Community-Based Learning for International Graduate Students: Impact and Implications

Abstract

Integrating community- based learning (CBL) into graduate education has gained attention in higher education during the past decade because CBL allows students to inculcate professional values and ethics, situate academic knowledge and understanding in contexts, and practice academic citizenship through serving communities with disciplinary knowledge and skills. In a North American higher education context, about half of the graduate student population are international students, who have needs in several areas. How-ever, their experiences in CBL are under- investigated and scarcely documented in existing literature and scholarship in either community- based learning or international education. Drawing on international students’ experiences in a graduate program infused with CBL components in Canadian higher education, this mixed methods case study examined the impact of CBL on international students’ developments in five areas: academic, sociocultural, personal, professional, and global citizenship. Through discussions on the benefit, barriers, and implications of providing CBL to international graduate students, this article offers recommendations for improved higher education policy, programs, and praxis to make CBL more inclusive and responsive to international graduate students. not tied to a specific course or program. This article reports a mixed meth ods case study examining the impact of CBL on international graduate students at a Canadian public university. Beginning with a brief review of the research context, methodology, and methods, the article reports findings on students’ perceptions of CBL and the impact of CBL on international graduate students in five areas: academic, sociocultural, personal, professional, and global citizenship development. The article then discusses the impli cations for higher education institutions (HEIs) and offers recommendations on CBL program development in graduate education and future research possibilities. Findings shed light on the pitfalls and opportunities of enhancing the inclusivity and responsiveness of a CBL program and praxis in a HEI with a large number of international graduate students.