The Role of International Students in Domestic Engineering Graduate Student Recruitment and Retention

该奖项是根据2009年《美国复苏和再投资法案》(公法111-5)提供资金的。这项授予弗吉尼亚理工学院和州立大学的工程教育研究奖将雇用研究人员，以更清楚地了解国际学生在建立工程学研究生社区(如系或研究小组)文化方面所起的作用，并特别强调该社区如何影响国内学生的招生和留住。与许多本科环境相比，在国际上不同的工程社区调查工程学研究生的社会化情况，是确定影响国内研究生流失的潜在重要因素的重要一步。了解影响自然减员的因素最终将增加国内本科生的入学人数和研究生课程的保留率。一个由来自四个合作机构的工程学研究生院长、系主任和研究生教育研究员组成的顾问委员会将监督该项目，并将于2011年在华盛顿特区主办一场由40名工程学研究生院长、系主任、教职员工和研究生参加的峰会。这项研究的结果可能会对理解大学可以做些什么来营造一个有利于增加国内参与工程学博士项目的环境产生重大影响。增加这种参与度将增强美国大学的创新潜力，从而直接有助于提高经济竞争力。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). This engineering education research award to Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University will employ researchers to develop a clearer understanding of the role that international students play in establishing the culture of a graduate engineering community, such as a department or research group, with particular emphasis on how this community affects domestic student recruitment and retention. Investigating the socialization of engineering graduate students in engineering communities that are internationally diverse compared to many undergraduate environments represents a major step in identifying a potential significant factor affecting domestic graduate student attrition. Understanding the factors that influence attrition will ultimately increase domestic undergraduate enrollment and retention in graduate programs. An advisory board of engineering graduate deans, a department head, and a graduate education researcher from four collaborating institutions will oversee the project and host a summit of 40 engineering graduate deans, department heads, faculty, and graduate students in 2011 in Washington, DC. Results from this research are likely to have a significant impact on understanding what universities can do to foster an environment that is conducive to increasing domestic participation in engineering Ph.D. programs. Increasing such participation will enhance the innovation potential of US universities and thus contribute directly to economic competitiveness.