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Elliott School students master's degree students (except MIPP students) are required to complete the a culminating Capstone project. Those students who wish to complete a thesis must do so  in addition to  the Capstone requirement. To pursue the optional six-credit thesis students must obtain approval from the Dean (through the Office of Graduate Student Services) and must meet the following criteria:

• A minimum GPA of 3.5 after 18 credits of graduate work
• Approval of thesis on your Plan of Study
• Completion of a research methods course
• the member of the full-time faculty under whom the thesis is to be written,
• a second member of the faculty who will serve as a reader, and
• the student's program director;
• Submission of an approved and signed  Graduate Student Thesis-Subject Approval Form  to the Office of Graduate Student Services 

Overview of the Process

The student is responsible for all of the paperwork associated with the thesis process, and the forms are available on the  Forms and Applications page  and the Gelman Library the  Electronic Thesis and Dissertation website .

Unsure how to begin searching for a thesis director? You can use this  GW Expert Finde r to help narrow down those that share your research interests. 

Students are expected to submit their  Graduate Student Thesis-Subject Approval Form (pdf) , signed by the Thesis Director and Second Reader, to the Office of Graduate Student Services  by no later than May 1 of the year preceding anticipated submission of their thesis for students planning to complete their thesis in a fall-spring sequence.  (For students planning to complete their thesis in a spring-fall sequence the form submission deadline is no later than November 1 of the year preceding anticipated submission of their thesis.)

Once the thesis proposal has been approved and submitted to your academic advisor you will be registered for IAFF 6998 and IAFF 6999 the subsequent semester. IAFF 6998 and IAFF 6999 are taken for a letter grade and quality points are earned toward your GPA. Payment of tuition for thesis research entitles the student, during the period of registration, to the advice and direction of the thesis director and the second reader.

In case a thesis is unfinished, the student must maintain Continuous Enrollment and is allowed one calendar year to complete it. If the preparation of the thesis extends beyond the additional calendar year, the student must register again for the entire six hours of thesis credit.

*While all grades for the spring semester may not be posted by the May 1/Nov 1 deadlines, students should still submit the Graduate Student Thesis Subject Approval Form by the deadline.  After receiving the Graduate Student Thesis Subject Approval form, but prior to registering the student for the first three-credits of thesis, the student's academic advisor will check the student's record by June 1 to confirm that the student has earned 18 credits and has a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5. Students who do not meet eligibility requirements will not be permitted to pursue a thesis.

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Master's theses are submitted electronically by the student once the document has been approved as final by the faculty. Information and deadline dates are posted on the  Electronic Thesis and Dissertation website . You can find a lot of information about the thesis on the ETD website, including formatting guidelines. The guidelines are designed to produce documents that are uniform in style, but they also allow for the particular requirements of various disciplines.

The student must also submit to the Office of Student Services the completed  ETD Approval Form  as part of the Steps in ETD Submission process. Theses will first be sent to the Gelman Library for approval. Once approved by Gelman, the thesis will be forwarded to the Office Graduate Student Services for a final check. Students may receive instructions from Gelman or GSS to make changes and upload a revised edition of their work. The student will be notified by email once the thesis has been forwarded to ProQuest/UMI.

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Accepted theses become the property of the University. The University is to be given credit for material used in the publication of any portion of a thesis, whether as a direct quotation or as an adaptation. Master's students whose thesis research will involve human subjects should review the information on the  Office of Human Research website.

Additional Resources

Thesis Guidelines for Faculty (pdf)

Bombay International School

The design explores the idea of flexible and interactive learning environments. The school is housed in a heritage residential building which has evolved into an ib school over a span of fifty years. The brief required the space planning to reflect the liberal pedagogy of an international education adopted by the school by re-imagining the “traditional classroom model” and the significance of heritage. Our proposal recommended learning by creating immersive and flexible environments. The shift is from a traditional classroom-based learning environment to creating subject rooms and shared common programs which offer a varied environment for learning and collaboration between students and teachers. The attempt was to make the existing divisions of classrooms porous, combine common shared spaces and create non-traditional collaborative learning spaces like the courtyards, balconies, chill-out spaces along the circulation.

Area : 35000sqft

Shantanu Poredi, Manisha Agarwal, Kunal Mokasdar, Monik Gada, Shrutika Manivannan, Jhanvi Sanghvi

International Schools and Educational Programs: A Critical Analysis from a Cultural Perspective

• Open Access
• First Online: 01 June 2022

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• Muhammet Ü. Öztabak 5  

Part of the book series: Maarif Global Education Series ((MGES))

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International education is one of the important phenomena of the globalizing world. The claim is that international education aims to educate students who are multilingual and multicultural, have common values and world citizen standards, approach different cultures with tolerance, are sensitive to global problems, contribute to world peace, and have international understanding and sensibility. The international diploma programs that have emerged for this purpose appeal to hundreds of thousands of students in thousands of schools in many countries of the world. In this section, we critically evaluate the concepts expressed in the aims of international education programs, such as global citizenship, universal culture, and international curriculum. A critical approach to these concepts opens up certain phenomena to discussion such as the weakening of national identities, homogenization, foreign language exploitation, cultural imperialism, brain drain, and global hegemony. When considering the cultural-hegemonic risks together with the virtues of international education programs, individuals and policy makers are recommended to approach international programs cautiously. In twenty-first-century education, structuring international programs on the basis of respect and equality, showing sensitivity to the culture of the countries in which they operate, and supporting students’ development toward their own cultures will be important.

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Globalisation in Higher Education: Bridging Global and Local Education

• International schools
• International diploma programs
• Globalization
• Cultural imperialism
• Cultural hegemony

Scientific, technological, and economic developments in one part of the world also affect the other parts. The factors increasing the speed, severity, and prevalence of this effect are as follows: increased power of the financial oligarchy as a result of the development of information technologies, the overreaching production and dissemination of information, the development of trade through the development and spread of transportation vehicles, quicker and cheaper access to the market, financial markets’ ties through information and the concentration of capital in some multinational companies, the development of the culture manufacturing industry, the feeling of inferiority among intellectuals and people of underdeveloped countries, and the establishment of colonial consciousness (Çınar, 2006 , p. 125).

Globalization is a comprehensive concept that includes increased economic, technological, political, and cultural relations among groups, countries, and regions; more mutual interactions; and weakening of national borders through unlimited developments and processes, agreements, and sanctions that accordingly develop global society and citizenship awareness (Karabağ, 2006 ). Globalization means that the ties and interdependencies among countries have gotten tighter and nation-states have moved away from being the basic unit in economic, social, and cultural fields. In this process, the global significantly affects the local and national, most of the time even playing a decisive role. Although this effect is not always unilateral, it does have the potential to affect daily functioning and life all over the world, including all elements of the strong and dominant global education system (Karip, 2005 ).

