The main experiences of the Purdue University students participating in the undergraduate GEARE program can be summarized as follows. The students reported that cultural differences had significant impact on their interactions during all phases of the undergraduate GEARE program. Students clearly indicated that their ability to accommodate to changes in a foreign environment improved with experience and that, as they became more confident in their new environment, their productivity increased. Typically, English was reported by all students to be the language of last resort in communications between participants in the program. Students indicated that their foreign language skills improved considerably in both social and business settings throughout the program. Students were impressed with the success of the student design team projects. They attributed the success to the integration of the combination of a wide variety of skill sets that they developed based on their different educational systems. The development of communication skills was considered to be the best outcome of the program.

• super-administrator

Researchers should cite this work as follows:

• Benjamin Baker; Solomon Rust; Kimberly Welcker (2008), "Student Experiences in the Undergraduate GEARE Program," http://globalhub.org/resources/177.

  BibTex | EndNote

1. China
2. engineering cultures
3. engineering education
4. Germany
5. India
6. International Education
7. Mexico