CSC Dean set for trip to Siberia
Gary White, dean of the school of business, entrepreneurship, applied and mathematical sciences, and sciences, is planning an administrative visit to Siberian universities in May.
The visit is meant to establish new partnerships, open up more opportunities for CSC internalization, increase the number of international students on campus, and promote the college abroad.
White visited Nizhniy Novgorod State Agricultural Academy in Russia March 15 – 19, where he made a presentation about CSC’s international programs and the opportunities CSC provides for students from all over the world.
White was a key note speaker at an international conference at Nizhniy Novgorod. He received an honorary professor of science degree from Russian Academy of Science in Nizhniy Novgorod for establishing a long-term partnership with Nizhniy Novgorod State Agricultural Academy that has benefited Russian students in many ways.
“With the improvements in technology, communication, transportation and trade, we need to realize that international relations are constantly developing, and all students will be exposed to cultures and opportunities that weren’t available in the past,” White said. “Future success will depend on the skill to be able to communicate with people all over the world.”
CSC started its international programs with mainly teachers and student exchanges. The direction of international cooperation development changed dramatically in 2006.
Joint research, curriculum exchange, mutual accreditation of programs, and degrees became possible. CSC also began working with U.S. government programs like the International Research Exchange Program, University Administration Support Program, Junior Faculty Development Program, and the Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program.
CSC increases the number of international students on campus by providing financial assistance, scholarship opportunities, and in-state tuition.
CSC recruits graduate students from Eastern Europe for its MBA program and related master’s degrees.
Partnerships with Voronezh State University, Nizhniy Novgorod State Agricultural Academy in Russia, Cherkasy Bohdan Khmelnytsky National University, and National Agricultural University in Ukraine have helped Russian and Ukrainian students complete their bachelor’s and master’s degrees in the US.
If English Departments of the partner universities in Ukraine and Russia recognize students’ fluency in English, they are not required to take the TOEFL – the Education Testing Service’s Test of English as a Foreign Language – to study at CSC.
Students applying for the MBA program can transfer nine credits from home universities upon completing master’s degrees there. White is working on dual accreditation of master’s programs.
CSC wants to cooperate with St. Petersburg State University, Turkmen State University and universities in Siberia to recruit more students and make the campus even more diverse.
“If we can expand international exchange programs, we could aid to world peace,” White said. He calls the exchange programs “CSC’s little contribution to creating a better world to live in.”