The globalization process is primarily shaped by the interests of the United States of America and Europe and their affiliated multinational companies and financial resources. These interests are imposed on societies under the name of multiculturalism. Globalization enables these companies to spread all over the world in a way that increases the effect of cultural hegemony. Societies attempt to adopt the culture produced through the cinema industry, social media tools, fashion, music industry, and various branches of the arts. Thus, national textures and national identities have become worn out, weakened, and been attempted to be destroyed. Global powers have declared war on the national and have become allies with every anti-national thought. In order for nations to survive, they need common values ​​that can sustain them and provide unity and solidarity. With globalization, schools are asked to raise people who produce and consume in accordance with market conditions as opposed to people who produce virtues, ideals, and values.

The main problems arising through globalization can be listed as follows: forcing countries’ unitary structures toward multiculturalism, weakening national identity and national resistance, increasing the importance of English instead of a nation’s mother tongue, highlighting education and training in a foreign language that creates global intellectual dependence, isolating individuals and social groups from society (i.e., regarding the individual as independent of society), transferring a certain extent of sovereign rights to global powers, making concessions to multinational companies and struggling against nation-states, weakening citizenship awareness, increasing the brain drain in globalized countries, making consumption preferences based on the goods and services produced by dominant economies, and uniformizing over a range from music to clothing and diet. Yinger ( 1994 ) defined the overcrowding of nations as new tribalism. The emphasis on tribe, community, sect, clan, and ethnic bigotry has emerged as the negative cultural effects of globalization (as cited in Erkal, 2016 ). The responsibility of raising well-equipped individuals who are resistant to the negative effects of this economic and cultural gristmill makes education even more important.

Various parallelisms and similarities can be seen among countries’ education systems as a result of cultural influences or adoption of similar policies, as well as from being a natural result of cultural interaction. Many innovations such as international electronic universities, diploma and certification programs, interactive distance education systems, e-libraries and electronic databases, and mobile phone applications have become widespread; the concept of e-learning has developed, increasing individuals’ self-learning opportunities and options. The absence of electronic borders among countries has increased and accelerated communication, information sharing, cultural exchange, and permeability; as a result, the dominant powers and paradigms have become widespread throughout the world.

The dominant presentation of the idea that the development of national education systems and programs should be according to universal education models is sufficient to explain the impact of globalization on education. In accordance with this thesis, concepts have formed such as universal culture, global education, and global citizenship; individuals are asked to grow up this way, and even states are asked to shape their education policies in accordance with these universal norms. However, the fields of education, culture, and defense are critical areas related to national sovereignty and not allowing others to interfere in a state’s own policies should be seen as the most natural right of every nation.

While nations attempt to raise individuals to have their own national values with more local content, they may however fall into the dilemma of having to raise world citizens with universal values who can approach others’ values with tolerance. Achieving the balance between local and global education does not appear easy. As Dale ( 2000 , p. 428) stated, “Universal culture means modern Western culture.” Education is used as a tool of global competition; while the dominant actors of globalization impose this education on weaker nations, these nations also try to protect themselves from the negative effects of globalization.

Globalization shows its effects on the world’s education systems and schools just as in every other field. The economic structures that have become globalized and multinational also increase the expectations from nations’ education systems. Behind these expectations lies the desire to increase the quality of manpower. The fact that schools raise individuals who can meet the expectations of business fields in society also reveals new quests. The implementation of international diploma programs in schools is considered a reflection of this quest. In addition to the programs preparing to be implemented in national education systems, international programs have been prepared and implemented by various organizations in the world in thousands of schools in many countries.

Today, the international school and education sector is highly developed and diversified. International schools are often schools established by the country of origin in the territory of another country. The concept of international education is also quite broad. Local schools that implement an international diploma or certificate program together with international schools are also included in the scope of international education. Schools that implement an international diploma and certificate program are accredited by the institutions that develop these programs. The level of international culture in these schools also varies from school to school. While some schools adopt a mixed approach in terms of language and culture, others can organize all their education in a foreign language. International schools operate in different ways depending on their founders, missions, and whether they are for-profit. For example, Hayden and Thompson ( 2013 ) described three types of international schools (A, B, and C): Type A are the traditional international schools that are non-profit schools for expats’ children, Type B schools are ideological international schools with an international understanding and mission that promote a global approach, and Type C schools are non-traditional schools that provide for-profit educational services mostly for the children of the local elite (Hayden & Thompson, 2013 ). The main feature of the Types B and C schools is that students receive education centered on culture other than their own. Although the concerns about education belonging to another culture in higher education are limited, having children and youth at the K-12 level who are still in the early stages of identity development be educated in another cultural structure raises various concerns.

The analyses in this section include schools operating at the K-12 level regardless of their international school status that offer education programs to their students in a language other than their mother tongue and outside the local curriculum of the country in which they are located. This article will critically evaluate international programs around the debates on universality, global citizenship, cultural imperialism, and cultural hegemony.

International Education Programs

International education has emerged as a concept that aims to raise citizens with common values. In this context, international education is also stated to serve important purposes such as establishing world peace and ensuring the recognition of different cultures. According to Cambridge and Thompson ( 2004 ), international education is a transferred national education system that serves people who come from or live in a different country as well as the citizens of the host country. According to Walker ( 2002 ), international education is a learning environment where students read a multilingual, multicultural, and global-oriented curriculum. The aim of international education is to provide the diversity desired for improving the human condition by promoting understanding and respect for oneself and other cultures, promoting knowledge of global problem areas, recognizing the benefits of a humanistic education, and sharing an understanding of the human condition with others.

Parallel to these goals, international education was hoped would change national and racial prejudices after World War II, leading to the development of better world citizens, revealing the causes of war, and ensuring world peace. In this way, individuals would have certain attitudes and values such as international understanding, tolerance, respect, and cooperation for solving global and international problems (i.e., to create a better world). The aim in giving international education programs to national schools was to prevent international and national conflicts (Kieran, 2005 ).

In practice, many international curricula have traditional structures emphasizing certain forms of knowledge and valuing certain skills while not widely valuing interpersonal skills or interpersonal understanding. The aims of international education are related to international understanding and knowledge as well as perceptions and attitudes of international-mindedness and world-mindedness for developing global citizenship. According to Walker ( 2002 ), these terms enable people to live together in harmony and therefore should be called interpersonal or intercultural values.

International schools use the international education curriculum for students in a wide range of countries. They do not comply with the national curriculum of the country in which they are located. While the vast majority of students in international schools have in the past been immigrants, this is no longer the case. This is because the citizens of the host country want their children to learn another language and receive an international education (Mark, 2011 ).

