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AFRICAN ALUMNI PROJECT

AFRICAN ALUMNI PROJECT. CAREER choices, RETURN PATHS AND SOCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS. Centre for Global Higher Education, University of London, University College London, June 9, 2016 Dr. Robin Marsh, Senior Researcher Institute for the Study of Societal Issues, University of California, Berkeley.

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AFRICAN ALUMNI PROJECT

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  1. AFRICAN ALUMNI PROJECT CAREER choices, RETURN PATHS AND SOCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS Centre for Global Higher Education, University of London, University College London, June 9, 2016 Dr. Robin Marsh, Senior Researcher Institute for the Study of Societal Issues, University of California, Berkeley

  2. outline • Background • Career and Life Trajectories • Return Decisions • Social and Civic Engagement • Value of an International Education • Policy and Programming Implications

  3. Background/project goal • Study motivated by the Scholars Program ‘theory of change’’investing in individual scholars to return to their countries of origin in Africa as ‘agents of change’ (initially known as ‘go back, give back’). • We asked, how about past African scholars? – what could we learn from their post-graduation trajectories? Dearth of data/studies on African alumni. Our study – pioneering, primary data research. • The study evolved to the African Alumni Project, with added benefits of reengaging alumni with their alma maters, with each other, and with current African scholars (mentors, internships); website (http://africanalumni.berkeley.edu).

  4. Collaborative research

  5. Research questions • CAREER TRAJECTORY:What are the post-graduation experiences of African alumni from international universities? • RETURN PATHS: What are the factors that have influenced post-graduation decisions to return, or not, to their region/country of origin? • SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT:Have African alumni prioritized social and civic engagement with their region/country of origin? If so, what types of engagement with what social change outcomes? What are the factors that have influenced alumni decisions to prioritize social and civic engagement? • VALUE OF AN INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION:How has the international university experience influenced African alumni career choices and social engagement contributions?

  6. methods • Two-year collaborative retrospective tracer study in three phases: • tracing and tracking sub-Saharan African alumni and collecting current contact information for participation in study; • designing and administering a comprehensive web based survey (181 questions); • conducting in-depth semi-structured interviews with alumni in-person (n=80) and via telephone/video conference (n=20). • In-person interviews in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, South Africa, Ghana, Ivory Coast and Togo; • SF Bay Area, Washington DC, New York City, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, East Lansing, San Diego, CA and San Jose, Costa Rica (diaspora). • Survey analysis: common codebook, de-identified data aggregated for analysis – descriptive statistics, regression model on “return”. • Interview analysis: common codebook, two computer programs – Dedoose (UCB, MSU, EARTH) and Maxqda (Canadian universities).

  7. AFRICAN ALUMNI DATA BY PARTNER

  8. Survey Characteristics by Partner, N = 294

  9. COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN (MSU + UC BERKELEY) N = 2200, current residence no = 1,100

  10. Career & Life trajectories: What are the post-graduation experiences of African alumni from international universities?

  11. Socio-economic & Career mobility

  12. Career Paths

  13. Influence of mentors (and international Education) on careers • Alumni who maintained strong connections with their mentors, across all sectors, were able to weather career and economic hardships more successfully. South African alumnus: “So I then went to Berkeley many times (after graduating) because we managed the program and the rest of the roads team. So that is still happening…. It’s really a fascinating program because for CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research) it meant…we had our South African researchers in CSIR participating in these global programs. I do value the fact that people like Monismith…who I’ve stayed in contact with has been a great life mentor. So if you want great life mentors look out for these opportunities.”

  14. Return paths:What are the factors that have influenced post-graduation decisions of alumni to return—or not—to their country/region of origin?

  15. Factors associated with return (Survey results) • Degree (UG vs graduate) • Field of study • Region of origin • Scholarship type • Job waiting back home

  16. Categories of influence (decision factors) • Expectations • Career opportunities • Family considerations • Contextual (political/economic) considerations • International collaborations/networks

  17. expectations “You have pressure from your family, your friends to stay.” (Ugandan living in Uganda) ** “Whether or not you got a scholarship, you have been invested in to come back to do something. (Kenyan residing in Kenya)

  18. Career opportunities “Being in the US, you see a lot of opportunities to do well. There is sort of a pull from the US … but not from back home.” (Ghanaian residing in diaspora) ** “There’s a vast amount of opportunity [in Africa] …If you do come back, there’s this sort of open field of opportunities that you don’t necessarily see while you’re [abroad].” (Ghanaian residing in Ghana)

  19. SOCIAL AND CIVIC ENGAGEMENT: • Have African alumni prioritized social and civic engagement with their region/country of origin? • If so, what types of engagement with what social change outcomes?

