The Global Divestiture of Engineering Higher Education With A Focus on Europe

1
The Global Divestiture of Engineering Higher
Education-With A Focus on Europe
Invited Address ECEDHA March 19, 2007 St.
Augustine, Florida
Dr. Lester Gerhardt Rensselaer Polytechnic
Institute Troy, New York gerhal_at_rpi.edu
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The Reality

• A Technologically Borderless Planet
• A Globally Interactive Economy
• A Distributed Educational System
• A Global Engineer is Needed
• Balancing Cooperation and Competitive Position

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Barrier Erosion Promotes Global Education

• Technology
• Travel
• Distance Learning
• Language
• Diversity of Culture
• Uniformity of Process
• Best in Class
• Multi-National Corporations EWP
• Competition Cooperation

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Barrier Erosion Promotes Global Education

• Global Quality Assurance
• Students Exchanged
• Courses and Credits Exchanged
• Research Experiences Exchanged
• Dual/Joint Degrees
• Overall Encourages Moving From Substantial
  Equivalency to Full International Accreditation

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Major Players
European Community
United States
Asian Community
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For The US A Changing Scene

• From a Virtual Monopoly in Higher Education to
  Formidable International Competition
• The ATT Divestiture Equivalent for Higher
  Education
• Single Digit Percentages of UG International
  Students
• High Double Digit Percentages of Graduate
  International Students

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For the US-A Changing Scene

• Engineering Has Held a Supremacy Role in the
  United States and in its Development
• BUT
• The US Now Graduates 15,000 Fewer Engineers
  Annually Than It Did 20 Years Ago
• AND
• Europe and Asia Produce 3-5 Times As Many
  Engineers As The US Which Are Many Times
  Available at 30 the Cost of a US Engineer
• ALSO
• Asia Produced More PhDs Than the US in 2003
• Europe Produced More PhDs Than the US in 2003
• Application for Graduate Study in US is Down

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A Typical University Circumstance

• 70 International Applications
• Admissions of International Students Constrained
  by the Need for Providing Full Tuition and
  Stipend
• One Half of Graduate Student Body is
  International
• One Half of Those are From China From Which US
  Applications Dropped 60 in Two Years

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International Applications
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Trends

• Homogeneity of the Process
• A Trend to Uniformity
• Heterogeneity of the Students
• A Trend to Diversity

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A Multi-Dimensional Look at Europe
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Homogeneity of the Process Common Practices

• English Becoming More Prevalent in Universities
• DTU, Budapest University, Helsinki University of
  Technology, Univ. _at_Valencia, INSA Lyon, etc.
• Master Degree in Information Technology at TU
  Munich in English

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Homogeneity of the Process Common Practices

• Erasmus Program
• Large Scale Partnerships Between European
  Universities
• Joint Degree Programs
• European Credit Transfer System ECTS
• Common Standards and Practices within Europe

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Homogeneity of the Process Common Practices

• ABET 2000
• Outcome Assessment Based
• US and European Adoption
• Bologna Declaration
• More Unified Higher Education Approach
• Two-Cycle Bachelors and Masters Across Europe
• Credit Accumulation System
• Quality Assurance and Accreditation Systems

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Heterogeneity of the Students

• Large Number of International Graduate Students
  in the U.S.
• U.S. and Asian Students Sought in European
  Universities
• University Consortia Global Draw
• Virtual Universities
• Country Independent

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Characteristics of Evolving European Education

• International Exchanges as an Integral Part of
  the Process
• Adapting the US Strategy
• Bachelor, Master, PhD Model
• Teaching in English
• A Diverse Student Body
• 3 Year Bachelor Degree
• Body of Knowledge Approach to PhD

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Characteristics of Evolving European Education

• Extensive Cooperation, Networking, and Leveraging
• European Union
• ECTS
• Bologna
• Erasmus
• Move to Privatization
• Buildings Owned Privately
• Tuition Charged-100,000 DKR
• Most Still Low/No Tuition

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Europe-Comings and Goings-

• Europe is the Biggest Draw for US Students Going
  Abroad _at_ 60.4
• Europe is a Minimal Draw for International
  Students Studying in the US
• Only Germany is in the Top Ten Countries of
  Origin for Foreign Students in the US (2005-06)
  _at_1.6

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Countries of Origin and Share of Enrollment for
Foreign Students in US-2005/06

