Globalization -- and Asia's Return to Economic Supremacy

This week, our study abroad program is visiting at University College Dublin -- comparing the response to global economic crisis in Ireland and the US, and assessing the long-term effects on these two countries.



Today, we had an excellent presentation by Dr. Niamh Hardiman (of UCD's Geary Institute) entitled Liberalism in Crisis. She showed well the magnitude of economic, fiscal and political challenges European countries now face.



Tonight, I read this essay by Michael Hennigan at Finfacts.



It will take time, but I think you'll find it worth reading.

China's Role in World Food Prices

A good colleague, Pat Westhoff at MU's Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute, provided this excellent guest post on how developments in China may affect food prices through out the world. This work appeared in the New York Time's Freakanomics Blog.

Pat is also the author of a newly published book on the economics of food. If you're concerned about food security -- check this out.

International Graduate Student Admissions Increase in US

The Council of Graduate Schools (CGS) just released survey results that show international graduate student applications increased in the US for the fifth consecutive year.  Based on survey responses, totals are up by 7% over last year.

This increase has been fueled by double-digit growth rates in students from China.  Recent application declines from India and Korea stabilized this year.

Trends vary significantly by field of study and by type of host university. 

For more information see the media release and the full report.  the survey was on applications, not admissions. CGS' annual survey on admissions (and final application numbers) will be released in August.

Previous years’ surveys are posted here.

Chinese PhD Students Stay in the US

This account published in the University World News...

More than nine in every 10 students from China who gained a doctorate in the United States in 2002 were still in the country in 2007, the highest percentage from any foreign nation. This compares with 62% of all foreign-born PhD recipients for that year, says a new report.

The figures come from a study by Michael Finn at the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education in Tennessee, published in the National Science Foundation's Science and Engineering Indicators 2010.

Five-year stay rates for students from other countries include 81% for India and 77% for Russia. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of PhDs in either physical or life sciences remained for five years after earning their degrees compared with 51% of those with PhDs in agricultural sciences.

The study found that while most foreign PhD students planned to stay in the US after graduation, among the 2004-07 graduates, about half had accepted firm offers of employment.

Between 2000-03 and 2004-07, however, the percentage reporting definite plans to stay on decreased among those with science and engineering doctorates from all top five countries - China, India, South Korea, Taiwan and Canada. For all but Taiwan, the increases in the number awarded doctorates more than offset the declines in the percentage staying.

Read the full story here.

International Education - China and India Outlook

I was poking around on Finfacts - preparing for our summer study abroad course on the Irish Facing the Future. 

While there - I came across this article that compares demographic outlooks in BRIC countries.

As most US public universities, MU is very interested in attracting talented students from China and India. As we position ourselves in these highly competitive markets, we need to compare demographic outlooks, institutional strengths and connections, and effective demands for higher education in these (and other) countries.

Bailouts Around the World - An Infograph

This is not directly related to international academic programs -

but I stumbled upon this post by MU Professor Peter Klein.

It's very interesting to compare the actions of the US with those taken in Ireland, Germany, France, and China - to name a few countries.

More Chinese Students in the US...

A recent survey of 6,000 middle school students in China's major cities finds a growing proportion of students want to pursue higher education abroad.

By a wide margin, the US remains the preferred destination.

For more information, see this brief summary.

Re EU - Two Observations

As a more than casual observer of the European Union, I stumbled across two disparate developments that might be of interest...

First, appearing before a Subcommittee of Foreign Affairs in the US House of Representatives, Phillip Gordon reported on: "The Lisbon Treaty: Implications for Future Relations Between the European Union and the United States".

(Major) changes in the EU institutions attract very limited media attention in the US. The Treaty of Lisbon deserves more reflection on our part. Nevertheless, I'm encouraged that the US State Department has a deeper appreciation of its effects on Transatlantic relations and world affairs.

Gordon concluded his testimony:

The United States faces a daunting array of global challenges that no one country can handle on its own. For a variety of critical issues, from climate change, to the Doha Round of trade talks, from the Balkans, to Iran, solutions will require working in close concert with our European partners. We believe that the Lisbon Treaty represents a serious effort by our EU partners to streamline their policymaking process. We understand that, as with all efforts to reform complex institutions, this is a work in progress, and that it may take time for the new institutions to demonstrate their impact. Nevertheless, we hope that the changes brought by Lisbon will make the EU a stronger partner for the United States, and increase the role of Europe on the world’s stage. We want the EU to be that stronger partner and we certainly intend to do our part to engage closely with the new institutions, but in the end their ultimate effectiveness will be determined by the will of EU Member States to invest in them.

***

Second, I note that the EU is assembling more programs and resources to foster cultural and economic relations with China. For example, see the project named simply, "Understanding China". Several organizations across Europe, including the University of Antwerp, are working together in this project to provide executive training, policy dialogue forums, news summaries and a virtual community for European people and companies that want to learn how to do business in China. This is an interesting model. Perhaps US universities would do well to emulate.

International Education Week - at Missouri

International Education Week will be observed next week (November 16-20) across the world. At Missouri, we've planned a series of events.

• Monday, November 16
  Study Abroad Photo Contest AwardsLuncheon (by invitation only)
  Finalist photos available on line.

Tuesday, November 17, 12:00 Noon - 1:00 pm
Movie - Fulbright: The Man, the Mission, the Message
Free and Open to the Public
Hawthorne Lounge, Memorial Union, MU

Tuesday, November 17 7:00 pm
Talk: China's 30 Years of 'Opening Up and Reform'
Continuities and Change Visiting scholar Professor Lingling Qi
N103 (Stotler Lounge III) Memorial Union, MU

Wednesday, November 18, 3:00 - 4:30 pm
MU's connections with the Republic of Georgia: Past, Present and Possible Futures
Discussion led by MU Professors Byron Scott, Jim McCartney and Jim Scott
Jesse Wrench Auditorium, Memorial Union, MU

Thursday, November 19, 3:30 – 5:00 pm
Chancellor's Global Issues Forum - The Fulbright Program: Changing our Campus, Changing our World
Moderated by MU Chancellor Brady Deaton.
Chamber Auditorium, MU Student Center (located above the University Bookstore)

Friday, November 20, 11:30 AM
Thanksgiving Luncheon for First Year International Student (by invitation only)

Study Abroad - Through Distance Learning

Recently, the Chronicle of Higher Education published a story about East Carolina University's innovative use of digital technology to support cross cultural communication and student learning.

As a follow up, they've published the transcript from an online chat with key leaders.

This is definitely worth reading.