In John Sinclair's chapter on "Globalization, Supranational Institutions, and Media" there is strong discussion on how globalization affects culture, nationalism and self-identity (and the growing choices of self-identity people have to choose from and how they go about making that choice). Who quotes Nederveen Pieterese who discusses "'Culture' now seems more about people on th emove, a form of adaption to displacement and changing circumstances, and always, 'hybrid' rather than 'pure.'" Self-identity is naturally wrapped up in a persons culture. Today, a person's culture may be a hybrid of many different backgrounds and experiences, what Pieterse discribes as the "Thai boxing by Moraccan girls in Amsterdam" syndrome. As populations become more mobile (as evidenced by the rapidly increasing individuals who complete their higher education degrees in a country other than the one of their birth) their self-identity becomes more complex, fluid and interchangeable. At AU, I work with international students and what we deem "US Global Nomads" or US citizens living outside the US by assisting them in the admissions process. These students' self-identities and cultures can rotate at a drop of a hat. Within the work of a moment they are a Ugandan daughter with their mother, a German daughter with their father, a French school girl with their friend and a US student with me, all in the span of 30 seconds. This young woman, as Sinclaire states, has "a melange of cultural and consumption choices" in her life based on her many identities. And in the globalized world, companies (and institutions such as AU) are taking notice and advantage of the market possibilities. She could go to school in Germany or France or the US and be fully prepared. In the world of International Education, governments around the world are scrambling to brand their nation's higher education sector to make it more appealing to this growing market base of students who are choosing to study "abroad." So that when this young woman is ready to make a choice about where to pay tuition, live and education herself, she is sure to choose their country and not somewhere else.
This is a relatively new market. Nations did not used to have to work so hard to brand their education systems - the students in a country tended to stay there and students abroad generally did not join. Now, with millions of people studying in a country not of their birth, the market is huge and competition is fierce. In 2009/2010, nearly 700,000 international students studied in the US, a 3% increase from the year before. This represents a billion dollar industry in the economy and a huge cultural transmission and 'brain gain' for the US. The US is up against the UK, Canada, the EU countries, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and large regional educational cities and complexes popping up in places like the middle east, Malaysia and China when competing for international students. This is no joke, attracting highly qualified and educated people to the US higher education industry has huge impacts on diplomacy, innovation, security and leadership in fields such as banking, engineering, art, entertainment, medicene and science.
The nation that understands the mobile population of today and their varied, fluid self-identities, will be able to attract them and utilize them in the industries and diplomacy of tomorrow.
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Dear Sharena,
I enjoyed your post and argument that varied and fluid cultural identities is an issue to be addressed in both International Education and Public Diplomacy. I consider myself a "Global Nomad'as I come from a Lebanese-Irish heritage, lived and worked abroad in Spain for four years and studied in Beirut, Lebanon for a period of time. I've come to accept that I could be dropped in the Middle East, Europe or the West and adapt to any of these cultural identities at the drop of a hat as they all constitute a different side of my being.
My question for you is, what do you think is the best way Univerisities can appeal to us, the "mobile population"? Is it scholarships like Fulbright or the Boren that financially effect the decision to Study Abroad and where? Or the way that Universities brand themselves in the world of International Education that really influences decision? Perhaps it's all about location.
In your experience working for AU, what have you found to be the deciding factor in the choice of study abroad programs?
Hi Lauren!
Great question and I don't think any US university has the answer quite yet.
A trend in Int'l Education in the last five years has been marketing universities directly to the "US Global Nomads" (as AU as coined them) and showing them how AU would be a good fit for their background. Other universities have begun to market to US Citizens Abroad or to Global Nomad's in general (who are not necessarily US citizens). I have found that this niche marketing goes a long way for students from very mobile families. They feel relieved that a university "understands" their experience. I often find this to be the "determining factor" in their decision to choose to study at AU.
Location is definitely a big draw. Often, these global students want a metropolitan area, so with AU - DC is an easy sell because of its international feel and size.
Scholarships do often come is as the determining factor, esp for families where cost is a concern. But, many families have worked hard to make AU work, because they feel it is a place their "mobile student" will do well in. It helps that AU is such a great place for Boren Scholarships etc. and strong students may receive a merit scholarship.