NC's HBCU Study Abroad/Global Engagement (SAGE) Consortium is Boosting Student Employability

May 27, 2010 - PRLog -- Salisbury, NC – Eleven Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are in a remarkable position to gain access to study abroad programming in 2011, resulting in more exposure to cross-cultural experiences and infinite possibilities of doing research and internships abroad. This means that North Carolina's HCBU students will improve their global competencies and thus their employability after graduation.

According to Global HR Magazine, www.globalhr.com, human resource executives agree that having study abroad, and more specifically, international internship experiences greatly boosts the employability of candidates. According to the study, two-thirds (67%) of HR executives surveyed said that a study abroad experience within a culturally diverse student environment distinguishes a job candidate from others studying only within students from their own country. Furthermore, eight in 10 (80%) HR executives believe that an international education experience is important in distinguishing a candidate for overseas job placement.

International Education Resource Center Education Foundation (IERCEF) has identified what it thinks is the trinity of success for minority students at the higher education level and beyond, via targeted education abroad programming. "What excites us is the research that suggests study abroad increases academic outcomes like: GPA, completion/four-year graduation rates and employability. In light of all of this, it made sense to seek the premier international internship organization in the Caribbean for the students of the newly minted North Carolina Study Abroad/Global Engagement (NC SAGE) Consortium. IERCEF is pleased to strategically collaborate with InteRDom (www.interdominternships.org), an initiative of the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development,” says Steven W. Jones, president of IERC Education Foundation, the organization that established with Livingstone College's president Dr. Jimmy R. Jenkins, Sr. the NC-SAGE Consortium just last month.

"This collaboration that will have significant implications not only for our states' 11 schools, but all 105 HBCUs in the future; is not to be a program initiative for one or two students, so we must work with an innovative group that has capacity and a commitment to growth," says Dr. Jimmy R. Jenkins, Sr.

The relationship will offer research and internship opportunities to students genuinely interested in gaining international work experience and learning more about the Caribbean while challenging and honing their language skills, such as Spanish, while they are in the field.

For IERCEF, boosting employability means preparing students to work for for-profits, non-profits and non government organizations (NGOs); it means customizing program offerings based on student interests and outcome goals, which could range from engineering and other STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics)-related fields, to foreign service and diplomacy, international law, media and the arts.

For IERCEF, it is about immersing underserved post-secondary students in dynamic, cross-cultural environments, stretching motivated students to reach the next level and become stronger candidates in a competitive, flatter world. "Getting HBCUs to the next level is what Livingstone and the ten other NC HBCUs are committed to," says Dr. Jimmy R. Jenkins, Sr.

This is just another way of strengthening HBCUs. IERCEF is responding to the same forces that have led to the development of new approaches to education. For years, much has been discussed about diversifying study abroad without action plans; now, an employability component becomes relevant. As Steven Jones says, "In this economy and flat world, it's like ignoring the 500 pound gorilla in the room; most of us pursue higher education to improve earnings: What is wrong with that?”

IERCEF: "Preparing a New Generation for a New World"