The Center for Global Education introduced this year the Global Collaboration Projects (GCP), a program  that supports curricular internationalization and the integration of global/international perspectives into the teaching and learning process. The GCP allows U.S. students to analyze and address complex problems that transcend borders, without the need to engage in cross-border mobility.

The Center for Global Education invites faculty members and universities from our global partners network to participate in the Global Collaboration Projects. Faculty and partner universities are invited to learn more about this opportunity and review the description of the program on the Center for Global Education’s website. Faculty can fill out this form to express interest and provide a description of the project idea. In turn, the Center for Global Education will find suitable partners/faculty for the specific project, as described in the form.

Faced with student reduced mobility, the IEP constructed new opportunities for students to engage in an active learning environment through virtual experiences.

1. Intensive English Language Program (Remote). During Spring 2021, the IEP piloted its first online programming designed to provide a virtual learning and exchange opportunity for international students from partner universities and to provide English language training and support for domestic multilingual students. In total, the IEP served 13 Idaho residents and 11 non-residents.
2. IEP Remote: Global Conversation Exchange. The IEP partnered with the World Languages Department to run the Korean Language Exchange Program, a bilingual cross-cultural exchange program. Boise State students studying Korean partnered with IEP Korean students learning English. This spring’s cohort met twice a week on Zoom for a bilingual conversation practice.
3. IEP Special Programs - Remote: ITI (International Trade Institute of Taiwan). The year 2021 marked the fifteenth year that the IEP hosts the International Trade Institute of Taiwan (ITI), part of the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA). This year, graduate students in International Business Administration engaged with Boise companies to complete virtual internships.  

SEVP issued guidance for AY 20-21 for international students, providing greater flexibility for student enrollment in online vs. in person courses for international students who attend or plan to attend U.S. colleges and universities. These changes will be in effect as long as Boise State continues to adjust course delivery in response to the global pandemic. Detailed information can be found on the ISS website. 

Visa services are resuming at many Embassies, however, local conditions and backlogs continue to make it challenging to obtain F1 student visas and J1 exchange student visas in many regions. There is still limited appointment availability for other visa types, including the H1B employment visa used by many faculty and staff at Boise State.

Travel restrictions into the U.S. continue to make it difficult for travelers who have been in certain countries within the last 14 days. Those countries include Ireland, UK, Iran, Schengen area (Europe), South Africa, China, Brazil and India. However, the U.S. State Department recently announced that National Interest Exemptions (NIE) are being automatically granted to F1 student visa holders who have traveled or transited through those countries. J1 exchange visitors are often granted the NIE paperwork at the same time as their visa stamping. It remains difficult for other visa categories to obtain an NIE.

In good news, we have noticed that it is taking less time than in recent years for USCIS to adjudicate OPT post-graduation work authorization applications used by our international students. USCIS is also adjudicating the H1B employment petitions more quickly than in prior years.