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Michigan State University

http://www.msu.edu/home/

Contents

General Institutional Overview

1. Vision and Goals for Internationalization
2. Progress
3. Successful Strategies
4. Future Plans

General Institutional Overview

http://www.msu.edu/home/

Brief History
Founded in 1855, Michigan State University (MSU) began as a small, autonomous public institution of higher learning by and for the citizens of Michigan. It served as the prototype for 69 land-grant institutions later established under the Morrill Act of 1862 and was the first institution of higher learning in the nation to teach scientific agriculture. Today, MSU is one of the largest research universities in the world and a member of both the Association of American Universities and the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges (NASULGC), offering a comprehensive spectrum of programs and attracting gifted professors, staff members, and students. The university is distinguished by the strength of its historical and contemporary international involvement, especially in international development activity. Substantial international activity and content are found in all of the university’s 14 academic colleges and 25-plus internationally oriented centers, institutes, offices, and programs.

Institutional Mission
MSU holds a unique position in the state’s educational system. As a pioneer land-grant institution, MSU strives to discover practical uses for theoretical knowledge and to speed the diffusion of information to residents of the state, the nation, and the world. The university’s mission originated in the areas of agriculture and the mechanic arts, particularly in rural Michigan settings. Over the decades, the institution’s commitment has broadened to encompass fields such as health, human relations, business, communication, education, and government and to urban and international settings. A respected research and teaching university, MSU is committed to intellectual leadership and to excellence in both developing knowledge and conveying that knowledge to students and the public.

Innovation and leadership in the crucial areas of instruction, research, and public service activities and in the extension of knowledge to the state, the nation, and the world are the hallmarks of this university. In fostering research and its application, this university will continue to be a catalyst for positive intellectual, social, and technological change. MSU is committed to providing equal educational opportunity to all qualified applicants; to extending knowledge to all people in the state; to melding professional and technical instruction with high-quality liberal education; to expanding knowledge as an end in itself as well as on behalf of society; to emphasizing the applications of information; and to contributing to the understanding and the solution of significant societal problems.

The MSU Promise, presented by President McPherson in 1999, sets forth five goals to be achieved by 2005:

1. MSU will offer one of the best undergraduate educations available.
   
2. MSU will extend its national and international prominence in research, creative arts, and graduate and graduate/professional education.
   
3. MSU will be a great global university serving Michigan and the world.
   
4. MSU will be an exemplary engaged university.
   
5. MSU will be a more diverse and connected community.

Enrollments/Public/Carnegie Category
MSU’s total enrollment for fall 2001 was 44,227 students. MSU is a public university, Carnegie Category Research I ("Doctoral/Research–Extensive").

Contextual Issues Important to Internationalization Efforts
MSU has a more than 50-year legacy of involvement in more than 200 major development, research, and technical assistance projects in dozens of countries. This international engagement was supported by the establishment on campus of numerous internationally oriented centers, institutes, and programs in the liberal arts as well as professional and applied disciplines; the involvement of top MSU administrators in national policy-setting bodies related to international issues; the expansion of study abroad opportunities; the attraction to campus of thousands of international students and visiting scholars every year; and the development of more than 500 courses with international content. MSU has become a recognized leader in incorporating global perspectives into the land-grant philosophy. Students, faculty, staff, and alumni expect international connections and issues to permeate the campus. With seven centers and institutes currently designated as national and language resource centers through the Title VI program, external expectations—from Michigan constituencies, federal government agencies, a multitude of U.S.- and internationally based organizations and foundations, and even foreign governments—are that MSU will address major world problems in creative and effective ways. MSU’s position in the 21st century, as the land-grant institution in a border state with significant international exports guarantees that the pace of its internationalization efforts will continue to accelerate.

Overview of Internationalization Efforts

I. Vision and Goals for Internationalization

By the end of the first decade of the 21st century, all MSU students, faculty, staff, and other clientele should have broad opportunities to become globally aware; should be capable of collaborating with colleagues and clients at home and abroad; and should be able to operate effectively in a global environment.

