Report and recommendations of the task force on global education 22 may 2013 table of contents introductory Observations pp. 3-5 Student Programs Abroad

The Department of Political Science is the current structural home for the International Studies (IST) program. According to the Baylor undergraduate catalog, the IST degree is an interdisciplinary program designed to equip students for a wide variety of career options in various aspects of government service, missionary service, business, public relations/mass communications, international foundations, and international education.

IST majors are required to complete 2 core courses in political science (PSC 3315 Fundamentals of International Politics and either PSC 3304 Comparative Politics or PSC 3324 World Political Systems). IST majors must complete nine credit hours of Regional Studies courses in one or more areas: Latin America, Asia and Russia, Middle East and Africa, Europe and the United States. These majors must also complete nine hours of Global Issues and Institutions courses related to political and development issues (32 course options from 9 academic disciplines), economics (7 course options from the Hankamer School of Business), or beliefs systems (16 course options from 5 disciplines).

A substantial number of students (over 200) are currently enrolled as majors in that program and a minor has recently been approved. Though enrollment numbers are relatively high, concerns have emerged about degree specificity, depth, and overlap with other degree programs.

• A centralized structure could enhance development opportunities for cross-disciplinary partnerships among faculty from a variety of academic disciplines. A strong cross-disciplinary approach could enrich the scope of student learning and professional preparation in these programs.

• The structure could enable an expansion of the mission and activities for these programs beyond academic degrees. These programs could also serve as a source of campus-wide resources for area-specific information, a link to student/faculty/staff service and research opportunities, and a catalyst for developing Baylor partnerships with individuals and organizations around the world.
This proposed Center for Area Studies should contain the following structural and communication elements.
• A full-time administrator with strong academic experience and perspectives (e.g., an Assistant Director for Global Student Engagement) could be responsible for the Center for Area Studies along with study abroad programs and other components/liaisons relevant to student learning.

• A director for each Area Studies program. Each director should be a Baylor faculty member with teaching and professional experience relevant to the program, and should be provided with appropriate levels of release time and compensation for their work as program directors. Individuals selected to serve as directors should be committed to developing broad cross-disciplinary partnerships that engage faculty members from a variety of relevant academic disciplines. They should also have experience, or be willing to be trained, in curriculum development and evaluation processes.

• Curriculum committees consisting of faculty instructors of courses and/or representatives of other academic departments on campus should be established to foster consistent communication and decision-making across stakeholder groups. An important responsibility of these committees should be to ensure that required courses are offered in ways that meet student needs.

• Clearly-defined, efficient, and regularly-maintained communication channels and partnership bridges among and between program directors, leaders of academic departments across campus, and others involved in Area Studies.

• Annual reports of program development, course offerings and needs, student enrollment, and measures of learning outcomes (relevant to university accreditation requirements) should be required for each program. These reports should be submitted to the Assistant/Associate Vice Provost for Global Engagement and shared with leaders of academic departments and other stakeholders.
2. Reinstate the African Studies Program
Members of the Baylor University community continue to be involved in Africa. In 2013, the Baylor Missions program is supporting mission trips on the African continent that focus on community development (separate teams will have worked in Ethiopia, Rwanda, Kenya, and Ghana), International Nursing Clinical (Ethiopia) women’s leadership (Kenya), engineering (Rwanda), sports ministry (Kenya and Zambia), and community health and wellness (Ghana, Ethiopia). The School of Social Work trains social work students from African (and other) countries to lead developmental efforts in their home countries through the Global Mission Leadership Initiative. These and other efforts have led to partnerships with universities on that continent, such as the partnership between the Baylor School of Business and the Uganda Christian University and Pastor’s Discipleship Network to provide business-related vocational seminars and camps for orphans in Uganda.

Baylor’s global mission and the vast needs that still exist on the African continent serve as a compelling reason to revive and support the African Studies program. International attention, rich partnering opportunities, great human and spiritual need, and ever increasing student interest make Africa a key world area in any global conversation. We would be remiss as a university if we omitted Africa from our Area Studies programs.   

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  A cross-disciplinary vision: Degree requirements and learning opportunities within each Area Studies program should be designed to equip Baylor students with a broad understanding of language, culture, religion, politics, history, economics, health, education, environment, and other socio-ecological factors relevant to the global region that is the focus of that Area Studies program.
  
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  A clearly-defined cross-disciplinary core: Each Area Studies program should contain a well-defined core of required courses and learning outcome measures to help ensure that every student in the Area Studies degree program masters key cross-disciplinary elements.
  
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    Specific courses included in this required core will need to be further explored. However, at a minimum, core courses should equip every student with understanding and skills related to language; intercultural communication techniques; history, politics, and current events; and socio-ecological factors (e.g., socioeconomics, education, health) that impact the way of life in the designated area of the world.
    
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    The number of credit hours required in this core should be substantial enough to enable students and others to clearly define the core academic preparation and skills of all students who graduate with the degree.
    
