Call for Proposal

Call for Proposal: Barriers Experienced by International Students and Scholars in the US

Summary: The Education Exchange Institute (EEI) is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization devoted to facilitating the exchange of educational expertise and promoting mutual understanding between the US and other countries. In this call for proposal, we seek to fund research project(s) aimed at understanding the barriers experienced by international students and scholars in adapting to the education system and understanding the culture of the US, with the ultimate goal to promote and assist their learning experience in the US.

Background and objective: Each year, hundreds of thousands of international students and scholars come to US university campuses to pursue their study and/or research.  This experience holds a great promise for their personal career development as well as mutual understanding and cross-cultural exchange among diverse cultures and traditions.  However, the potential challenges are often under-studied. Many students/scholars, instead of interacting with locals, tend to seclude themselves in homogenous circles and only have very superficial cultural contact, and often misunderstanding of the fundamental traditions of the US.  This problem is especially prominent for students coming from countries where news media and publications are censored, and formal education curricula and textbooks are strictly controlled by the governments.  The objective of this CFP is to promote research that helps to understand the underlying reasons and factors, be it cultural, educational, societal, that cause the challenges and hold back the potential benefits for these students and scholars during their stay at the US.  

Eligibility: Applicant(s) must be affiliated with a US higher education institution and have the appropriate credentials to perform the proposed research.

Criteria of selection:

  • Potential impact: the study should aim at identifying key challenges, faced by a significant population of international students, which prevent them from learning from and interaction with the locals.  In the initial stage, we would like to focus on students from China.  However, comparative analysis involving students from different countries or different backgrounds (i.e. age, economic status, previous life and working experiences, etc.) are encouraged.  
  • Rigor: The study has to adopt proven scientific methods, including rigorous sampling strategy and statistical analysis.  The sampling should ensure a good representation of the targeted population.
  • Qualification of the investigator. A CV documenting the training and previous experience of the principal investigator should be included in the submission.

Format of Application: The application is limited to 7 pages, excluding references. Font should be Arial or Calibri 11 or larger, line space should be 1.15. It should include the following sections: Summary, Background, Potential Impact, Research Design, Timeline, and Budget.  Summary should be understandable by lay man with no specific training in the discipline.

Funding: Funding will be provided for conducting surveys, supporting research assistants (graduate students), and other associated costs. Indirect costs are allowed but should be no more than 15% of the total cost. Support for faculty salary is limited to a maximum of 15% of the annual effort. The funding is limited to one year, but qualified projects are eligible for renewal of support.  Annual budget is expected to be less than $25,000 but special consideration could be given based on the needs and merits of an individual project.

Submission: Proposals submitted to EducationExodus81@gmail.com before March 1st, 2020 will be given full consideration. Funding decision will be made in April by the executive committee of EEI following a merit review by experts.