The Office of International Studies and Programs has articulated the following goals and strategies:

1. Understanding: Expand the international and global awareness of MSU faculty, students, staff, and other stakeholders.
   
2. Opportunity: Increase the number of opportunities that contribute to internationalization of the curriculum and that provide international experiences for all students and faculty.
   
3. Collaboration: Support the MSU international community by strengthening collaborative planning and priority setting within ISP and with colleges, departments, faculties, and partners abroad.
   
4. Connection: Extend the international presence of MSU through improved communication with internal and external constituencies and with funding agencies, foundations, policy bodies, and international alumni.
   
5. Diversity: Expand international opportunities for students, faculty, and staff from diverse backgrounds.
   
6. Outreach: Extend MSU’s land-grant tradition of outreach service to incorporate international and global programming to directly benefit the citizens of Michigan, the United States, and the world by preparing them to live and work in a twenty-first century global community.
   
7. Development: Strengthen our historical institutional commitment of service throughout the world, working with partners abroad to address world and regional problems of hunger, disease, environment, and poverty and to advance democratic institution-building, peace and security, education, and human capacity-building endeavors.

II. Progress

Among the many tangible results of MSU’s deep commitment to international engagement are:

1. Seven centers currently designated as national resource and language resource centers through the U.S. Department of Education Title VI program.
   
2. A premier study abroad initiative that sends more than 2,000 students per year on more than 175 programs in 50-plus countries.
   
3. Nearly 4,000 international students and visiting scholars from some 130 countries on campus each year.
   
4. A legacy of development projects, funded by major grants, in such areas as agriculture, business, education (including a central role in the establishment of universities in several countries), democratic institution building, and health.
   
5. Policy leadership in internationally oriented organizations in the United States and abroad.
   
6. Broad international outreach programs for the business community, educators, the agricultural sector, and the general public, including innovative web-based resources such as globalEDGE, MSU Global Access, and Exploring Africa.
   
7. Activities in more than 120 countries on six continents.

The quality of MSU’s international programming is reflected in the achievements of its students. MSU is one of the top American public institutions in terms of the number of graduates who have been named Rhodes Scholars. MSU also is a leader in terms of the number of students winning Churchill Fellows, Marshall Scholar and Truman Scholar awards, and National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship and Social Science Research Council (International Pre-Dissertation Fellowship Program) awards. MSU ranks fifth nationally in the total number of graduates who have served in the Peace Corps since its inception in 1961.

MSU offers an array of courses and opportunities to enhance global and international competence. The extraordinary number, range, and diversity of international faculty and courses are the foundations of MSU’s strengths in international studies. MSU’s international undergraduate curriculum integrates courses across the professional schools as well as in humanities and social sciences. Integrative studies and trans-college courses provide undergraduates with coverage of broad international themes as well as more focused curricula on global, international, and comparative themes. Beyond the required integrative studies core, an array of interdepartmental courses deepens undergraduates’ international understanding.

Many area studies centers and thematic institutes offer internationally focused "specializations" and certificate programs to encourage undergraduate and graduate students to incorporate an international component in their majors. They also host weekly interdisciplinary speaker series designed to expose students to critical debate and a range of renowned international speakers from diverse disciplines; integrate international content into the broader undergraduate curriculum by linking conferences to specific courses so students can get the most from specialized presentations; and engage in extensive outreach to K-12 educators and schools, helping them integrate international content and language study into their curricula.

MSU is diversifying its foreign language instruction. MSU offers more than 200 on-campus courses in 14 languages through two departments: Romance and Classical Languages and Linguistics and Languages. The departments are working to enhance opportunities for instruction in "less commonly taught languages" (LCTLs), to include offering on-demand instruction in 28 additional (mostly African) languages. To address the needs of heritage learners—second- or third-generation members of immigrant families—MSU has begun offering evening instruction in several LCTLs. MSU’s Center for Language Education and Research (CLEAR) provides leadership in the development of innovative research projects, language teaching materials, and professional development opportunities for language educators.