Implementing an international curriculum enables students to understand the priorities of other nations, promotes an understanding of different national characteristics and behaviors, and examines issues that transcend national borders such as environmental issues, health and safety, economics, and politics. Thus, this implementation is expected to demonstrate a genuine awareness of the interdependence and appreciation of other cultures from a global perspective. Therefore, the product of a successful international education is international mindedness (Hill, 2012a ). International mindedness can be defined as an openness and curiosity toward people of the world and other cultures and an effort to reach a deep level of understanding of the complexity and diversity of human interactions. Although this term is not commonly encountered outside of IB, basic concepts such as multilingualism, intercultural understanding, and global participation can define the conceptual framework of what international mindedness means (Castro et al., 2013 ). A universally agreed-upon definition should be noted to not exist. Therefore, no effective tool exists for assessing international mindedness or the effectiveness of school practices.

International Baccalaureate (IB) is one of the influential institutions in international education and is known for bringing international mindedness to the fore in international education with its first emphasis being on intercultural understanding. Promoting international awareness became evident when IB first introduced it through the Diploma Program (DP). When international mindedness was first introduced through DP in the 1960s, IB focused on “providing intercultural understanding, awareness of global issues, critical thinking skills, education for all individuals, and a world-class university entrance qualification” (Hill, 2012b , p. 251).

Looking at the IB system today, international mindedness is seen to be based on three dimensions: multilingualism, intercultural understanding, and global engagement. These dimensions are embedded in the IB learner profile. Multilingualism means being able to speak more than two languages; intercultural understanding means individuals’ abilities to understand their own culture and perceptions of other cultures, to negotiate between the two, and to develop positive attitudes toward others; global participation refers to growing up as responsible citizens by developing an understanding of global issues. Attitudes toward international mindedness can also be developed through a curriculum that includes learning and teaching practices enriched with international and intercultural experiences (Bailey & Harwood, 2013 ).

When looking at the international accreditation institutions related to education in the world, these institutions can be seen to be grouped under two different categories (Gedikli, 2020 ):

Curriculum accreditation is most common (e.g., IB, Cambridge programs).

Education system accreditation is most common (Council of International Schools [CIS], Central Agency for Schools Abroad [ZfA], The Agency for French Education Abroad [AEFE], Council of British International Schools [COBIS]).

International Baccalaureate (IB)

International Baccalaureate (IB) was originally established in 1968 as the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO) in Geneva, Switzerland. The Middle Years Program (MYP) was put into practice in 1994 within the scope of IB, which was initially implemented at the high school level within the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (DP). Later, the Primary Years Program (PYP) was put into practice in 1997 and the Career-Related Program in 2012 (IB, 2021 ). Their mission is to create a better world with an education program that develops the intellectual, individual, emotional, and social skills required by the changing world. They define their aim as “raising world citizens who will contribute to world peace, have self-confidence, self-discipline and high-level thinking skills, adopt lifelong learning, are aware of their responsibilities, and know and understand different cultures” (IB, 2021 ). These programs aim to encourage students around the world to be active, compassionate, lifelong learners who understand that other people have the right to be different (IB, 2021 ).

IB interacts with more than 1.4 million students between the ages of 3–19 in more than 5400 schools in 158 countries (IB, 2021 ). Students are offered four educational programs, with a total of more than 7300 programs being offered around the world. Of these programs, 50.6% (3699) are offered in the United States; 28.1% (2057) in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East; and 21.3% (1561) in the Asia-Pacific (IB, 2021 ). IB-DP is implemented in three languages (i.e., English, French, and Spanish). However, the program can be adapted in each country according to its culture and needs (IB, 2021 ).

IB-DP offers students an internationally recognized diploma. In order to have this diploma, one must complete courses in the six course groups the program offers; a long essay on one of these six courses (Extended Essay); an article on the theory of knowledge; and creativity, sports, and social work studies (Creativity, Action, Service). Presented as a hexagon, the main subject groups of the program are language and literature studies, language acquisition, individuals and societies, experimental sciences, mathematics and computer science, and the arts. Each student must successfully complete these courses in order to receive a diploma. The extended essay task aims to enable students to put forth an argument and study that subject in depth, thus understanding an academic discipline. The article on the theory of knowledge aims to make students think about the qualities, similarities, and differences of the knowledge they use in various courses and how knowledge is acquired. The creativity, sports, and social work studies are also a requirement for obtaining a diploma; these studies support students’ social development. The aim is to have IB graduates possess 10 characteristics (learner profile): inquirer, knowledgeable, thinker, communicator, principled, open-minded, sensitive, risk-taking, balanced, and reflective (IB, 2021 ).

Within the scope of IB-DP, exams for determining student success are held in two of the four semesters throughout the year. Except for the courses required by the country in which they live, students study in a foreign language within the scope of the IB-DP program in order to fulfill its international requirements. As part of the program, the homework prepared by the students and the portfolios they fill out in line with various activities throughout the year are evaluated by IB and included in the scope of diploma validity. Students who cannot perform the necessary studies, especially in the activities carried out within the scope of creativity, activity, and service components, are not entitled to receive a diploma. Within the scope of this program, study groups can be formed for students in order to prepare for the exams; they are able to apply up to six hours of study. Social activity studies implemented in IB-DP are not evaluated with a grade (IB, 2021 ).

Various curriculum management practices are carried out within the framework of IB-DP in order to improve students’ academic and social skills. The program includes many additional activities aimed at increasing teachers’ and school administrators’ standardization and quality. The program obliges teachers to attend conferences, workshops, and seminars organized by the center in order to measure student success and develop the program throughout the year. Schools implementing the program can apply the measurement and evaluation processes themselves within the framework of the determined standards, as well as participate in the evaluations made by the IB center. The IB center frequently visits schools to inspect the implementation of the program. This situation is seen as an important reinforcement for both teachers and school administrators to keep their program management skills at a high level (Sperandio, 2010 , pp. 143–144).

Council of International Schools (CIS)

The Council of International Schools (CIS) defines itself as a membership community working collaboratively to shape international education through professional services to schools, higher education institutions, and individuals committed to high-quality international education. This community includes more than 1360 institutions, including more than 740 schools and 610 colleges and universities representing 122 countries (CIS, 2021 ).

As a global non-profit membership organization, CIS provides services to primary and secondary schools, higher education institutions, and individuals who share these ideals. These services include the desire to provide students with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to live their lives as citizens of the world and a commitment to high-quality international education (CIS, 2021 ).

CIS expresses its vision as inspiring the development of global citizens through high-quality international education by connecting ideas, cultures, and educators from all corners of the world. Its members are committed to actively promoting global citizenship. The institution is committed to providing international accreditation in the field of school evaluation and accreditation worldwide, with a focus on the development of students as global citizens (CIS, 2021 ).