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    The interdisciplinary curriculum committee described above, could be charged with developing and periodically evaluating this required core and its learning outcomes.
    
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    Learning outcomes should be developed, assessed, and reported in accordance with accreditation requirements of the Southern Association for Colleges and Schools.
    
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  Purpose-driven emphasis options: Though every student should be required to complete the substantial cross-disciplinary core, each student may also be guided to choose from 2-3 specific emphasis options.
  
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    Each emphasis option should be clearly defined with a written description of the focus, learning outcomes, and specific course requirements for that option.
    
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    Course requirements in each emphasis optioncould include courses from two or more academic disciplines that address some common learning components, for example: (a) language and intercultural communication, (b) history, politics, and current events; or (c) economics, education, and health promotion.
    
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    Interdisciplinary faculty committees could be formed to develop and periodically evaluate each emphasis option and its learning outcomes.
    
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  Required experiential learning: Some type of experiential learning opportunity for students to travel to the global area should be required.
  
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    Facilitation of this requirement could be structured through existing or developed study abroad programs, mission/service opportunities, group tours, and/or individual internship/practicum opportunities.
    
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    Safety considerations should be included in discussions about these experiential experiences.
    
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    Students can and should be informed of this requirement prior to selecting the Area Studies degree as their major.
    

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  A web-based information source: A well-designed website could include information and links for students and faculty members interested in service, research, and general travel in that region; short highlights about current events, cultural information, country- or city-specific information; stories of interest about organizations and Baylor alumni/partners who work in that region and/or Baylor students/faculty who have traveled to that region.
  
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  On-campus seminars and visiting scholars/others: An annual or biannual Area Studies conference or symposium could be offered on campus to enable the Baylor community and visiting scholars, leaders, and other groups from these regions to engage in conversations about current events and Baylor’s role in these global regions.
  
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  Organizational partnerships: Baylor partnerships with organizations, institutions, and agencies that are based in or serve the global area could be developed in ways that engage faculty and students from a variety of disciplines on campus, including those not already involved through course offerings in the Area Studies curriculum. These partnerships could be student-learning, service, or research oriented.
  

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  Generalist Approach: The overall degree requirements and targeted application of the degree are extremely broad. Degree applications described in the undergraduate catalog overlap with the targeted work areas of other well-established, discipline-specific Baylor degree programs (e.g., business, education, communication, the seminary). Though this generalist approach may explain why so many students are attracted to the degree, it raises questions about the capacity of the IST program to provide the depth of preparation needed for students to work in each of the employment settings described.
  
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  Overlap with Area Studies: The 9-hour regional studies requirement within the degree overlaps with the Area Studies programs, a factor that may confuse students and compete for enrollment in the more-focused Area Studies programs.
  
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  International Studies versus International Relations: In other benchmark universities, we found International Studies programs housed in centralized university units (centers or colleges for international studies) rather than in a department of political science. The International Relations programs in departments of political science are more focused on the study of diplomatic relations and include more political science courses (~8-10) in the required core than do International Studies programs.
  

We recommend that the Baylor IST program be phased out, allowing current majors to complete their degrees, but not allowing new students to declare this major. A decision to replace the IST program with an International Relations program in the Department of Political Science should belong to leaders of that department. A subfield in International Relations in Political Science already exists in that department that could potentially be elevated to the status of a full degree program. Utilization of existing Area Studies foci could add strength and depth of resources to International Relations. However, the decision to proceed with an International Relations program should rest with the Department of Political Science.

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  Recruitment & Admission: Admission Services defines the international territory as a student of any citizenship whose school address is not within the United States. (i.e., a non-citizen attending Plano High School is recruited by the Plano admissions counselor and a U.S. citizen attending Singapore International School is recruited by the international admissions counselor).
  
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  Post Enrollment: After matriculation, the Institutional Research Office defines an international student as one whose citizenship is non-U.S. .
  

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  Lawful permanent resident alien (Green Card) students are entered as PR (Permanent Resident).
  
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  Those lawfully present who have applied for but have not yet received permanent residency status are entered as PP (Permanent Pending). PP students are treated as international students until they receive their Green Card, but do not participate in international student orientation programs.
  
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  Undocumented non-U.S. citizen students are coded as NN (No visa; No passport). The Office of General Counsel advises that Baylor should continue the current CIE policy of referring all NNs to the admissions office for processing. CIE (or whatever entity ultimately is in charge of international students) serves as an arm of the USCIS-ICE (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services-Immigration and Customs Enforcement) under SEVIS (Student and Exchange Visitor Information System) and, as such, has reporting responsibilities that may conflict with how BU and state schools in Texas treat this class of students.
  

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  Recruitment & Admission:
  
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    Prior to 2007, undergraduate international students were not actively recruited. Admission Services processed the international student applications as they came but did not actively pursue international students in the same manner as domestic students.
    
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    In 2007, CIE contracted with two alumni/former university personnel who moved abroad to attend international fairs to represent Baylor University in a very limited capacity (Europe & India).
    