MSU has a separate administrative Office of Internationalizing Student Life (ISL) to provide co-curricular programs and training opportunities to increase cross-cultural competence among students. ISL provides intercultural training in tailored sessions for new students, residence hall leaders, and international teaching assistants; makes frequent class presentations; and takes a leadership role in the annual Intercultural Institute. Each year, ISL’s many programs and services successfully reach thousands of domestic and international students as well as faculty, staff, and individuals beyond the university community.

With the support of the Office for International Students and Scholars and several other units, MSU annually hosts nearly 4,000 international students and visiting scholars from some 130 countries. The total number of degree-seeking students (undergraduate and graduate) and non-degree students (including exchange students and students enrolled through the English Language Center) is approximately 3,000. Hundreds of visiting international scholars conduct research and collaborate on projects with MSU faculty, and many others participate in training programs through the Visiting International Professional Program, the Institute of International Agriculture, the Institute of International Health, and other units.

In order to further increase the number of international students and scholars, MSU has instituted an innovative approach to institutional linkages. Asymmetric exchanges have been developed which involve a variety of exchange metrics, including exchanging incoming advanced degree students from developing countries for MSU undergraduate study abroad students. Through this approach, MSU has been able to forge deeper linkages with host institutions abroad and to increase bilateral opportunities not only in instruction but also in research and outreach activity. Asymmetric exchanges provide access to students whose enrollment at MSU might be precluded by traditional exchange agreements.

Long an enthusiastic supporter of Fulbright programs, MSU recently was selected to be a host institution in the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Program, a non-degree program that brings mid-career professionals in leadership positions from around the world to select U.S. campuses. The new five-year agreement designates MSU as one of two Humphrey Program hosts in the area of economic development. MSU’s first-year cohort of approximately 10 Humphrey Fellows is slated to arrive on campus in August 2002.

Through the Office of International Studies in Education, the College of Education is a major contributor to MSU’s internationalization efforts. The college focuses on "international research to improve education in the U.S. and other countries, efforts to help U.S. educators become more internationally oriented, and international collaboration to create the educational conditions necessary to sustainable development and well-being throughout the world." The LATTICE program (Linking All Types of Teachers in International Cross-cultural Education) has helped bring hundreds of MSU’s international students into area K-12 classrooms and has had substantial impact on internationalization of the K-12 curriculum.

MSU has invested in international information resources. MSU’s libraries house an exceptionally strong international collection. The Africana collection is one of the five largest in the United States. The Asian, Latin American, gender, and international development collections also are large and growing rapidly, aided as they are by nearly a dozen trained international bibliographers. MSU’s international collection spans the disciplines, from those in the arts and humanities to applied/professional programs. MSU inaugurated a multifunctional International Center Library in 1997 that supports international teaching, outreach, and research activities. It includes facilities for multimedia classroom presentations and simultaneous translation.

MSU is intensely involved in the incorporation of the Internet into its international initiatives. Examples include:

1. The work of MATRIX: The Center for the Humane Arts, Letters, and Social Sciences Online, which is coordinating a number of collaborative international digitization, connectivity, and technology development projects.
   
2. The development of a distance learning second-year Portuguese course for students at CIC institutions.
   
3. GlobalEDGE, a global business information web portal developed by the Center for Business Education and Research to bring a wealth of international business knowledge to business professionals worldwide.
   
4. Exploring Africa, an interactive web-based curriculum resource coordinated by the African Studies Center and designed to provide middle school educators and students (as well as the general public) with high-quality comprehensive learning materials from and about Africa, including stand-alone lesson modules.
   
5. MSU Global Access, a web portal designed to provide information about the world and Michigan-based international involvements to the people of the state and beyond.
   
6. MSU Global Online Connection, the university’s emerging e-learning initiative which offers a selection of degrees, certificates, and courses to universities, corporations, and government agencies worldwide.

III. Successful Strategies

Strategy I: Expanding Study Abroad
Michigan State University’s national leadership in study abroad is due to a strong institutional conviction that studying abroad is a powerful component in the international education of students. Currently, MSU offers more than 175 programs in 50-plus countries on six continents. More than 2,000 students study abroad yearly in MSU programs, including (in 2000-01) 1,835 MSU students and 223 students from other institutions. The number of MSU students participating more than doubled over the past five years. Minority student participation is at a level roughly proportionate to minority representation in the overall student population.

