International Education Program Glossary
International Education Glossary Heading link
This glossary is designed to assist UIC faculty and staff in understanding the operational terms used in the field of international education, particularly when considering or developing any international programs or collaborations.
The glossary and definitions are based on the work of professional organizations and UIC Office of Global Engagement personnel and, in some cases, were modified to suit UIC’s method of operating.
International Education is
- A field involved in facilitating and supporting the migration of students and scholars across geopolitical borders. Professionals involved in this field may be employees of educational institutions, government agencies, or independent program and service providers. This may include, but is not limited to (on U.S. campuses), support for matriculating and exchange students from countries outside the United States, instruction in English as a second language, international student recruitment, assessment of non-U.S. higher education credentials, student services for postgraduate research students and fellows, facilitation of education abroad for U.S. students, and (outside the U.S.) support and services for visiting U.S. students.
- The knowledge and skills resulting from conducting a portion of one’s education in another country. As a more general term, this definition applies to international activity that occurs at any level of education (K-12, undergraduate, graduate, or postgraduate).
- A tool that can change the world.
Glossary of International Education Terminology Heading link
Education Abroad Terminology
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Direct Enrollment Study Abroad | Study at an overseas university without the assistance of external offices such as those of a program provider. Not to be confused with Integrated University Study, for which it is sometimes used as a synonym. |
| Education Abroad | Education, including, but not limited to, enrollment in courses, experiential learning, internships, service learning, and other learning activities, which occurs outside the participant's home country, the country in which they are enrolled as a student, or the country in which they are employed as personnel. Education abroad does not, in itself, result in a degree. |
| Faculty-directed study abroad | A study abroad program directed by a faculty member (or members) from the home campus who accompanies students abroad. Usually, though not always, brief in duration. |
| Faculty Exchange | A program that provides faculty with the opportunity to teach or conduct research for one semester or an academic year at an overseas university |
| Field Placement Abroad | A study abroad program type whose pedagogy revolves around experiential study outside the classroom setting. Examples include field research programs, internship programs, service-learning programs, archaeological field schools, and field biology programs. |
| Internships Abroad | An experience in a professional setting that takes place outside of the country in which a student’s home university is located. This professional, practical experience is viewed as an extension of coursework and an opportunity for training or professional exploration related to a student’s future career path. |
| Research Abroad | An activity abroad that typically pairs a study abroad student or students with on-site faculty and/or other local experts to pursue a specific topic or research question. Such research typically results in the writing of an academic paper or article, whether to fulfill requirements for academic credit or other degree requirements or with an eye to publication in a peer-reviewed journal or presentation at an academic conference. The research may be undertaken as part of an organized study abroad program (i.e. a research-based course or independent project) or in a completely independent manner outside the structure of a program. |
| Service Learning Abroad | A form of experiential education in which students engage in activities that address human and community needs together with structured opportunities for reflection designed to achieve desired learning outcomes. |
| Student Exchange | A reciprocal agreement whose participants are students. Subtypes are Bilateral Exchanges and Multilateral Exchanges. Exchanges often involve some system of “banking” tuition (and sometimes other fees) collected from outgoing students for use by incoming students. The term student exchange is sometimes used erroneously as a synonym for study abroad. |
| Study Abroad | A subtype of Education Abroad that results in progress toward an academic degree at a student’s home institution. (Or may also be defined as a subtype of Off-Campus Study that takes place outside the country where the student’s home institution is located.) This meaning, which has become standard among international educators in the U.S., excludes the pursuit of a full academic degree at a foreign institution. |
Types of Programs & Agreements
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Articulation Agreements (a/k/a Facilitated Transfer Agreements) | An agreement between two colleges or universities that lays out a transfer plan between two program offerings. It helps the student by ensuring all completed classes (credits) transfer and shows a clear pathway for continued advancement. With these arrangements, the number of transfer credits permitted at UIC must adhere to the academic program’s established transfer policy. |
| Certificate Programs | Non-degree and/or professional training program classification that allows the issuance of an I-20 to participants |
| Cooperative Programs | An existing credit-bearing accademic program with a partner institution whereby participants have discounted tuiton rates determined by the academic unit |
| Cotutelle | Doctorates that involve research undertaken at at least two universities or higher educational institutions in two different countries. The desired result of a Cotutelle doctorate is the joint award a doctoral degree from both universities (“Joint Degree”) on the basis of only one single doctoral thesis. Thus, the doctoral candidate works on her/his dissertation being supervised equally at both universities (co-supervision by two or multiple supervisors). One or several extended research stays at the partner university abroad are therefore crucial for a successful completion of a Cotutelle doctorate. Moreover, the evaluation of the dissertation as well as the oral examination is carried out in a joint procedure with shared responsibilities and involvement of the partner universities. Cotutelle can therefore also be understood in a broader sense as a tool for internationalization of doctoral studies. Cotutelles need NOT be joint degrees. It's possible to have two separate degrees awarded independently for the same dissertation. [At UIC, cotutelle agreements require a minimum of six months to review and ultimately may not be approved due to the complexities of data protection laws that may apply to research data across national borders. Doctoral degrees completed under a cotutelle agreement must be conferred separately.] |
| Dual Degrees | Concurrent enrollment in degree programs at two partnering institutions with specified courses counting toward degrees conferred by the partnering institutions. [UIC does not offer dual degrees; however, agreements may structured as articulation or facilitated transfer agreements so that students from a partner institution can transfer credits earned at their home institution toward a degree at UIC. The home institution may, at its discretion, apply credits earned at UIC toward a degree at the home institution. Degrees are conferred separately by both institutions.] |
| Joint Degrees | Concurrent enrollment at two partnering institutions, with specified courses completed at each institution counting toward the established requirements for the joint degree. Students receive one diploma. [UIC does not currently offer joint degrees.] |
| Non-Degree Programs | When a student is enrolled in classes but does not earn credit towards a degree at the host institution. Degree-granting institutions that permit students from other institutions to participate in their study abroad programs typically choose to place visiting students in non-degree status. Students on reciprocal student exchange programs are also usually considered non-degree students at their host institutions. |
| Twinning | A program that allows a student to complete a portion of their studies in their home country before transferring to a university abroad, so long as there is an agreement between a local institution or pathway provider with a partner university abroad. This means the courses taken in the university of the student's country of residence is accepted by the foreign university in which this partnership takes place. Upon fulfilling graduation requirements, the student is awarded the partner university’s degree qualification. It is different from an exchange program where students study for one or two semesters at a partner university abroad and transfer the credits to their home university. |
| Visiting Student Programs | Students from an international university spend a semester or academic year at UIC as full-time non-degree seeking students or as participants in special short-term programs (for credit or non-credit). Student must be admitted to UIC and meet all admissions standards, including English language proficiency. The international university may be affiliated with UIC solely for the purposes of the visiting student program or may be an existing partner. At UIC, this category is generally synonymnous with Non-Degree Programs. |