Global Citizen https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_FH0-qwGNE
UNITING REENTRY & PROFESSIONAL INTEGRATION:
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR AIESEC AND A MILLION GLOBAL MINDS
Introduction Have you‌ worked or volunteered abroad, global internship? worked with or managed student returnees? previously been active with AIESEC?
Research Question I sought to determine: How is AIESEC connecting reflective reentry adjustment with professional integration for its Global Internship Program (GIP) and Global Community Development Program (GCDP) exchange participants (EPs)?
How would you define: Reentry Adjustment? Professional Integration?
Reentry Adjustment: “The process of readjusting and assimilating into one's own home culture after living in a different country for a significant period of time” (Gaw, 2000) “Returnee studies are concerned with human beings who have been away from their normal environments and are now coming back into their old culture networks” (La Brack, 1985). “The process which reaches from pre-departure to reintegration in the home culture” (Pusch & Loewenthal, 1988). Commonly referred to: reverse culture shock, reintegration, repatriation or readjustment
Professional Integration The critical socio-economic life changing period when young individuals develop, build skills which support learning for life (World Bank, 2014) and when individuals join the workforce while moving from school to employment (Tillman, 2005). Also referred to as “school-to-work-transition�
Background
Background •
Reflection on AIESEC internship in Mozambique. Recognition of transition issues
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Reentry day in Wisconsin for returning students of state-wide institutions
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Observation of a rapidly developing global AIESEC alumni association, consideration of my role amidst a burgeoning alumni population
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Practitioner desire to create an alliance between reentry adjustment, career development and program alumni support
Re-acculturation training awareness heightened extensively over 6 years active leadership within:
Association Internationale des Étudiants En Sciences Économiques et Commerciales
(AIESEC) (:08 to :25 ) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afa9NRZFn_Q English translation is the International Association of Students in Economics and Management; however this meaning is no longer utilized by the organization as programs have grown to encompass many more student backgrounds beyond business, management. History https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnOmsdavknM
‌is a global youth network impacting the world through leadership development and international internship experiences. It is a global, non-political, independent, not-for-profit organization run entirely by students and recent graduates of global institutions of higher education. AIESEC has been facilitating youth leadership activities as well as international internships and volunteer experiences for over 66 years. It is building a global learning environment across its member countries with the vision of peace and fulfilment of humankind's potential by developing high-potential youth into globally-minded, responsible leaders
Local Committees (LCs) are present in 126 countries, composed of over 100,000 active student members at 2400 unis http://aiesec.org/about-aiesec/aiesec-structure/ Member Committees (MCs) are national committees in each country Why does @ do what it does? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDJQOJCFPng
AIESEC International (AI) is a global body of student leaders in Rotterdam. AI supports, oversees member countries AIESEC Alumni International (AAI) is a global network of AIESEC alumni with 70 global alumni hubs
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Together, MC and LC leaders place students and recent graduates into professional internships in organizations ranging from multi-national corporations to start-ups to social impact businesses through the… Global Internship Program (GIP)
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Leaders also place students into volunteer project experiences through the… Global Community Development Program (GCDP)
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The GIP, a longer-term program has been offered by AIESEC since the inception of the organization
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The GCDP, relatively new (2006), a shorter-term program meets student demand due to the ever-changing, shortening degree formats offered within higher education, reflects the rapidly increasing industry-wide creation of shorter-term go-abroad program models
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AIESEC delivered approximately 22,500 GCDP experiences and 5,000 GIP experiences in 2013.
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Global Impact Study (2013) identified specific competencies of leadership developed by former exchange participants
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Identified reentry adjustment and professional integration experiences of EPs as important program design elements linked to the organizational need to better understand how competencies of leadership were being realized within exchange programs
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Field has a strong need, urgency for linking reentry experiences of students to career development and to utilize program alumni in order to build, promote personal growth models for returnees
By bridging the discourse between reentry, career development and alumni support, I was‌ ‌.compelled to provide a reality check for the current state of reentry within AIESEC through qualitative interpretation of the EP reentry experience and the administrative MC programing experience.
An important first step of this research was to comprehend what was happening, what was not occurring specifically during the: •
pre-departure
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experience abroad
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pre-reentry
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post-return
program phases
X process reentry (5:54 to 7:00) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afa9NRZFn_Q
Each sojourner’s reentry is a deeply personal experience. By comprehending what returnees experience, better learning transitions may be built to facilitate a smoother reentry process (NAFSA, 2010)
Sub Questions •
What are the reentry experiences of recent EPs across the AIESEC network?