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    CIE worked with university officials to join the US Sino-Pathways Program (Kaplan China) to recruit Chinese students to attend one of four consortium schools in the U.S. as transfer students. The first recruitment trip for this program began in 2009. (See appendix for a description of the Kaplan program)
    

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  Current International Student Recruitment: Undergraduate Admission Services negotiated with CIE to begin handling all recruitment activities and in 2010 reallocated funds to create a full international territory to begin laying the foundation for a future of international recruitment and admission. Key markets are currently identified based on criteria such as academic ability of students, financial resources available, competition and cultural fit to Waco. These include Vietnam, Singapore, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Hong Kong, Germany, select countries in the Middle East, and China through strategic programs such as Kaplan.
  

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  The foundation has been set in terms of processing and strategy for undergraduate recruitment. With additional resources, the undergraduate recruitment efforts are poised to increase international student enrollment. However, the opportunity for growth hinges on the university’s ability to serve these students once enrolled. The traditional “hand-off” point for incoming international students is after the point of deposit. All students are then instructed to work with CIE for official documentation processing. In addition, international students rely on CIE to help them navigate the remaining enrollment steps such as information regarding mandatory health insurance, assisting with travel plans and information regarding the alternate advising process and 1-day orientation in the fall, etc. These are common areas of confusion for international students and currently are not adequately being addressed by either CIE or New Student Programs.
  

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  There are consistent challenges with communication on the part of CIE and incoming students. These challenges range from incorrect information on websites (currently being updated), wording in email communications, and the inability to adapt and progress towards efficient data collection and processing (i.e., goBaylor accounts). As a direct result, some students will decide to cancel their admission file and will not enroll. There are many specific examples where students and parents see the lack of correct, timely, and appropriate communication as a reflection of the low importance Baylor University gives international students on our campus.
  

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  In addition to the technical definition of an international student at the point of enrollment (citizenship status), there is a glaring oversight in the services provided to third culture students such as children of military, ministry, and business families abroad. These families, as mentioned in the Student Programs Abroad section, are the evidence of Baylor’s missional success. Due to a technicality in coding, however,these students are not served by CIE and are often turned away. However, these students badly need additional support and, in turn, have much to offer our community.
  

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  Enrollment
  
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    2012 Undergraduate enrollment of 12,918 (including 188 students classified as Non-Degree or Postbaccalaureate). Ninety-six percent of these students are U.S. citizens, while 575 (4.4%) are resident or nonresident aliens, representing 73 foreign countries.
    
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      Recruitment of international students is tracked by Undergraduate Admission Services in the same manner as domestic students. The past three years have seen growth in the volume of prospective international students as well as an increase in the students submitting applications. The difficulty comes in converting accepted students to enrolling students due to many barriers that international students experience such as obtaining a student entry visa.
      
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    2012 Graduate enrollment (not including law or seminary)of 1,531 including 7 students classified as Graduate Non-Degree. Eighty-five percent of these students are U.S. citizens, while 232 (15.1%) are resident or nonresident aliens, representing 47 foreign countries.
    
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    Total enrollment stats: 2012- Total Graduate and Undergraduate student population is 15,364 of which 834 (5.4%) are non-citizens.
    
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  Retention statistics
  
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    The most recent undergraduate fall to fall (2011-12) retention rate for resident aliens and non-resident aliens was 84.7% and 89.0% respectively. As a point of comparison, citizens retained at 88.8%.
    
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    Graduate- retention stats via IRT website are unavailable for this cohort.
    

Many institutions have 10 or more employees working towards the international student enrollment goals while others have smaller operations. Currently, Baylor’s undergraduate recruitment and admission falls to one full-time employee with approximately 3 others devoting a small portion of their time to processing or recruiting.

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  While the total international student enrollment in the U.S. increased by 6% to 764,495 students in 2011, international students still comprise less than 4% of the total U.S. higher education enrollment.
  
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  Doctorate-granting universities host 64% of international students.
  
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  The 200 U.S. institutions with 1,000 or more international students hosted 66% of all international students in 2011-12.
  
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  The top 3 host states in the U.S. are California, New York, and Texas.
  
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  The top fields of study are STEM fields representing 41% of the student population and Business & Management fields representing 22%.
  
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  International students contributed over $22.7 billion to the U.S. economy in 2011 according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.
  

Baylor is enrolling a much smaller population of both undergraduate and graduate international students than schools of similar size. For example: Northeastern University: Total enrollment 16,119, enrolled 3,308 undergraduate international students in 2011 which equals 20.52% of their undergraduate population and 3,019 total international graduates which equals 34.49% of their total graduate population. Syracuse University has 13,905 undergraduate students and 1309 of those are international equaling 9.41% of the total undergraduate student population. The Open Doors report defines international students as “non-immigrant international students in the U.S. on temporary visas at the postsecondary level.” According to this definition, Baylor is enrolling international students at 2.8% of our undergraduate population and 9.3% of our graduate population.