Bakaalouriyous, Licence or Ijaaza? The Complexities of Higher Education in North Africa

This presentation was given at the 2007 National Association of Graduate Admissions Professionals (NAGAP) Conference in Orlando, FL. It was prepared by senior evaluators Traci Wells and Emily Tse, along with Kristen Cammarata, who is the Regional Educational Advising Coordinator for North Africa, the Middle East and Southern Europe. It provided a comparative analysis of the educational systems of Egypt, Sudan, Algeria, and Morocco, including influences from Arabic-speaking, Anglophone, and Francophone countries. The session concluded with perspectives on the experiences of students from this region who have sought admission into US programs.

A Brief Outline of the Educational Structure of Peru

This poster session took place at the 2003 NAFSA – Association of International Educators conference in Salt Lake City, UT. Prepared by Carole Khoury, a senior evaluator at IERF, it provided a snapshot of the educational system of Peru with the key credentials and terms at each level. An educational ladder was included at the end.

Bridging the Gap: Training Foreign-Educated Nurses in the US

This presentation was given at the 2006 NAFSA – Association of International Educators Region XII Conference in Las Vegas, NV. It was provided by Emily Tse, a senior evaluator at IERF and Dr. Rolando Castillo, the Program Director of the Welcome Back Center in San Diego. This session’s purpose was two-fold: a) to offer an overview of the shortage of nurses as well as nursing education around the world, and b) to provide a look at the Welcome Back, International Health Worker Assistance Centers as an example of how assistance can be provided for internationally-trained nurses and other healthcare professionals re-entering the workforce as bilingual-bicultural providers in the US. This state-wide initiative in California includes counseling services, curricula development, and the identification of accelerated and advanced standing programs.

Education and the Middle East: Refugees and Border Crossing

This session was presented at the 2008 NAFSA – Association of International Educators Conference in Washington, D.C. It was prepared by senior evaluators Traci Wells and Emily Tse, along with Herman deLeeuw, the Expert on Authenticity and Falsifications at the Informatie Beheer Groep, and Kristen Cammarata, who is the Regional Educational Advising Coordinator for North Africa, the Middle East and Southern Europe. The session presented an overview of the displacement of students from Iraq and the Palestinian Authority and how education has been affected in these areas as well as the neighboring regions of Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon. The session also discussed related problems of fraud and limited documentation and how US universities can partner with EducationUSA Centers in providing educational opportunities for these students.

Filling the Need for Teachers: Recruiting Teachers from Abroad and Evaluating Foreign Teaching Credentials

This presentation was given in 2008 at a conference on teacher credentialing by Steven Desist, Director of Human Resources at the Silver Valley Unified School District and Tara Wessel, an Evaluator at IERF. Due to the shortage of qualified teachers, many officials have been looking at alternative means to fill this need, including the recruitment of teachers from abroad. This session shared the experiences of the Silver Valley Unified School District, including best practices in recruitment, hiring and orientation. The presentation also provided an overview of what takes place in the evaluation of foreign teaching credentials, with examples from a range of countries.

Junior, Vocational and Technical Colleges in Japan

This presentation was delivered by senior evaluators I-Hsing Lin and Emily Tse at the 2005 NAFSA – Association of International Educators conference in Seattle, WA. It provided an in-depth look at the postsecondary opportunities available outside the traditional four-year bachelor’s degree in Japan. Emphasis was given to programs offered at tanki daigaku (junior colleges), senmon gakko (vocational colleges) and koto senmon gakko (technical colleges).

Kurdish Credentials

This article deals with the authenticity of educational credentials from the war-torn Kurdish autonomous zone in Northern Iraq. It was prepared by Herman de Leeuw, who holds the position of Senior Recognition Officer at the Informatie Beheer Groep in the Netherlands. Previously, Herman held the position of senior evaluator at Nuffic (The Netherlands Organization for International Cooperation in Higher Education).

Making Sense of Accreditation for Higher Education Institutions in India

The primary aim of this poster was to provide an overview of Indian higher education with a focus on issues and concerns related to accreditation. This session was prepared by Ujjaini Sahasrabudhe, an evaluator at IERF, as well as Swetha Muthanna, an advisor at EducationUSA in India. The session took place at the 2009 NAFSA – Association of International Educators conference in Los Angeles, CA.

Secondary Education in South Asia: Understanding Diversity and Decoding Complexity

This presentation was provided at the 2007 NAFSA – Association of International Educators conference in Minneapolis, MN. It was prepared by IERF senior evaluators
I-Hsing Lin and Emily Tse, along with Vijaya Khandavilli and Arefin Jahan, representatives from the US Educational Foundations in India and Pakistan, respectively. This session focused on the differences and similarities of the secondary educational systems of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Trends in international students from these countries were also highlighted.

South African Higher Education - Update

This paper is a supplement to the presentation Update on Education in South Africa: An Overview with Reference to Higher Education, delivered by Richard van Huyssteen on April 15, 2002 at the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) Annual Meeting in Minneapolis, MN. Richard came to the Minneapolis meeting as a recipient of an IERF Research Grant for 2001-2002 and represented both IERF and the University of Cape Town at the meeting. This paper expands on his presentation in Minneapolis and is best understood in connection with the charts that accompany it.

Studying Children and Teaching: The Education of Teachers in Peru

This article examines differences in the education of teachers in the U.S. and Peru. It was written by Mary DeBey, who is the 2002-03 recipient of the IERF Research Grant. Dr. DeBey is the director of the Center for Creative Teaching at Bennington College in Benington, Vermont.

Understanding the Argentinean Educational System throughout the Years

This poster session took place at the 2009 NAFSA – Association of International Educators conference in Los Angeles , CA . Prepared by Amy Santiago and Irene Romo , evaluators at IERF, it provided an overview of the educational system of Argentina with an emphasis on the reforms which have taken place at the primary and secondary levels.

The information in this section is copyrighted by IERF. Duplication of any information contained in this section for reasons other than for personal use requires the written permission of IERF. While IERF makes every attempt to present accurate and reliable information, it does not endorse, certify or guarantee the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of such information. IERF is not liable for any errors or omissions in the information presented. The views expressed in these articles and/or papers do not necessarily reflect those of the staff or board of IERF.

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