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What are current examples of reentry and professional integration training provided to EPs throughout the AIESEC network?
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What recommendations and new ideas can be offered to AIESEC alumni for assisting returning EPs within the reentry to professional workplace transition?
Emotional Involvement
Literature Review Literature was reviewed primarily for inquiry fit to: •
reentry theory
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variables that affect reentry adjustment
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reentry adjustment models & reentry training
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student experiential learning
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connection of reentry adjustment to professional integration
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career development and alumni support roles
Lit Review: Reentry Adjustment •
Conceptual process of reentry, problems of varying returning groups, variables
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Coping practices, repatriation strategies
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Significant concern for psychological wellbeing, social readjustment, cultural identity, emotional, physical and cognitive distress of returning sojourners
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Many scholars believe reentry adjustment may be more psychologically difficult than initial cultural adjustment to a foreign, host culture
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Positive correlation between age of a sojourner and reentry adjustment; older the repatriate equals less likely to experience stress associated with reentry (Cox, 2004)
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Implies that students may be a higher risk group to experience reentry anxieties, consequently have greater need for appropriate reentry intervention, training
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Neglecting emotional, intellectual preparations for transition causes severe repatriation problems (Spencer & Tuma, 2007)
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Reentry expectations which are met or exceeded may support a better readjustment (Arthur & MacDonald, 2003)
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Repatriation anxiety grows proportionally in relation to less comprehension and preparation for the process of reentry (Chamove & Soeterik, 2006)
Reentry remains overlooked, must be made a high priority to both repatriating individuals and practitioners managing human mobility and transitions
Lit Review: Reentry Adjustment Multiple combos of variables that affect reentry adjustment, variety of concerns, specific national issues of returnees created an expectation that the AIESEC network of returnees spanning 126 countries would prove difficult to understand
Lit Review: Experiential Learning •
Reentry transition within a go-abroad program is the most crucial segment of the experience in respect to establishing sustained, meaningful learning (Spencer & Tuma, 2007)
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We must deliberately build systematic linkages between pre-departure orientation and the reflection, (Hanratty, 2001)
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Depth of debriefing will shape how participants view overall experience in long-term (Rubin & Matthews, 2013)
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Intriguing: how both sending entity, hosting entity must bear shared responsibility for providing anticipated, learning assistance. Translation for AIESEC; Research connecting prereentry preparation at an AIESEC host LC with post-return learning, transformation at home LC
Lit Review: Connecting RA & PI Education sector emphasizes how students build skills through education to support future employment (World Bank, 2014). School-to-career transition research is mainly focused on preparation required to join workforce (Tillman, 2005) •
Go-abroad experiences viewed importantly in terms of shaping intl careers, enrolling in graduate schools abroad
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NAFSA added global workforce development to its mission statement (Tillman, 2005)
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Experience overseas will often paint a fresh perspective or offer new clarity on professional path (Tillman, 2011)
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How students could be stimulated to probe deeper within their global experiences to illustrate why they learned what they did academically, professionally, culturally, personally (Tillman, 2011)
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Relational regulation theory suggests positive mental health occurs when people regulate themselves through ordinary social interactions, such as conversations, activities. (Lakey & Orehek, 2011)
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Idea: Returnees do require intellectual stimulation to help understand real-world use of experiences abroad. Glaring need to connect global learnings with employer needs
Educators, mobility managers are trying to build the bridge between experiences abroad, repatriation and transition from student to professional
Lit Review: Reentry Mgmt & Training •
Time, failure to delve into guided reflection creates an optional mindset for reentry
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If students consider potential issues, prepare for conflicts prior to returning home then they may have fewer issues once returned. (Cox, 2006)
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Must be a structured means by which participants bring experience back home and apply what they have learned to their everyday lives (Spencer & Tuma, 2007)
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Common reentry therapy methods: training, coaching, mentoring, workshops…
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(Szkudlarek, 2008) interviewed 31 reentry trainers, analyzed their reentry programs for timing, location, duration, group composition, methodology. Findings included discrepancies between reentry theories, actual conducted training practices
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AIESEC: Imagined many concepts of what reentry adjustment training might be
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Pusch’s (1998) proposal of reentry styles focused on primary concerns repatriates have about their return, perceived role returnees desire to play upon return
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Notion that reentry training process must start within pre-departure orientation, continue while abroad, finalize upon return home (Holmes & McCallon, 2010)
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Confirmed by Martin & Harrell’s (2004) theoretical reentry training design distinguished four training phases.
