Articles, Conference and Workshop Papers Collection

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Browsing Articles, Conference and Workshop Papers Collection by Author "Casten, Wanda"

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    Increasing impact of international development study experiences
    (University of Antwerp, 2022-02-26) Casten, Wanda; Dewachter, Sara; Holvoet, Nathalie; Makundi, Hezron; Yahaya, Nawanda
    Key message: International master’s programmes continue to be effective tools contributing to development impact around the world. Recommendation 1: The change agent pathway was the most frequent pathway of change observed, yet reality shows a combination of different and hybrid pathways, which suggests a need for further research and reconceptualization. Recommendation 2: Learning gains on knowledge, skills and attitudes were highly prominent among graduates of the international master’s programmes. There is a need to understand the role of networks better in facilitating professional development to help host institutions design targeted interventions. Results emphasise the importance of exchange of ideas, perspectives and the profound effect on attitudes of an international study experience, which is too often seen as a positive externality, rather than a key outcome of the programme. Recommendation 3: Graduates strengthen the organisations where they work, building on all learning gains, mostly through new ideas, perspectives, deepened knowledge and skills, increasing the organisational performance. Investing in methods to stimulate more active sharing of the learning gains throughout the organisation could increase the impact. Recommendation 4:The majority of graduates contributed to the Sustainable Development Goals and engaged in several impact arenas. Particularly, contributions to development outside the professional arena (e.g. role model or voluntary contributions in one’s community) are too often overlooked. Recommendation 5: Engaging in a collaborative process with a multi-perspective international alumni team throughout the entire research process increased the quality of the study and thus facilitates uptake and dissemination of the findings.