CIS considers all aspects of school life educationally and operationally. It authorizes the adoption, implementation, and use of the IB curriculum in a school. CIS and IB are working together to enable schools to align IB reauthorization visits at the same time as CIS International Accreditation assessment visits.

Agency for French Education Abroad (AEFE)

Established in 1990, the Agency for French Education Abroad (AEFE) is a national public institution under the control of the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs. It carries out public service missions related to the education of French children residing outside of France by taking into account organizations’ admissions capacities; AEFE contributes to the strengthening of relations between French and foreign education systems as well as the influence of French language and culture. The main purpose of AEFE has been defined at the beginning of the 2020 academic year as serving and promoting a school network of 535 organizations located in 139 countries (AEFE, 2021 ).

The agency manages all humanitarian and financial assistance provided by the state for the operation of French educational institutions abroad. It recruits, pays, and supports national education personnel (approximately 6500 people) that it appoints to the organizations it directly manages (71) or is associated with by agreement (155). It maintains a policy of continuing education for all staff in the network, including locally contracted staff hired directly by the organizations. AEFE also develops joint systems that strengthen the assets of French education in an international context (AEFE, 2021 ).

Providing educational assistance to French families in the form of scholarships, the agency offers the Excellence-Major Scholarship to bright foreign students who wish to continue their higher education in France. The network of French educational institutions abroad is said to contribute to the development of French companies operating in the international arena and to the attractiveness of France; AEFE also supports French economic diplomacy (AEFE, 2021 ).

Central Agency for German Schools Abroad (ZfA)

Founded in 1968 and headquartered in Bonn, the Central Agency for German Schools Abroad (ZfA) deals with school affairs abroad, with more than 100 employees, more than 50 expert advisors for German as a foreign language, and 16 process facilitators. Around 1200 schools worldwide receive personal and financial support, including 140 German schools, most of which are privately run. ZfA has approximately 452,000 students in subsidized schools abroad, around 84,000 students (20,200 German and 63,800 non-German students) in German schools abroad, and more than 368,000 German students in German Language Diploma (DSD) Schools (ZfA, 2021 ). These facilities have approximately 2000 teachers in various positions. During their studies abroad, they receive organizational, educational, and financial support from the Overseas Schools Head Office (ZfA, 2021 ). The focus of the institution is to have students encounter the culture and society of the host country, introduce them to the German language, provide school care for German children abroad, and support Germany as a business and education center (ZfA, 2021 ).

As can be seen, international diploma institutions have formed a network thanks to the thousands of schools scattered all over the world that put their own language at the center. These institutions act as a kind of World Ministry of Education. They conduct continuous research and development in their centers, develop curricula, and create new educational materials. Because all assessments are made centrally, the diplomas obtained are valid all over the world; many higher education institutions accept students with this accredited diploma without asking for another exam.

Global Education and Global Hegemony

The constant tension between universality and locality is accepted as the main feature of globalization (İçli, 2001 ). Global political practices and national-local-ethnic conflicts appear as cultural heterogeneity. The central problem of cultural interactions today clearly is the tension between cultural homogenization and cultural heterogenization (Appadurai, 1990 ). Definitions that assume the titles of global, universal, and international often mediate this homogenization motive.

Universalism holds that scientific truths are valid everywhere in time and space. In other words, it combines the past and the future with the present. The claim of universalism appears as a concept whose reality is questionable when faced with many different cultures. As an umbrella concept, universalism defends the idea that many cultures can unite under the same values. Universalism is often an ideology put forth by those in power to shape the world in their own interests; it actually mediates the imposition of Western cultural forms on a global scale. This cultural suppression is often presented under the guise of universal values so as to avoid meeting with harsh resistance.

Raising individuals who feel responsible not only for their own country but also for the whole of humanity is to a certain extent among the aims of all education systems. International schools and programs take this concept further and define it as global citizenship. Bates ( 2012 ) asked whether global citizenship is possible and if international schools are able to provide it. While global citizenship is not possible in strict legal terms, a number of different possible definitions and categories of global citizenship and global citizenship education are possible in figurative terms. Davies ( 2006 ) argued the idea of ​​global citizenship to simply be a metaphor because people cannot be citizens of the world if they are citizens of one country. Thus, Davies asked, “Is global citizenship a fiction, an apparent paradox, or an oxymoron?” ( 2006 , p. 22), stating a reasonable consensus to exist on the importance of global citizenship and knowledge, skills, and behaviors. In fact, he stated that schools have an important role in developing a curriculum and extracurricular program that contributes to the development of global citizenship education.

Schools impose their dominant class cultures, worldviews, and ideas on other layers of society. Thus, society perceives hegemony as a natural, necessary, beneficial, and indispensable condition. Hegemony cannot be achieved by simply using top-down force and pressure. For this reason, subgroups and dominant groups exchange ideas, with even this process continuing by making concessions to the subgroups (Storey, 2009 , pp. 80–81). In other words, it in a sense obtains consent from the subgroups. However, the interest of the dominant group is spread widely and presented as being in everyone’s interest. Both the giver and the receiver are satisfied. In this way, consent is generated, and subgroups voluntarily pursue ideals (Gramsci, 2009 ). International schools and programs, which are mostly supported by state apparatuses, seem to be structured as political institutions that aim to produce such hegemony at the international level. When examining the aims of the educational accreditation institutions mentioned in the previous section, the cultural, diplomatic, and economic functions of these institutions are seen to be clearly expressed.

Education in Foreign Language and Cultural Alienation

One of the issues that European countries gave the most importance in their colonial practices was opening educational institutions in their own language in the countries they exploited. While the British were opening schools in India, they aimed to raise individuals with an Indian body and a British soul who would meet the needs of the British state and companies. Traces of this tradition can be followed in international educational institutions opened by countries with a colonial past.

In Daniel Defoe’s novel Robinson Crusoe , Crusoe teaches English to Friday after meeting him and determined the language of communication; this can be considered as a reflection of colonial understanding. European states primarily resorted to language exploitation in the overseas countries they occupied. When talking about the position of English today, it would be more accurate to talk about an expansionism, namely of scientific imperialism, which has a certain Anglo-American and European/Western centrist imperial heritage as its background and is a reflection of the same scientific tradition and academic attitude (Phillipson, 1992 , p. 82).

Language is a living organism that contains social codes. Language shapes the thought systems of individuals and societies. Language is also a reflection of culture. Language teaching also means teaching culture. Language and culture form an intertwined structure. Therefore, for culture to survive, language must also survive. A reciprocal relationship exists between language and thought: thoughts create language just as language creates thoughts. It can also be said that language education is thought education. This is reason why national values are created, explained, and transferred in the mother tongue. Thanks to a common written and spoken language, unity and solidarity can be achieved.

