NAFSA's International Educator

This month on the International Educator podcast is a two-part episode featuring conversations with contributors to NAFSA’s recent book, Engaging International Alumni as Strategic Partners, and other experts on this topic.

In Part 1 of the episode, Gretchen Dobson, who is one of the co-authors of the book, talks with Serge Sych from Central European University about partnering with international alumni to advance marketing, branding...

There is growing momentum in international education around advancing social justice, and these issues are rightly at the forefront of the important discussions happening across the field. Longtime NAFSA member LaNitra Berger, PhD, edited the book on it: Social Justice and International Education.

In this episode of the IE podcast, Berger discusses 

• how advancing social justice in international education became a passio...

This episode of the IE podcast is a conversation with Bertha Anderson, who is the Chief of Public Engagement for the Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman (CIS Ombudsman). 

Many international educators in the United States are familiar with the CIS Ombudsman's office, and NAFSA regularly liaises with this and other government agencies on behalf of advisers who facilitate the goals of internation...

In November, during International Education Week, NAFSA released its annual analysis of the economic contributions of international students and their families to the U.S. economy. This year’s analysis showed that the nearly one million international students studying at U.S. colleges and universities contributed  28.4 billion dollars to the country’s economy and supported more than 300,000 jobs. 

NAFSA has been conducting this econ...

Efforts to diversify the field of international education have accelerated over the past few years, and Ogonna Owu, MA, and Gretchen Cook-Anderson, MA, have had front-row seats to the changes and challenges.

In this episode of the IE podcast, Owu and Cook-Anderson discuss positive changes in the field in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion; the areas still in need of improvement; how employers can attract and re...

In this episode of the International Educator podcast, we talk with David Di Maria, EdD, author of the recent NAFSA publication Achieving More With Less: Lean Management in the International Student Office.

Di Maria discusses the eight most common types of waste found in most international offices; how to identify and eliminate waste; challenges to implementing new processes; how to know when the time is right to make chan...

Like so many around the world, NAFSA has been watching events unfold in Afghanistan over recent months and weeks, as the United States has withdrawn from the country. This episode of the IE podcast features a conversation with a scholar from Afghanistan who is pursuing a master's degree at a university in the United States.  He shares his experience of watching developments in the situation in Afghanistan while studying in the...

In this episode of the IE podcast, Sandra Rincón, MSc, and Gretchen Dobson, EdD, co-authors of Engaging International Alumni as Strategic Partners, give a primer on how international educators can include international alumni as key stakeholders in internationalization efforts.

As higher education institutions around the world continue to reimagine their internationalization strategies, international educators are tapping ...

In this episode of the IE podcast, NAFSA's Director, Regulatory Practice Liaison Steve Springer breaks down the 2021 Spring Regulatory Agenda. In addition to giving important context for this edition of the agenda, we discuss five key takeaways, including the withdrawal of proposed changes to duration of status, SEVP fees, reforms to practical training, and more. 

Overall, this edition turns away from restrictionist ...

Networking, mentoring, and learning from peers are hallmarks of the field of international education. These elements also play an important role in career development and professional growth. Hear from two pairs of NAFSA members—one a mentor-mentee relationship, the other a peer-peer connection—about how the personal side of professional development has made a difference in their lives. Read more in the June issue of IE at nafsa.or...

As the Biden administration marked 100 days in office on April 30, the milestone took place during a whirlwind week for U.S. State Department announcements, travel advisories, and other updates and happenings that affect international students and scholars in the United States.

In this episode of the International Educator podcast, Dan Berger, an immigration attorney based in Massachusetts, gives his perspective on the first few mon...