  20. Defining Social And civic engagement • The myriad contributions respondents may make to their communities and societies directly on the continent or from the diaspora, or both, over time. • Both professional and voluntary contributions to society and leadership roles in promoting social change. • “Civic engagement means working to make a difference in the civic life of our communities and developing the combination of knowledge, skills, values and motivation to make that difference. It means promoting the quality of life in a community” (Ehrlich, 2000)

  21. Social And civic engagement • Work-related engagement:

  22. Social And civic engagement • Non-work-related engagement:

  23. Social And civic engagement • General themes in engagement: • Themes from interviews: • Early childhood experiences and role models • Activism during schooling/university prior to international education • Engagement with social issues, activism, volunteering during international education

  24. VALUE OF AN INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION:How has the international education experience influenced African alumni career choices and social engagement contributions?

  25. Reasons for going abroad and impact on career

  26. Components of international education used in current work

  27. Brand/prestige “MSU is also a brand in agriculture. US in itself is a brand in education.” (Rwandan residing in Rwanda) “…in US they have facilities, they have libraries, they have trained professors, they know there is not cheating, you cannot bribe a professor. Even here at the workplace, I can tell you if you are trained in the US and did your stuff seriously… you do very well and people can see you’re doing a really good job.” (Ghanaian residing in Ghana)

  28. Critical thinking “I came here to learn how to think. And I have achieved what I came here for.”(Ugandan living in Uganda) “Given that you’re providing someone with an opportunity, four years doing something which will be a launching pad for everything else they’re going to do in their lives, I don’t know how you quantify that. That’s a job for social scientists. It will have a transformative impact and if they take any part of that back to their lives in their home countries, it will have been worthwhile.” - (South African residing in diaspora)

  29. Skills development thru academic courses “it’s the best [journalism school] I have seen. I like the way they put emphasis on the practical side. How to grab a camera, how to deal with lighting.” (Burkina Faso, residing in diaspora) “My approach on the impact of agriculture was not the same before I went to EARTH University….you get new tips, you integrate many concepts in your mind that can help in contributing to the development of your country” (Ugandan residing in Uganda)

  30. Exposure to diverse communities: Building intercultural competencies “It was the first time I lived with people of other nationalities and races. Berkeley taught me to appreciate the oneness of people and that perceived differences are an illusion.” (South African living in South Africa) “You need to know what the rest of the world is to do a good job here. As much as I want students… I say ‘now try other universities overseas, so you can get that international exposure’.” (Ugandan, delayed return to Uganda after 30 years)

  31. Policy and programming implications

  32. The Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program • There is a wealth of talent and goodwill among African alumni of partner universities, both in Africa and the diaspora, that could be tapped to support current and future Scholars – mentors & advisors, internships, job placement. • Nearly all of the participating alumni for this study would encourage current and future African students to pursue study abroad. However, many alumni recommended that Africans pursue first degree at home, second or higher degrees in an international university. • There is a need for deliberate and proactive support for initiating and building lasting relationships between Scholars and their academic communities during their study abroad (Don’t take for granted/level playing field.). • The Scholars Program can support bridges between international and African higher educational institutions with a potential for large impact.

  33. Linking ‘predecessors’ and scholars

  34. PARTNER UNIVERSITIES • For sub-Saharan Africa,a strong case could be made that the deepest and most profound impacts of ‘global universities’ on African development are through the sustained, often transformative, contributions of their African alumni. • There is agolden opportunity for Alumni Relations offices, Study Abroad programs, and other relevant campus units to broaden their framework of potential African alumni contributions to their alma mater institutions. • 4. The study discovered that tracing of international alumni is under-resourced among all partner universities; the African Alumni Project was pioneering in conducting a systematic, retrospective tracer study of African Alumni.

  35. FUTURE RESEARCH • Resource limitations, however, did not allow for full analysis of the wealth of data collected during the research project. Most compelling is the data set of 100 coded interview transcripts that could be further analyzed to discern patterns of behavior and outcomes related to key demographic, educational and employment variables. • More generally, how does our study contribute to wider discussions about ‘brain drain’ versus ‘de-territorialization’and trans-national migration of talent in a globalized economy? • Test ‘critical mass’ theory of social impact for particular sub-groups. • “International Scholarships for Higher Education: Pathways to Social Change” (Palgrave McMillan Press, co-editors Dassin, Marsh and Mawer, publication date January 2017).

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