In education, teaching individuals what meaning they will attribute to the situations they encounter is carried out through character building. Although meanings are mental, they take their roots and importance from the culture in which they are created (Bruner, 1966 ). While learning a foreign language, students need to be aware of what the elements in that language mean in their own culture so that they can make sense of and rebuild knowledge. In foreign language teaching, cultural differences should be taken into account; in other words, cultural awareness should be created.

Cultural imperialism is the sum of the processes in which a country is oppressed and forced by another country or society that is more powerful in terms of economy, language, and culture; its ruling layer is rendered impotent; and sometimes it is included in the modern world system after compromising its own values ​​and being shaped (Sreberny-Mohammadi, 1997; as cited in Coluzzi, 2012 , pp. 117–118). Linguistic imperialism is the belief that individuals are superior when taught a second language; this belief is embedded in one’s mind, attitudes, and hopes. However, linguistic imperialism expresses that a mother tongue lacks this dignity and competence (Ansre, 1979 , pp. 12–13). When mentioning linguistic imperialism these days, English comes to mind. Language imperialism views other languages ​​as having a low status and not desired for use in education. It encourages speaking one’s own language as the criterion of progressiveness while belittling and deliberately neglecting other languages.

Because the dominant language is also the language of fields such as science, technology, music, fine arts, fashion, and sports, governments and families feel the need to learn the dominant language in terms of developing, coming to a better place in society, and improving their welfare; they make plans to teach the dominant language. This leads to a one-way flow of information, concepts, and words from the dominant language to the local language; as a result, the local language gradually weakens and comes under the influence of the dominant language (Pennycook, 1990 ).

Teaching a foreign language to children at an early age carries the danger of forming a imitative mass who become alienated from their own culture in the future. What will emerge is a group of people trying to copy the foreign culture whose influence they are under in many areas such as food, clothing, and music; this group may look down on and otherize their own society. As a matter of fact, colonizing the brains of a country’s people is more disastrous than colonizing the territory of a country; a country’s soil can be saved from being a colony one day, but eroded selves are more difficult to save (Pennycook, 1996 ). A mentality that has been alienated from its own culture and that transmits from others instead of being fed from its own resources always remains an imitator and loses its originality. The ease of imitation overwhelms the challenge of creativity. Instead of asking new questions, ready answers are preferred. Imitation turns into something imitated over time, and this process is very insidious.

Considering language and culture separately is impossible. Language is the transmitter of culture. While globalization increases interdependence among countries, it gradually decreases the cultural differences among societies and increases similar tendencies by melting them in a single pot. Economic, political, and cultural standardization can be said to have been created in line with the interests of globalization. One of the most important factors mediating this uniformization is language. Foreign language teaching and multilingual policies in international diploma programs can also be viewed from this perspective. An intensive language and culture transfer takes place when implementing these programs. As a result of these programs, an anxiety about individuals becoming uniform can now be talked about.

Expressing the concept of uniformization, George Ritzer (as cited in Göker, 2015 , p. 397) defined McDonaldization as, “McDonald's represents a paradigm, a prime example of a wide-ranging process. This process, which I call McDonaldization, is the process by which fast food restaurant principles increasingly dominate both American society and other countries around the world.” Ritzer’s thesis on the McDonaldization of Society states that the fast food industry principles pioneered by McDonalds have spread imperialistically and led the whole world toward a uniformization. Fast food, which started as a point of departure for the poor American people to eat and have fun after the war, had to turn to different directions and use different techniques in order to meet expectations over time (Kuzuloğlu, 2009 ).

People can best express their feelings and thoughts in their mother tongue. Language is not only individuals’ area of existence but also societies’ source of life. The disappearance of a language in the world means the disappearance of the culture and people that it represents. No nation can exist without its language. Those who lose their language also lose their national identity. In this sense, the scope of foreign language education offered by international schools should be carefully regulated.

International Education and Brain Drain

One of the phenomena that is often brought up with international education programs is brain drain. Brain drain is the situation in which a well-educated, thinking, productive, and qualified workforce goes to another country to do research or work where they are the most productive and does not return to their home country (Kaya, 2003 ). Various factors such as multinational and international affiliated companies, international employment agencies that provide a large number of skilled labor flow, many small employment agencies and ethnic networks, the Internet, and the globalized education system are also effective in the functioning of the brain drain mechanism (Sağırlı, 2006 , p. 86).

Opinions about the direction of movement of qualified workforce parallel that of the brain drain. Brain drain is a three-way movement from underdeveloped countries to developed countries, from developing countries to developed countries, and from developed countries to other developed countries (Sağırlı, 2006 , pp. 13–14). However, the direction of the movement is generally in the form of a chain from underdeveloped countries to developed countries and then to highly developed countries because industrialized countries have a geometrically increased need for scientists, technicians, and experts (Tezcan, 1985 , p. 251). According to a UNESCO ( 2016 ) report, USA ranks first in the world in terms of student immigration from all over the world, followed by the UK and Australia. The countries with the highest number of student immigrants are China, India, and South Korea.

These days, the experience of brain drain has emerged with the effect education has on social mobility. People have had the opportunity to raise their socioeconomic levels through education and gain status through their profession. This makes studying in developed countries attractive. Human resources that leave a country through brain drain cause an economic loss. Knowledge production, research and development studies, technological development, innovation, and entrepreneurship performance decrease. Brain drain also creates an imbalance in favor of developed countries. While these countries get richer, the dependency of the country sending the workforce increases.

International diploma programs are accredited to universities, and successful students who complete the program are offered greater education and scholarship opportunities in the countries where the program originates. For example, AEFE offers attractive scholarships to bright foreign students who wish to continue their higher education in France. Students enrolled in these programs are mostly from families with high socioeconomic status in their communities and generally have high academic achievement. In this respect, international programs function as a kind of recruitment. This means a brain drain in terms of the country where the student is located. In summary, international education programs alongside other factors can be said to facilitate and encourage brain drain.

After the destruction from World War II, certain developments were effective in the emergence of globalization in the economic field. These are namely the end of ideological and political polarization, more liberalization trends, the idea of free trade, and the increasing importance of multinational companies, rapid development in production technologies, increased competition, international trade, and the formation of economic alliances (e.g., OECD, IMF, NAFTA, APEC). The phenomenon of globalization first started in the economic field, then spread and showed its effect in political, social, cultural, and educational fields.

States, institutions, and individuals want to adapt to the structural changes that occur with globalization and want to compete with the world. Training the qualified manpower required for this has made international education attractive. Foreign language learning has become a major industry in the world. Student mobility at different levels, especially in higher education, has increased; international program contents have become widespread, and joint projects have been carried out with more institutional cooperation.

This mobility in education has also increased the number of international schools in countries. These schools were opened primarily to provide a better education to the children of families living outside their own countries for diplomacy or trade. As other people in the country over time wanted their children to be educated in these schools, the demand has increased, and the segment addressed by these schools has expanded.

