The Continuing Globalization Efforts Of The Purdue Aviation Technology Department – The China Experience

A number of universities are seeking ways to increase their study abroad offerings. The Purdue University Aviation Technology Department began this process a few years back, and a plan was established for increasing student participation in various study abroad opportunities. A portion of the plan was to visit peer institutions in Europe, Asia, South America and North America, and establish relationships with educational institutions that match our curriculum or a part thereof. Last year, several universities in Europe were visited. This year a team of two faculty members, one industry representative and one student visited China. This paper will discuss the visitation of two aviation universities in China. The Purdue University and United Airlines partnership enabled a meeting, and travel with the United representative in China and use of various resources of their office. In this paper the unique experiences encountered, and the future plans for cooperation with the Civil Aviation University of China and the Civil Aviation Management Institute of China are discussed. Six different options are being considered in part or collectively: (1) offer course work at Purdue University for Chinese and Purdue students (2) offer course work at the Civil Aviation University of China (CAUC) for Chinese and Purdue students (3) develop joint research and design projects between CAUC and Purdue University (4) develop a study abroad trip of two weeks or three weeks in which Purdue students accompanied by faculty will research an aviation related research project in China (5) pursue joint Purdue University and CAUC faculty research opportunities (6) develop a by semester or by year study abroad program. Meetings with the university presidents of both institutions and faculty members of both universities were very successful and they seemed eagerly interested to establish a relationship with Purdue University. Index Terms International student and faculty exchange programs, joint project development, faculty collaboration, Cultural experiences.