• India-13.5
• China-11.1
• South Korea-10.4
• Japan-6.9
• Canada-5
• Taiwan-4.9
• Mexico-2.5
• Turkey-2.1
• Germany-1.6
• Thailand-1.6
• Open Doors Report, 2005-06, IIE

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International Students in the US- By Field

• Overall Total Foreign Enrollment-564,766
• Business Mgmt-17.9
• Engineering-15.7 (Declined 5)
• Physical Life Sciences-8.9
• Social Sciences-8.2
• Mathematics Comp. Sci.-8.1 (Declined 10)
• Open Doors Report, 2005-06, IIE

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Top 10 Destinations for and of Americans
Studying Abroad-2004/05

• Britain-15.6
• Italy-12.1
• Spain-10.1
• France-7.5
• Australia-5.2
• Mexico-4.5
• Germany-3.2
• China-3.1
• Ireland-2.5
• Costa Rica-2.4
• Open Doors Report, 2005-06, IIE

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Whats Hot in US Higher Education?-Study Abroad

• Doubled Over the Last Decade
• 205,983 in 2004-5
• One Federal Commissions Goal-
• One Million by 2016-17
• Open Doors Report, 2005-06, IIE

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The Talk

• The Commission on the Abraham Lincoln Study
  Abroad Fellowship Program Said in Their Nov.,
  2005 Report
• What Nations Dont Know Can Hurt Them
• For Their Own Future and That of the Nation,
  College Graduates Today Must be Internationally
  Competent.

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The Talk Vs. The Walk

• ONLY 20 OF AMERICANS HAVE PASSPORTS

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US Need for International Exchange

• 96 of Humanity Lives Outside the U.S. Borders
• 13 Million Americans in Higher Education
• 205,983 (1.6) of Those Have an International
  Education Experience Annually
• 5,000 (0.04) of Those are Engineering Students

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The Walk
Industry Sector PULL
University Sector PUSH
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Employers Attitudes-The Talk

• Employers value study abroad, but theres a gap
  between employers vague support for study abroad
  and the extent to which they think study abroad
  contributes to the skills and qualities they
  seek.
• Michael Vande Berg-VP Council on International
  Educational Exchange

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Demographics of Americans Studying Abroad

• 65 Female
• 83 White
• Gender Beyond Disciplinary Choice
• E.G.-In Engineering Far More Are Women Than
  Men
• Open Doors Report, 2005-06, IIE

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Global Engineering Education ExchangeProgram
Characteristics

• Tuition Paid at Home Institution
• Room Board Paid at Host Institution
• Zero Net Flow of Student Semesters
• Geographically and Temporally Integrated
• Full Credit Transfer of Courses
• Policy on Courses Grades Determined by
  Individual University Members
• Course Data Bank
• Voluntary
• Began in 1995-96

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Rensselaers New Initiative

• A Mandatory International Experience for
  Engineering Undergraduates
• 12-15 Academic Partners
• Junior Year Emphasis
• Bi-Lateral Exchanges
• Rensselaer Centric
• Tuition Paid at Home Room/Board at Host

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The Future

• Changing Face of Competition
• Traditional Campus Based University
• Distance Learning Virtual University
• Industry Based University
• International Competition Increasing
• A Global Virtual University
• Degree Credit Requirements

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Required Aspects of Engineering Higher Education

• Breadth and Depth
• Academic and Research Integration
• Flexibility
• Disciplinary, Multidisciplinary,
  Interdisciplinary
• Skill/Tool Based
• Communication and Language, Leadership,
  Entrepreneurship, Work and Play Well with
  Others
• Societal Impact Understanding and Appreciation

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Selected Responsibilities of the University-Both
Cultural and Technical

• Integrate Research and Academic Programs
• Match Global Needs With Degree Objectives
• Individual and Collective Responsibility
• Educational Outreach-Both K - 12 and EWP
• Promote Diversity
• Women-the Underrepresented Majority
• Underrepresented Minorities
• Both Leading and Reacting to Change

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Extending Global Markets

• Africa
• Latin America
• Middle East
• Other

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Selected Issues Pebbles, Rocks, Boulders

• Measuring Evaluating Outcome Assessment
• A Seamless Flow of Basic and Continuing Education
• Managing the Global University
• Degree Granting
• Differential Tuition
• Balancing Cooperation Competition