Along with globalization has been an increase in the number of schools implementing international education programs. International education claims that it aims to educate students who are multilingual and multicultural, have common values and world citizen standards, approach different cultures with tolerance, are sensitive to global problems, contribute to world peace, and have international understanding and thoughtfulness. Along with this, phenomena such as cultural corruption, weakening of national identities, standardization, foreign language exploitation, cultural imperialism, brain drain, and global hegemony have emerged.

When looking at the experiences of the twentieth century, once the balance of equality among cultures has deteriorated significantly, cultural interaction appears to turn into cultural imperialism. In the last century, Western cultural imperialism can be said to have created an area of ​​influence for itself through the education systems that were seen as the soft underbelly of countries and to have supported the spread of the Western worldview in underdeveloped and developing countries. Globalization has also had a destabilizing and accelerating effect on cultural diffusion in this context. The international schools and programs that in a sense emerged as a result of globalization has over time continued to exist as an important and soft tool in the spread and reproduction of global culture.

One of the main purposes of education is to leave a society’s own cultural heritage as a healthy legacy for new generations. From this perspective, international education programs can be seen as a risk in terms of how they transform the heritage; however, keeping such concerns at a certain level is accepted, considering that cultures have had international interactions throughout the history of the world and been able to maintain their existence with this change.

One of the most important challenges faced by twenty-first-century education has been to establish the correct balance of locality and universality. This problem is generally approached from three different perspectives. One view advocates locality, other advocates globality, and the alternative view argues both to be interactive. The third of these basic views seems more reasonable than the local–global dilemma and is widely used with the slogan “Think global, act local.” In other words, the third view intends to provide education and training in accordance with local conditions in order to meet the human profile the world needs. This balance can be established by raising individuals who are aware of global problems and needs but adopt their own culture and prioritize producing solutions where they are.

When considering the virtues and risks of international education programs together, having individuals and policy makers approach international programs cautiously and soberly is beneficial. Structuring international education institutions on the basis of respect and equality is important in the twenty-first century. For this reason, international education programs should be expected to show sensitivity to the culture of the countries in which they operate, support the development of students toward their own culture, not impose their own culture beyond promoting it, and show respect for other cultures.

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Öztabak, M.Ü. (2022). International Schools and Educational Programs: A Critical Analysis from a Cultural Perspective. In: Akgün, B., Alpaydın, Y. (eds) Education Policies in the 21st Century. Maarif Global Education Series. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-1604-5_9

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Master's Program Graduate Thesis

While a thesis is not mandatory for the M.S. INTA program, the School encourages students to consider the thesis option if they plan to pursue Ph.D. programs after the M.S. INTA degree. The thesis is a 6 credit research project resulting in a paper of significant length and quality. The student's research is supervised by a thesis advisor and reviewed by a committee of INTA faculty.

The thesis is a significant undertaking that is often more demanding than taking the usual two courses for 6 credits. Students pursue this option to gain a solid foundation in research methods, to demonstrate proficiency in academic writing and research to graduate schools or to pursue a specific topic not normally covered through coursework.

Before deciding on the thesis option, students are advised to read the Georgia Tech thesis policies to understand the significant requirements of this endeavor and discuss their plans with faculty members and academic advisors.

The Thesis Process

The thesis is an opportunity to work independently on a research project of your own design and contribute to the scholarly literature in your field. You emerge from the thesis process with a solid understanding of how original research is executed and how to best communicate research results. Many students have gone on to publish their research in academic or professional journals.

To ensure affordability, the per-credit tuition rate for the 8-credit thesis is the same as our regular course tuition. There are no additional fees (regular per-credit graduate tuition x 8 credits).

Below are the steps that you need to follow to fulfill the thesis requirement. Please know that through each step, you will receive guidance and mentorship.

1. Meet with Your Research Advisor

Upon admission to the program, set up an introductory meeting with your Research Advisor to discuss potential thesis topics as well as course selections that can support your thesis path. 

When you have completed between 24 and 32 credits, you work more intensively with your assigned Research Advisor to determine a specific thesis topic.

Log in to MyDCE , then ALB/ALM Community to schedule an appointment with your assigned Research Advisor via the Degree Candidate Portal.

Failure to work with your Research Advisor initially and then more intensively may result in your Crafting the Thesis Proposal (CTP) Application not being approved (see below) and/or the selection of a different thesis topic.  

Thesis Topic Selection Guidelines

Every effort is made to support research interests that are grounded in your ALM course work, but faculty guidance is not available for all possible projects. Therefore, revision or a change of thesis topic may be necessary.

• The above point about topic selection is particularly pertinent to scientific research (e.g., biology) that is dependent upon laboratory space, project funding, and access to private databases.
• This point is also critical for our candidates in ALM, liberal arts fields (i.e., anthropology, English, government, history, international relations, psychology, and religion) who are required to have Harvard faculty direct their thesis projects. Review Harvard’s course catalog online ( My.Harvard.edu ) to be sure that there are faculty teaching courses related to your thesis topic. If faculty are not available, you will need to choose an alternative topic.
• Your topic choice must be a new area of research for you. You cannot re-purpose prior research. If you want to draw or expand upon your own previously written scholarship for a small portion of your thesis, you need to obtain the explicit permission of your research advisor and cite the work in both the proposal and thesis. Violations of this policy will be referred to the Administrative Board.

We’ve put together this guide  to help frame your thinking about thesis topic selection.

While it is natural to follow your interests in selecting a thesis topic, it is important to avoid choosing a topic where your own passions might produce insurmountable biases and assumptions. A thesis is not a piece of advocacy work where you are out to prove something that you already believe. Thesis projects must take a fair and balanced stance by bringing in differing points of view from respected scholars in the field. 

2. Prepare Your Crafting the Thesis Proposal Application

Once you and your Research Advisor have confirmed your thesis topic, the next step in the process is to prepare and submit the CTP Application in order to gain registration approval for the Crafting the Thesis Proposal (CTP) tutorial or course.

The CTP Application process confirms that you have done enough prior reading and thinking about your thesis topic to generate a pertinent and answerable research question. Pre-CTP preparation is critical as it helps to ensure that you will benefit from and succeed in the CTP.

Application Approvals and Denials. Your Research Advisor will provide feedback on your CTP Application.  If your application is not approved after 3 submissions, your Research Advisor cannot approve your CTP registration. 

If not approved, you’ll need to take additional time for further revisions and submit a new CTP Application during the next CTP submission cycle (if your five-year degree completion date allows).

Application Eligibility Requirements. To be eligible to submit a CTP Application, you need to (1) be in good standing and (2) have completed a minimum of 32 degree-applicable credits, including the research methods/statistics and Engaging in Scholarly Conversation requirement, if required for your field.

