In order to remain competitive in an increasingly global environment, UC Davis needs to strengthen international educational opportunities for students and the campus's overall engagement abroad, according to priorities that emerged from campus leaders at the annual Chancellor's Fall Conference.

The campus also needs to reduce major barriers that prevent UC Davis students from participating in study abroad programs or immersing themselves in a foreign language, the leaders said. These obstacles include financial concerns and academic requirements that leave little room for broader cultural exposure.

International perspective

The call for heightened attention to international programs came during an intensive two-day meeting last week of 160 students, faculty and staff members, donors, alumni and administrators, where participants assessed the campus's strengths and weaknesses under the conference theme "Internationalizing the UC Davis Campus."

"We need to explore ways we can infuse an international dimension into all that we do — to move internationalism from the periphery to the center of our institution," said Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef in his opening remarks. "What better place than our universities to prepare world citizens, people with a global perspective?"

"We need to create a globally competitive student. This is the take-home message for all of us," said participant Robert Powell, chair of the department of chemical engineering.

UC Davis can celebrate many international successes, including the fact that more than 1,000 students each year participate in education abroad programs — double the number of just five years ago. "Getting out of the bubble of my comfort zone, outside of what I knew well, broadened my horizons and added so much more to my education than I would have learned otherwise," said student Erin Loury, who spent a summer in Scotland.

Other successful programs include a master's degree program in international commercial law that has become a hub for attorneys around the globe. Significant international research accomplishments include improvements in global food supplies and human nutrition. And UC Davis has one of the highest levels of Peace Corps participation in the nation.

Yet, the campus also faces significant challenges to internationalization, including an erosion in international graduate students — numbers that have declined steadily since 9/11 and will face another 5 percent drop this year, according to Graduate Studies Dean Jeffrey Gibeling. UC Davis currently hosts 3,500 international students and scholars each year.

UC Davis also offers undergraduate instruction in only eight foreign languages — fewer than any other UC campus. UC Berkeley, which leads the UC system, offers 48 languages.

"We are a comprehensive campus that has made investments in agriculture, veterinary medicine, biology and areas other than letters and science," said Steven M. Sheffrin, dean of social sciences. "It's a matter of campus resource priorities over the years. We haven't been able to invest in foreign language instruction."

Sense of urgency

A sense of urgency was conveyed by Martha Piper, president of the University of British Columbia, during her opening address.

"Internationalizing our campuses is more than just a worthy goal," Piper said. "It's critical to the resolution of world conflict and critical to the promotion of a civil and sustainable society. We are living in an age when the world has grown smaller and more fragile ... a world that yearns for leaders who understand the global implications of their actions."

American universities also face increasing global competition within higher education for the best students, said JoAnn McCarthy, assistant provost for international affairs at the University of Pennsylvania. "What is the value-added of a U.S. higher education? It must be global competency."

Priorities set

Conference participants identified numerous international-engagement priorities that will receive further study and attention in the coming months. These recommendations included:

• Requiring an off-campus international experience for all undergraduates, including more financial aid and scholarships for study abroad.
• Asking the Academic Senate to examine undergraduate major requirements to allow room in the curriculum for a general education requirement in global education competency.
• Increasing the number of languages taught at UC Davis, with top priority given to adding Arabic and Hindi/Urdu as the next two languages.
• Changing the funding structure to encourage more international graduate students to study at UC Davis.
• Building international collaborations into major research programs at their inception.
• Constructing an international center on campus to create a space where cultural programming and international events an take place, and to also construct foreign student housing.
• Developing a database of UC Davis global expertise to support research collaborations and international exchanges, and to enhance programs to engage international alumni.

At the conference's conclusion, Vanderhoef said, "These recommendations are doable." He added that under the university's shared governance, many of the recommendations would need to be considered by the Academic Senate, and he expressed confidence that progress would be made.

For details, visit http://chancellor.ucdavis.edu/Events/FallConf/default.cfm.