U.S. Heritage-Seeking Students Discover Minority Communities in Western Europe

This research article examines quantitative data relevant to an increasingly multiethnic Western Europe and investigates European opportunities for U.S. minority heritage-seeking students. In addition to analyzing the demographic data of Western Europe, a review of U.S. higher education enrollment demographics derived from current national education statistics as well as a look at the racial and ethnic makeup of U.S. students studying abroad will be conducted.

Journal of Studies in International Education, Vol. 12, No. 1, 29-37 (2008)http://jsi.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/12/1/29