Advising Note for Psychology Candidates View More

Students in psychology sometimes face difficulty securing necessary IRB approvals for certain projects. For this reason, Research Advisors will not approve proposals that raise significant concerns about feasibility. Such concerns include cases where projects would require the researcher to possess a level of expertise or experience exceeding documented capabilities, as well as instances where the researcher is unlikely to be able to obtain appropriate faculty supervision for a proposed topic, question, method, or procedure. You must schedule an appointment with your Research Advisor at least three months in advance of the CTP Application deadlines to discuss potential research projects to ensure adequate time for assistance in developing a viable project idea.

Advising Note for Biology and former Biotechnology and Bioengineering and Nanotechnology Candidates View More

Thesis projects in these fields are designed to support ongoing scientific research happening in Harvard University, other academic institutions, or life science industry labs and usually these are done under the direction of a principal investigator (PI). Hence, you need to have a thesis director approved by your research advisor  prior  to submitting CTP Application. Your CTP Application is then framed by the lab’s research. Schedule an appointment with your research advisor a few months in advance of the CTP Application deadlines in order to discuss potential research projects and thesis director assignment.

The CTP Application is sent to our central email box:  [email protected] by the following firm deadlines:

• June 1 for fall CTP
• November 1 for spring CTP.  
• September 1 for the three-week January session (ALM sustainability candidates only)
• International sustainability students who need a student visa to attend Harvard Summer School must be officially admitted to the degree program before February 1, must submit the CTP Application on February 1, and must register for the CTP course on March 1 in order to submit timely I-20 paperwork. See international students guidelines for more information.

3. Register and Successfully Complete Crafting the Thesis Proposal

Once your CTP Application is approved, you register for the Crafting the Thesis Proposal (CTP) tutorial or course as you would any other degree requirement.

The goal of the CTP is to produce a complete, well-written draft of a proposal containing all of the sections required by your Research Advisor. Creating an academically strong thesis proposal sets the foundation for a high-quality thesis and helps garner the attention of a well-respected thesis director.

Thesis proposals typically include approximately 15 to 20 pages of text, in addition to any required reference sections, such as bibliographies and glossary/definition of terms.

Tutorial experience. The fall and spring CTP  tutorials are not courses in the traditional sense. Although there will be assignments for you to complete during the CTP, with due dates, and there will be times when you and your classmates meet as a group with your Research Advisor, there won’t be a regularly scheduled class meeting time for the CTP. 

The main work for the CTP will consist of your working independently on your proposal with your Research Advisor by submitting multiple drafts and scheduling individual appointments.

Grading. You need to make self-directed progress on the proposal without special prompting from the research advisor. You receive a final grade of SAT or UNSAT (failing grade).

You are expected to incorporate all of your Research Advisor’s feedback and be fully committed to producing an academically strong proposal leading to a thesis worthy of a Harvard degree. If you are unable to take advice from your Research Advisor, follow directions, or produce an acceptable proposal, you will not pass the CTP.

The CTP for sustainability is a three-week course in the traditional sense and you receive a letter grade, and it must be B- or higher to receive degree credit for the course.

Academic Integrity. Successful CTP completion also includes a check on the proper use of sources according to our academic integrity guidelines. Violations of our academic integrity policy will be referred to the Administrative Board.

Maximum of two attempts . If you don’t pass the CTP, you’ll have — if your five-year, degree-completion date allows — just one more attempt to complete the CTP before being required to withdraw from the program. If you fail the CTP just once and have no more time to complete the degree, your candidacy will automatically expire. Please note that a WD grade counts as an attempt.

If by not passing the CTP you fall into poor academic standing, you will need to take additional degree-applicable courses to return to good standing before enrolling in the CTP for your second and final time, but only if your five-year, degree-completion date allows. If you have no more time on your five-year clock, you will be required to withdraw from the program.

Human Subjects

If your thesis, regardless of field, will involve the use of human subjects (e.g., interviews, surveys, observations), you will need to have your research vetted by the  Committee on the Use of Human Subjects  (CUHS) of Harvard University. Please review the IRB Lifecycle Guide located on the CUHS website. Your research advisor will help you prepare a draft copy of the project protocol form that you will then finalize with your thesis director to send to the CUHS. 

Given the amount of time that can be required for IRB review, drafting of the required CUHS project protocol forms need to be started with your Research Advisor during the CTP tutorial, before a thesis director has been assigned.

4. Post-CTP Proposal Approval, Thesis Director Assignment, and Registration

Successfully completion of the CTP means you have completed a well-written full draft proposal. Ordinarily, this full draft is not a final accepted proposal. Most students reach the final accepted proposal stage by submitting additional changes and edits to their RA post-CTP.

Post-CTP Changes and Edits Deadline. We expect you to work diligently and quickly with your RA post-CTP to move from full draft to final proposal stage. Indeed, you should have an approved final proposal and be registered in the thesis soon after CTP completion, within weeks, but no later than 3 months. You cannot delay. If you take longer than 3 months after the CTP to register for the thesis, you may be required to retake the CTP.

Thesis Director Assignment. Once your RA has determined that your draft has reached the final proposal stage, you move to the thesis director assignment stage. The Research Advisor places you with a thesis director by sending out your final proposal to prospective Thesis Directors.

Do not approach faculty to ask about directing your thesis.  You may suggest names of any potential Thesis Directors to your Research Advisor, but it must be the Research Advisor who makes contact with them. (If they are eligible/available to direct your thesis, after you have an approved thesis proposal.) You are not permitted to approach faculty to ask them about directing your thesis. The decision of your Research Advisor regarding the appointment of your Thesis Director is binding.

Registration. When a Thesis Director has been identified or the thesis proposal has been fully vetted by the preassigned life science Thesis Director, you will receive a letter of authorization from the Assistant Dean of Academic Programs officially approving your thesis work and providing you with instructions on how to register for the eight-credit master’s thesis. The letter will also have a tentative graduation date as well as four mandatory thesis submission dates (see Thesis Timetable below).

When registering for the thesis, you will have two weeks to pay in full.  This is an eight-credit course, so be sure to have the necessary funds available when you register.

You must be good academic standing to register for the thesis. If not, you’ll need to complete additional courses to bring your GPA up to the 3.0 minimum prior to registration.

Thesis Submission Deadlines and Graduation Timetable

The thesis is a 9-to-12-month project that begins after the Crafting the Thesis Proposal (CTP); when your Research Advisor has approved your proposal and identified a Thesis Director.

The date for the appointment of your Thesis Director determines the graduation cycle that will be automatically assigned to you:

As you can see above, you do not submit your thesis all at once at the end, but in four phases: (1) complete draft to TD, (2) final draft to RA for format review and academic integrity check, (3) format approved draft submitted to TD for grading, and (4) upload your 100% complete graded thesis to ETDs.