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Group and personal online coaching for repatriates. Small Planet Studio, Melibee Global embraced technology, built online presences for delivering a multitude of reentry, global career re-launch services (Brubaker, 2014 and Gluckman, 2014)
Returnees have often expressed that they wished they had learned about, understood reentry adjustment models, coping strategies prior to post-return training experiences
Research Methodology •
Primary interest was -how AIESEC’s exchange participants (EPs) experienced reentry adjustment and professional integration, -how AIESEC’s member committees (MCs) managed these crucial program components -how alumni might assist within reentry to workplace transition
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Martin & Harrell’s four training phases; pre-departure, experience abroad, pre-reentry, post-return utilized to construct a qualitative, sequential snapshot showing experiences and practices of informants
Research accomplished by: •
in-depth, experience-oriented questionnaires complimented by
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semi-structured interviews with returned EPs and current MCs
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triangulated depth of data obtained by providing parallel questionnaires to current MCs and an abbreviated questionnaire to post-degree alumni
Informants: recently returned EPs, current MCs and post-degree alumni
Exchange Participants (EPs) •
Recently returned EPs defined as having returned after Aug 1st, 2013. First year after reentry believed to be timeframe when most readjustment takes place (Adler, 1981).
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All EP informants sojourned minimally for 5 weeks by definition of GCDP
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Limitation of time; convenience sample. AI emailed EP questionnaire via survey monkey link to 472 random, recently returned EPs globally
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Contacted 30 current MCs in 30 countries by phone to explain the research
Member Committees (MCs) •
Current MCs defined as having a leadership term of 2014-15
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Questionnaires focused on determining what management practices MCs believed were transpiring for EPs within their respective MC countries
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AI provided MC questionnaire via survey monkey link to 224 potential MC informants spread amongst all member countries. Equated to roughly 35 percent of current national committee members globally (about 2 MC members per country)
Post-Degree Alumni •
Alumni defined as completing student membership prior to Jan 1st, 2010.
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Aim to capture date from perspective of being out of student organization
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Alumni provided reflections on potential assistance within an EP’s reentry
Interviews •
EP & MC interview selection criteria based on consent and on depth, uniqueness of data obtained through questionnaires
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Semi-structured interviews placed emphasis on pre-reentry, post-return experiences
Framework •
Martin & Harrell’s (2004) four training phases
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Basis that the total adjustment process reaching from pre-departure to reentry in home culture (Pusch & Loewenthal, 1988) requires deliberate connection
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Pusch’s (1998) primary concerns, perceived roles within pre-reentry & post-return questioning
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Arthur & MacDonald’s (2003) expectations met or exceeded may support better readjustment within pre-reentry & post-return questioning
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Postulated the field would be better served if practitioners were intentionally building reentry adjustment and professional integration training into each phase of a go-abroad program
Data Presentation & Analysis Biographical Data Data was collected, categorized over Martin and Harrell’s (2004) four training phases to paint a picture of the global reentry reality Exchange Participants (EPs) •
8 EPs completed questionnaires, 3 EPs consented to interviews.
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(4 males, 4 females, 5 GCDP, 3 GIP)
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Return dates ranged from August 22, 2013 to September 15, 2014
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EP home countries represented 5 of 6 AIESEC regions with 4 from Asia Pacific (AP) region
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EP host countries represented 5 of 6 AIESEC regions with 4 hosted in Middle East North Africa (MENA) region
Biographical Data Member Committees (MCs) •
20 MCs completed questionnaires, 4 MCs consented to interviews (9 males, 11 females)
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MCs represented all six AIESEC regions. 18 MCs (90%) responsible for outgoing exchange in respective countries
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MCs (52%) had not yet participated in the GIP or GCDP, MCs participated in GIP constituted just 4%, MCs participated in GCDP constituted 44%
Alumni •
8 post-degree alumni completed, 4 males, 4 females, representing 5 of 6 AIESEC regions.
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5 alumni (53%) participated in GIP, 3 (37%) not participated in an AIESEC exchange
Experiential Activity !!!!!!!!
Group 1: You are exchange participants: As a returning undergraduate exchange participant what might you expect from your exchange provider in terms of linking reentry adjustment support with your transition to the professional workplace?
Group 2: You are program administrators: As an exchange program administrator what suggestions do you have to connect a returnee’s reentry adjustment with professional integration opportunities?
Group 3: You are program alumni: As a program alumnus how might you best assist a returnee for readjusting while he/she is considering the transition to the professional workplace