Degree Name

MA in International Education

First Advisor

Linda Gobbo

Abstract

The Diversity Initiative in Global Education for First-Generation Students is an institution-wide program designed to increase awareness and ultimately participation by first-generation college students in education abroad at the University of Colorado Denver. Current research has shown that the benefits of studying abroad include student retention, heightened confidence, an increase in GPA, and a sense of worldliness. Addtionally, such international experiences are necessary in order to become a fully engaged player in our globalized economy. Those who have travelled or studied internationally will become more marketable and exceedingly competitive for future employment. As colleges and universities are expected to prepare its citizens for effective participation in contemporary society, international opportunities provided by the university should be available to all students accommodating for their needs.

The year-long program includes relationship-building between the various offices that work with underrepresented students and the Office of Global Education, workshops designed to increase student, staff, and faculty knowledge of academic programs abroad and scholarships, and harnessing the power of peers to influence students to make study abroad a necessary component to their college career. The design of the initiative was drawn from interviews with six first-generation college students who had studied abroad, an interview with the Executive Director of the Educational Opportunity Programs office, and an in-depth literature review covering material related to first-generation college students.

Disciplines

International and Comparative Education | Sociology | Student Counseling and Personnel Services

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