Graduate Learning Experiences and Outcomes: The Landscape of Graduate Study Abroad (GLEO)
Dr. John Dirkx, Erickson Chair from 2011-2014, discusses his project focused on better understanding the content, nature, and outcomes of graduate level study abroad.
The Graduate Learning Experiences and Outcomes: The Landscape of Graduate Study Abroad (GLEO) project focuses on better understanding the content, nature and outcomes of graduate level study abroad. While there is considerable information and research on study abroad at the undergraduate level, research on graduate study/education abroad is almost non-existent, despite its increasing popularity in universities across the US. Because of the participants and their academic focus, graduate education represents a fundamentally different educational context than that for undergraduate students.
Very little information is available on what kinds of graduate study abroad experiences are available, the influence of professional disciplines on intended learning outcomes for graduate study abroad, the potentially transformative effects of study/education abroad as a professional development experience, or its contributions to institutional goals of internationalization. This study represents the first systematic study of graduate-level study/education abroad to our knowledge.The GLEO study examines these issues by focusing on graduate study/education abroad (independent and group) offered by higher education institutions in the Midwest, specifically, CIC member institutions and NYU, a national leader in graduate level study abroad. The main goal is to develop a comprehensive inventory and taxonomy of graduate study abroad programs at these institutions.
Subsequent to this phase of the study we intend to study the kinds of learning experiences associated with the different kinds of experiences available to graduate students and to document individual and organizational outcomes associated with these experiences.
