The Importance of Students’ Cross-Cultural Mobility

Małgorzata Kujawińska

Warsaw University of Technology, Poland

Education in general and higher education, in particular, is the backbone of any society. Its main goal is to provide in-depth knowledge and understanding of the world to advance students to new frontiers of knowledge. Science and technology higher education focuses on providing healthy, knowledgeable representation in research, industry, and commerce, but it also should create sighted, intelligent, and courageous leaders in politics and administration.

Universities and especially educators/researchers should help to discover the innate qualities of individual students and develop these qualities through suitable training by showing good practices and providing wise mentorship. However, one might ask whether deep science and technology support and knowledge transfer in a single university is sufficient to develop all of the intellectual skills required in a future professional life—or is sufficient to create an international awareness with a full understanding of freedom, justice, and equality, which are so needed in today’s world.

My answer to this question is NO.

Multicultural experience is also a great asset that helps in finding a dream job. After completing internships abroad, candidates are perceived by recruiters as active, determined, and independent people ready to take on challenges and show flexibility and willingness towards new situations under demanding circumstances. Internships abroad are also the best way to acquire international adaptability and cross-cultural sensitivity and self-confidence while learning how to effectively share ideas, doubts, or fears.

The friendships and networks created during studies abroad, internships, or other collaborative activities among students (e.g., those through SPIE, OSA, or IEEE student chapters) often last throughout the professional lives of the involved individuals.

This was confirmed by my own experience leading at Warsaw University of Technology (WUT), Poland, for the European Erasmus Mundus Masters “Optics in Science and Technology, OpSciTech.” OpSciTech was run by five prestigious European universities, namely, Institute d’Optique (France), Imperial College (UK), Delft Technical University (The Netherland), Fredrich Schiller University in Jena (Germany), and WUT. More than 100 master’s level students from 15 countries completed OpSciTech during the years 2006–2012 (see the photo on the next page). Many of them now hold important positions in research institutions, industry, and administration in Europe and their own countries. Most of them keep in touch and continue to co-operate with both their former classmates and with us, their teachers. From my perspective, OpSciTech was a great learning opportunity for the recruited foreign students, their Polish, French, German, Dutch, and English colleagues, as well as the staff and co-operating Universities.

My advice to all students is to make an effort to use the multiple opportunities that arise during their studies to open up to the world through (partial or full) studies abroad, internships, or other collaborative international activities with other students. Internationalization of your education will not only bring new scientific and technological experiences, but it will also facilitate the promotion of the ‘international features’ that are desired in the global economy, such as openness and sensitivity to intercultural differences, foreign language skills, flexibility of thinking, and tolerance and respect for others.

Graduation gathering of the first cohort of OpSciTech Erasmus Mundus Masters.