Attitudes Towards Global Civic-Mindedness and Engagement Before and After Study Abroad: A Study of Undergraduate Students at International Study Abroad Centers of an American University

Mousumi Mukherjee Loyola University of Chicago ATTITUDES TOWARDS GLOBAL CIVIC-MINDEDNESS AND ENGAGEMENT BEFORE AND AFTER STUDY ABROAD: A STUDY OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS AT INTERNATIONAL STUDY ABROAD CENTERS OF AN AMERICAN UNIVERSITY In recent years Study Abroad has come from the periphery to the center of Higher Education programs in the U.S. Students from across the world has been studying abroad in the U.S. for decades because of the advanced research and infrastructural facilities here. Compared to the international students studying abroad in the U.S., the number of U.S. students studying abroad has been negligible according to Open Doors data reported by Institute of International Education. The Lincoln Commission report in 2005 emphasized the need to change this trend and provide more American students with international experience for American\u27s own competitiveness and national security. It is widely accepted that Study Abroad helps to broaden student\u27s perspective, which in turn helps to foster peace and understanding- it prepares a new generation for global citizenship (IIE white paper, 2007, p. 7). In my research I have conducted surveys of students before and after studying abroad for a semester to evaluate if there is any change in student attitudes towards global civic-mindedness and engagement after studying abroad. My sample consisted of students from two international study abroad programs administered by a private American university. My aim was to measure the learning outcome of these programs. Interestingly, I found from the pre-study abroad surveys that both groups of students in my study already had quite a favorable attitude towards global civic-mindedness before studying abroad. Also, I did not find statistically significant difference in student attitudes before and after study abroad. However, student response to questions on demographic background and open-ended questions provided some insights about the probable reasons for such a result. Therefore, this study provides understanding of the variables that must be controlled for future study to assess change in student attitudes as learning outcome of study abroad programs