Using student internship programs as a vehicle to international campus culture transfusion

1. Using student internship programs as a vehicle to international campus culture transfusion A. Bagiati, D. Fisher, and S. Sarma Massachusetts Institute of Technology WEEF 2012: Buenos Aires, Argentina D. Fisher, Page 1

2. Singapore University of Technology & Design (SUTD) • New, engineering-oriented university in Singapore • Inaugural cohort of 320 students • First classes on May 7, 2012 • Largest & most holistic transplantation venture of MIT to date D. Fisher, Page 2

3. Challenge of the MIT-SUTD Collaboration: To communicate the academic culture and mentality of MIT and to diffuse it to the newly established SUTD community. Curriculum Development Faculty Culture • Student-driven campus • Entrepreneurial • Team-oriented and collaborative • Whimsical & eccentric Student Culture D. Fisher, Page 3

4. Campus culture and student involvement • Best communicated within student body • Interaction with older student cohorts • SUTD upperclassmen do not exist in inaugural year • Recruit MIT students as “surrogate upperclassmen” D. Fisher, Page 4

5. The Singapore Leadership initiative D. Fisher, Page 1

6. MIT International Science & Technology Initiatives (MISTI) • Existing MIT program to send current students to internships and study abroad • Collaborated with MISTI staff to develop new program with campus mentorship component D. Fisher, Page 6

7. Inaugural MISTI-SLI Cohort • 18 students sent to Singapore in summer 2012 • 10 undergraduate & graduate programs • 6 years of study (freshman – 2nd year graduate) • MIT Campus Involvement • Fraternities/sororities, public service, athletics, arts/music, entrepreneurship D. Fisher, Page 7

8. Internships as a vehicle for exchange • Known benefits of internship programs • Translate classroom knowledge to hands-on workplace (Valo, 2000) • Ease transition to workplace post-graduation (Rompelman et al., 2002) • Existing global initiatives • Erasmus Student Network • Board of European Students of Technology D. Fisher, Page 8

9. Post-departure activities D. Fisher, Page 9

10. Summer 2012 student internships • Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory (NUS) • JFDI.Asia Startup Incubator • Duke-NUS Medical Center • SENSEable City Lab • Singapore ASTAR Institute • SUTD Undergraduate Research Assistantships D. Fisher, Page 10

11. SUTD student mentorship • MISTI-SLI students participated in 8-session “SUTD-MIT Leadership Programme” with 60 SUTD students • MIT students in participatory leadership roles • 2 MIT & 6-8 SUTD/team D. Fisher, Page 11

12. D. Fisher, Page 12

13. SUTD-MIT Leadership Programme Outcomes • Showcase Event • 25+ student groups presented • Positive reviews of programme content and organization • Continued MIT student contact and help with 5th Row projects • MIT students in Singapore D. Fisher, Page 13

14. Summer 2012 challenges • SUTD student retention in leadership programme • MIT student self-segregation from SUTD community • Varying levels of rigor in MIT student internships D. Fisher, Page 14

15. Future Work • Development of comprehensive metrics to measure achievement of diverse educational outcomes for collaboration activities • Continued encouragement of MIT-SUTD student communication • Monitor cultural persistence across new SUTD cohorts • Recruit and train MISTI-SLI 2013 cohort D. Fisher, Page 15

16. Questions? D. Fisher, Page 16

17. Acknowledgements The authors would like to acknowledge the contributions of the MISTI staff in development and support of the MISTI-SLI program, specifically Chappell Lawson, MISTI Director; Sean Gilbert, MIT-China Managing Director; and Matthew Burt, MIT-Korea Program Manager. In addition, the authors would like to acknowledge Samantha O’Keefe, former Graduate Research Assistant at MIT, and Anine Ward, Senior Administrative Assistant to the MIT-SUTD Collaboration, for their contributions to this project. References • American Society of Engineering Education. Engineering Education in a changing world. Available online at www.asee.org/resources/greenReport.cfm 2004 • Bagiati, A. Early Engineering: A developmentally appropriate curriculum for young children. Dissertation Thesis School of Engineering Education Purdue University, 2011 • Board of European Students of Technology. www.best.eu.org • DiBisio, D. and Mello, N. A. Multilevel Assessment of Program Outcomes: Assessing a Nontraditional Study Abroad Program in the Engineering Disciplines. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, 2004, vol. 10, p. 237-252. • International Exchange Erasmus Student Network . www.esn.org • Lohmann, J.R., Rollins, Jr., H.A. and Hoey, J.J. Defining, developing and assessing global competence in engineers. European Journal of Engineering Education, 2006, vol. 31, no. 1, p. 119-131. • National Academy of Engineering of the National Academies. The engineer of 2020; Vision of engineering in the new century. National Academies Press. 2004 • National Research Council. (2007) "Front Matter." Rising Above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. • Parkinson, A. Engineering Study Abroad Programs: Formats, Challenges, Best Practices. Online Journal for Global Engineering Education, 2007, vol. 2, no. 2. • Rompelman, O. and de Vries, J. Practical training and internships in engineering education: educational goals and assessment. European Journal of Engineering Education, 2002, vol. 27, no. 2, p. 173-180. • Valo, M. Experiencing work as a communications professional: Students' reflections on their off-campus work practice. Higher Education, 2000, vol. 39, p. 151-179. D. Fisher, Page 17