Maximising the Study Abroad Experience

Given societal stakeholders’ (Government, employers, workers, educators, students) increasingly recognize intercultural competence as being a crucial aspect of one’s human capital development in this contemporary globalized world, the nurturing of interculturally competent graduates is thus a meaningful outcome of internationalization efforts in higher education. At CityU, globalization is embedded into our strategic plans, with a goal to “Enhance students’ international perspectives, global awareness and multicultural sensitivity”. Yet despite growing interest and mobility amongst CityU students to spend a semester or a summer on a study abroad experience, unfortunately most students are ill-prepared, and thus do not maximise on this valuable opportunity of a potentially life-transforming event. It is therefore vital that some pre-departure intervention be provided prior to this overseas encounter, to assist students to derive maximum benefits from studying abroad. A GE course especially designed for this purpose would facilitate students to: clarify their rationale for choosing to study abroad; better understand what it takes to actively enhance their intercultural competence, and highlight methods for further developing their cultural intelligence; learn how to share and articulate upon their return their experiences with peers (to contribute back into our CityU community) and prospective employers (for job search and career purposes).