This success has resulted from a comprehensive effort fueled in the mid 1990s by President Peter McPherson’s bold goal to achieve 40 percent participation by the year 2006. The Office of Study Abroad (OSA), with the dean of International Studies and Programs, assumes leadership in meeting that goal while maintaining high program quality. Support from college and department administrators and faculty has been crucial.

Targeted marketing keeps study abroad on the minds of students and the entire campus community. Students first learn about study abroad in application materials and during orientation; they realize early on that study abroad is an expected and integrated part of the undergraduate experience at MSU. Study abroad marketing includes program-specific information meetings, semi-annual study abroad fairs, and the use of "peer advisers," supported by print and media advertising. Faculty, academic advisers, and staff from Residence Life, Student Life, and many other units help create a campus culture that promotes study abroad. The importance of parental support is being addressed through special publications and web-based information. A special emphasis is placed on communicating MSU’s comprehensive and continuous study abroad safety and security analysis processes.

Program variety makes study abroad appeal to a large student population. Hundreds of different courses are offered through program offerings in virtually every academic college, including disciplines traditionally under-represented in study abroad. Thus, students from most majors are able to meet degree requirements with study abroad courses. Multidisciplinary programs offer combinations of major and non-major courses. Programs in Africa, Asia, and Latin America provide options beyond the traditional Western European locations. Short programs during winter break and summer sessions allow more students with family and job commitments to participate; fall, spring, and summer semester programs, as well as year-long programs, appeal to students seeking cultural immersion while still completing required coursework. Programs vary in terms of language offerings and prerequisites, allowing students to choose programs that fit their foreign language backgrounds and goals.

Making study abroad affordable has been a priority. The low cost of living in some locations helps make study abroad affordable for more students. In many instances, costs do not exceed a semester’s study on campus on a per credit basis. MSU also has many exchange programs that allow students to pay MSU tuition while attending foreign universities. Individual colleges and OSA provide scholarship support, and MSU encourages donors to contribute to study abroad endowment funds.

New programs emerge in accordance with departmental and college approval procedures through the initiative of individual faculty members. OSA coordinates new program development under advisement from a representative group of college deans’ designees.

Strategy II: Fostering International Development Initiatives
MSU has a long and distinguished history of involvement in international development, with hundreds of faculty having participated in projects around the world. Much of this success has had to do with faculty in particular disciplines, such as agriculture, business, education, and health, working through their colleges and internationally focused units affiliated with those colleges. MSU also has a combination of units and initiatives especially designed to foster the expansion of faculty involvement in international development activities.

The Center for Advanced Study of International Development (CASID) promotes the study of transformations in international development. Since its founding in 1981, CASID has been designated by the U.S. Department of Education as a National Resource Center in International Studies and has been awarded funding under Title VI of the Higher Education Act of 1965; in recent years, the grants have been in conjunction with MSU’s Women and International Development (WID) program. The longest-standing program of its kind in the nation, WID was established in 1978 to foster the study of gender, development, and global change. CASID/WID programmatic activities promote the study of international development in the areas of teaching, research, and outreach.

The Office of International Development (OID), established in 2000, fosters the expanded involvement of faculty and graduate students in international problem-solving initiatives. OID strives to bridge the gaps between MSU’s various colleges and departments, combining MSU’s strengths in collaboration with colleagues throughout the world. OID uses its knowledge of the many international involvements of MSU’s faculty to link them to unique projects and opportunities so that interdisciplinary teams of qualified individuals can provide technical assistance and training around the world. OID also has assisted faculty in seeking funding for new academic programs (most notably the graduate specialization in Gender, Justice & Environmental Change).

The Global and Area Thematic Initiative (GATI) promotes cross-disciplinary, cross-regional research, teaching, and outreach in several areas of MSU expertise. Through GATI, international and domestic faculty from an array of colleges are afforded opportunities to engage in inventive new research, teaching, and outreach collaborations. In addition to supporting speaker series and conferences and developing new classes, GATI-funded groups have gone on to acquire outside funding for international development efforts.

