Evaluating Study Abroad Programs: A Follow-Up Effort to Determine Comparative Value and Importance in Engineering and Non-Engineering Programs

Effective global education requires contact with and interaction between peoples from different nations and cultures. Most study abroad (SA) programs at universities promote interactions by providing opportunities for students to travel and live in different countries. The intent is that students will return with a greater understanding of similarities and differences between cultures, an enhanced educational experience, insights into future employment, new interpersonal networks, and personal growth. This list forms a core of common competencies that all students should develop regardless of their discipline’s SA program. Usually each college, department, and program also has competencies for students to demonstrate growth and learning that are discipline specific. This diversity of program objectives between disciplines can make comparison between programs difficult. This study is a follow-up to implementing a model that facilitates comparison of engineering and non-engineering study abroad programs at a university level. It then takes the initial steps of defining and evaluating study abroad competencies at the college level for engineering students. The study describes the processes used to develop and implement this model. It also describes the comparison found between engineering and non-engineering study abroad programs. Finally, it presents the findings from the evaluation at the College of Engineering level. It provides evidence how this model may be used across campus and specific levels to evaluate program effectiveness and student learning.