According to a new poll by UUKi, short mobility programs of just a few weeks can give students concrete benefits. The ‘short-term mobility: long-term impact’ study surveyed 749 students and held 17 student focus groups.
Such initiatives, according to researchers, assist to break down obstacles to participation and achieve the effect. “Study internships do not have to belong to give these moments of inspiration,” said Chris Skidmore MP, former universities minister and co-chair of All-Party Group on Universities.
“The goal for all of us in higher education is to ensure that as many students as possible have access to these opportunities and that they all have an equal chance to share the beautiful and unforgettable fulfillment that studying abroad can provide, no matter how brief,” he said.
Shorter mobility programs, rather than the more conventional semesters or years abroad, are frequently a highly concentrated and scheduled program of activities, according to UUKi.
According to the organization, such experiences give students a foreign experience that allows them to continue with their obligations at home while also avoiding interrupting ongoing studies because they are typically intended to complement study modules.
Lower and more transparent prices, access to financing options, and a better grasp of what to antiquate during the time abroad were all mentioned as additional benefits.
Short international programs were discovered to stimulate further intentional participation, with a quarter of respondents having already participated in another mobility program and 43% interested in or intending to travel overseas with the institution again.
Participants were more inclined to engage in international activities after the encounter, with 74% saying that they would be more likely to engage with foreign students on campus and 72% are more likely to participate in international activities on campus, according to the study.
Vivienne Stern, director of UUKi, stated, “Our goal is for universities to learn from the observations and best practices presented in the report and make the most of the benefits presented by short-term mobility to ensure that any student, regardless of background, can participate in an international experience.”
They advise the UK government to consider these findings, as well as the effect exhibited, in their assessment of the UK’s Turing initiative, to help achieve this goal.
To read more on UK’s Turing and Erasmus program, click the link below:
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