Assessing the Motivators and Barriers Influencing Undergraduate Students' Choices to Participate in International Experiences

Abstract

International experiences (IEs) are becoming one of the most critical elements of an undergraduate student’s education to address the knowledge needed to become globally competent. However, student enrollment in IEs has been limited. Agricultural educators can more easily influence students’ decisions regarding participation in IEs if they understand students’ perceptions of associated motivators and barriers. Realizing geographic location may have an impact on students’ decisions, this study assessed the motivators and barriers influencing students’ choices to participate in IEs at two geographically diverse land-grant universities. Students at both schools perceived the overall importance of participating in IEs as moderately important, and exhibited a neutral level of agreement with the International experience (IE) barrier items. Even though the barriers and the motivators were similar, previous participation levels in IEs were significantly different when the universities were compared. Specific barriers, motivators, and personal characteristics were found to be significant predictors of participation in IEs, and the level of significance varied depending on the university attended. The results confirm that many undergraduate students are not fully engaged in IEs, that agricultural educators should to strive toward eliminating barriers to participation, and that recruitment incentives should be developed based on the needs of the specific university.