Strategy III: Institutionalizing Internationalization Across the Missions
MSU is committed to internationalization across disciplines and across instructional, research, and outreach missions. Study abroad is one example of the institution’s success. MSU has invested in internationally engaged faculty; they are the core of MSU’s international strength. Today, more than 1,000 MSU faculty—more than 25 percent—are regularly involved in international scholarship, instruction, and work abroad. Many more are involved in less formal ways. Several structural realities have been key to MSU’s success in attracting and maintaining internationally engaged faculty.

At MSU, area and development faculty are located in disciplinary departments and professional schools across the university rather than being concentrated in a single international unit. This dispersion facilitates internationalization of the curricula (undergraduate and graduate) across the disciplines and provides a comparative dimension to the departments’ and schools’ scholarship. The Office of International Studies and Programs plays a central coordinating and support role in this "matrix" model for internationalizing the institution (a model adapted by other universities over the years), but the energy and ideas come from faculty in the colleges.

Faculty with a significant commitment to international engagement tend to have links with one or more of MSU’s area studies centers: African Studies, Asian Studies, Canadian Studies, Latin American and Caribbean Studies, and European and Russian Studies. Many faculty members are affiliated with combinations of geographic and thematic units, fostering cooperative relationships among area studies centers and thematic institutes which focus on topics such as agriculture, business, education, gender, health, and international development.

MSU’s promotion and tenure forms explicitly request evidence of involvement in international teaching, research, and outreach . International involvement "counts"; it is a criterion for promotion. Departments thus are encouraged to hire faculty with international experience and interests, and faculty are encouraged to add an international dimension to their activities (if they haven’t already).

Resource allocation decisions are driven by college responsiveness to institutional priorities to internationalize activity across the mission. As part of MSU’s annual university-wide planning and prioritization process, each academic college must present its strategic plans, action agendas, and resource allocations for international programming, especially undergraduate, to the provost. These are reviewed by the provost and the dean of international studies and programs during the budget planning and hearing process.

IV. Future Plans

MSU will continue to pursue its internationalization agenda in the areas of study abroad, international development, and institutionalized support for internationalization.

One of MSU’s most important current challenges—and commitments—is to "mainstream" international experience and content throughout the curricula so that virtually every student and every faculty member, regardless of major or department, becomes globally experienced and knowledgeable. Current strategies for accomplishing this include enhancing the international content of undergraduate integrative studies and disciplinary courses; internationalizing specific undergraduate curricula (such as Arts and Letters and Business); integrating study abroad into on-campus learning through pre-departure and post-return programming for participating students; expanding undergraduate language learning options that incorporate innovative use of technology, alternative pedagogies, and a variety of programmatic options; and expanding opportunities for students to participate in international faculty research and project activity through both on-campus and in-country involvement.

Another current challenge is to utilize faculty development and hiring practices that pervasively internationalize the faculty across all departments and programs and provide the basis for the infusion of significant international and comparative content in their courses and other interactions with students. Strategies include integrating departmental and Title VI centers’ investment in international faculty development (mentoring by senior international faculty, support for international travel, foreign language instruction, and sabbatical postings abroad); supporting departmental and college hiring goals to replenish and increase the numbers of international scholars; and expanding senior international faculty involvement in undergraduate instruction.

A more specific and nearer-term goal for MSU relates to assessing the impact of internationalization. MSU’s Office of Internationalizing Student Life is developing a Multi-Cultural Competence instrument that will be administered to MSU students to assess the cognitive, affective, and behavioral dimensions of their global competence. This pre- and post-test instrument will be given to freshmen upon entrance to MSU and later when they are about to leave the university. Assessment findings will be shared with the students. MSU also recently launched a major undertaking to assess and document the outcomes of study abroad. A university-wide research group has been assembled to systematically assess the impacts of study abroad on student attitudes, learning, academic performance, employability and marketability, and on internationalizing the on-campus learning environment.

Last updated: April 27, 2005