A workshop on Indonesia from IIE

Expanding Linkages with Indonesia: New Report and Workshop

Leaders from U.S. colleges and universities and Indonesian universities met in Indonesia from April 25-29 to take part in a workshop and study tour focused on strengthening higher education ties between the two countries. The event is part of the U.S.-Indonesia Partnership Program for Study Abroad Capacity, a two-year initiative sponsored by the U.S Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) and launched with IIE's Center for International Partnerships in Higher Education in September 2010 to increase the number of U.S. students who study abroad in Indonesia.

The program focused on the challenges and opportunities for U.S. and Indonesian higher education leaders in building institutional linkages and improving Indonesia's capacity to host more study abroad students from the United States. Several officials from the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta and the Indonesian Ministry of National Education attended the event, including Mr. Ted Osius, Deputy Chief of Mission for the U.S. Embassy; Dr. Harris Iskandar, Secretary, Directorate General of Higher Education for the Indonesian Ministry of National Education; and Mr. Frank Whitaker, Cultural Affairs Officer for the U.S. Embassy.

For the first two days participants discussed a number of relevant topics including the higher education systems of both countries, methods for developing successful international partnerships, and best practices in sending and hosting globally mobile students. The group also examined case studies of model study abroad programs. For the ensuing three days, the U.S. participants took part in site visits to the Indonesian participants' campuses, and met with students, faculty and administrators to learn more about Indonesian higher education and culture firsthand and work with the Indonesian institutions on expanding their capacity to host American study abroad students.

The six Indonesian universities participating in the program and workshop are Airlangga University, Bandung Institute of Technology, Bogor Agricultural University, Indonesian Institute of the Arts, Gadjah Mada University, and University of Indonesia. These institutions are committed to internationalizing their campuses and hosting more U.S. and international students through participation in the program.

The participating U.S. institutions are Chatham University, Lehigh University, Miami Dade College, Texas A&M University, University of Michigan, and University of Washington, representing a cross-section of America's colleges and universities.

The goals of the U.S.-Indonesia Partnership Program for Study Abroad Capacity are to help Indonesian institutions evaluate and improve their international capacity in order to increase the number of U.S. students studying abroad in Indonesia, and identify both general and country-specific best practices to build study abroad capacity.

Findings from a Survey on Expanding U.S. Study Abroad to Indonesia:
As part of the State Department-sponsored program and in advance of the workshop in Indonesia, the IIE Center for International Partnerships produced a report based on the findings of a survey of more than 150 U.S. higher education institutions conducted in December 2010 and January 2011.

"Expanding U.S. Study Abroad to Indonesia: U.S. Perspectives and Steps for Expansion" reveals that while the current level of engagement between the two countries higher education communities is relatively weak, the relationship is poised for stronger ties. Survey respondents identified a number of tangible ideas that could be implemented to improve U.S. study abroad to Indonesia, including: increasing knowledge and awareness about Indonesia on campus; providing more study abroad scholarship opportunities for students; offering more institutional funding for study abroad offices; and introducing U.S. institutions to appropriate Indonesian host campuses.

For more information about the workshop and to download the report of the survey, please go to: www.iie.org