Due dates for all phases for your assigned graduation cycle cannot be missed.  You must submit materials by the date indicated by 5 PM EST (even if the date falls on a weekend). If you are late, you will not be able to graduate during your assigned cycle.

If you need additional time to complete your thesis, you need to formally request an extension by emailing that petition to:  [email protected] .  Regardless of when you started, the maximum allotted time to complete your thesis, including any granted extensions of time is 12 months.

Advising Tip to Meet Your Five-Year Deadline: The last possible time you can register for the CTP to meet your five-year deadline date is the fall term two years prior or, if a sustainability student, in the January session one year prior. It is not, however, recommended to wait this long. Indeed, it is vigorously discouraged.

For example, if your five-year deadline is May 2026:

• Complete the CTP in fall 2024 (or in January 2025, if a sustainability student)
• Be assigned a Thesis Director (TD) in March/April 2025
• Begin the 9–12-month thesis project with TD
• Submit a complete draft of your thesis to your TD by February 1, 2026
• Follow through with all other submission deadlines (April 1, April 15 and May 1 — see table above)
• Graduate in May 2026

5. Working with Your Thesis Director

You must work diligently and independently, following the advice of your Thesis Director in a consistent, regular manner equivalent to full-time academic work to complete both the research and the writing phases of your thesis by your required timeline.

You are expected to incorporate all of your Thesis Director’s feedback and be fully committed to producing an academically strong thesis worthy of a Harvard degree. If you are unable to take advice from your Thesis Director, follow directions, or produce an acceptable scholarly thesis product, you will not receive a passing grade.

You are required to produce at least 50 pages of text (not including front matter and appendices). Chapter topics (e.g., introduction, background, methods, findings, conclusion) vary by field.

Once registered in the thesis, we will do a 3-month check-in with you and your Thesis Director to ensure progress is being made. If your Thesis Director reports little to no progress, the Dean of Academic Programs reserves the right to issue a thesis not complete (TNC) grade (see Thesis Grading below).

6. Thesis Template, Format Review, and Academic Integrity Check

All ALM thesis projects must written in Microsoft Word and follow a specific Harvard Extension School format. A properly formatted thesis is an explicit degree requirement; you cannot graduate without it.

You are required to use the Extension School  ALM Thesis Template  or the Extension School ALM Thesis Template for Creative Writing  (specifically designed for creative writing degree candidates). The template has all the mandatory thesis formatting built in.

Besides saving you a considerable amount of time as you write your thesis, the template ensures that your submitted thesis meets the mandatory style guidelines for margins, font, title page, table of contents, and chapter headings. If you use the template, format review should go smoothly, if not, a delayed graduation is highly likely.

Your Research Advisor will complete the format review  prior  to submitting your thesis to your Thesis Director for final grading according to the Thesis Timetable (see above).

Academic Integrity. Format review also includes a check on the proper use of sources according to our  academic integrity  guidelines. Violations of our academic integrity policy will be referred to the Administrative Board.

7. Mandatory Thesis Archiving

Once your thesis is finalized, meaning that the required grade has been earned and all edits have been completed, you must upload your thesis to Harvard University’s electronic thesis and dissertation submission system (ETDs).

Uploading your thesis ETDs is an explicit degree requirement; you cannot graduate without completing this step. Furthermore, no changes to the thesis are allowed once it has been graded and archived in ETDs.

The thesis project will be sent to several downstream systems:

• Your work will be preserved using Harvard’s digital repository DASH (Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard).
• Metadata about your work will be sent to HOLLIS (the Harvard Library catalog).
• Your work will be preserved in Harvard Library’s DRS2 (digital preservation repository).

By submitting work through ETDs @ Harvard you will be signing the Harvard Author Agreement. This license does not constrain your rights to publish your work subsequently. You retain all intellectual property rights.

For more information on Harvard’s open access initiatives, we recommend you view the Director of the Office of Scholarly Communication (OSC), Peter Suber’s brief introduction .

Thesis Grading

You need to earn a grade of B- or higher in the thesis. If you fail to complete substantial work on the thesis, you will earn a grade of TNC (thesis not complete). If you have already earned two withdrawal grades, the TNC grade will count as a zero in your cumulative GPA.

If you earn a grade below B-, you will need to petition the Administrative Board for permission to attempt the thesis for a second and final time. The petition process is only available if you are in good academic standing and your five-year, degree-completion date allows for more time. Your candidacy will automatically expire if you do not successfully complete the thesis by your required date.

If approved for a second attempt, you may be required to develop a new proposal on a different topic by re-enrolling in the CTP and being assigned a different thesis director. Tuition for the second attempt is calculated at the current year’s rate.

If by not passing the thesis you fall into poor academic standing, you’ll need to take additional degree-applicable courses to return to good standing before re-engaging with the thesis process for the second and final time. This is only an option if your five-year, degree-completion date allows for more time.

The Board only reviews cases in which extenuating circumstances prevented the successful completion of the thesis.

Harvard Division of Continuing Education

The Division of Continuing Education (DCE) at Harvard University is dedicated to bringing rigorous academics and innovative teaching capabilities to those seeking to improve their lives through education. We make Harvard education accessible to lifelong learners from high school to retirement.

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• Published: 19 September 2024

Comparative analysis of factors and barriers intervening in research participation among romanian and international medical graduates from one romanian medical faculty across three generations

• Andreea Iulia Pop 1 &
• Lucia Maria Lotrean 2  

BMC Medical Education volume  24 , Article number:  1028 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

Metrics details

This study focuses on the factors that encouraged engagement in research activities, as well as the barriers that restricted their involvement, until the final year of study at Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy Cluj-Napoca, Faculty of Medicine. The main objectives of this study are to investigate potential disparities in research culture and student engagement in various research opportunities between Romanian and international medical graduates, as well as to conduct an examination of the observed patterns across various graduating years (2021–2023).

Materials and methods

A cross-sectional investigation was conducted among graduate students of the Faculty of Medicine at the Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. From 2021 to 2023, all graduate students from the Romanian and international programs of the faculty were asked to participate in the study by filling out an anonymous online questionnaire. The final sample included 572 participants, of whom 392 were students from the Romanian section and 180 were students from international programs.

Motivation and personal interest drive research engagement, according to over half of graduates. For over one-third of graduates, institutional elements like financial support and education also play a major role, as does the desire to enhance their curriculum vitae. More than 25% of graduates value community influence, 70% of graduates attended medical congresses, 12–15% presented papers at medical conferences, 23% wrote medical articles, 10–15% published at least one scientific paper in medical journals, and 20% participated in medical school research projects. Comparative analysis showed that Romanian students start research earlier, attend more medical conferences, present posters, collect data for studies, and are more interested in publishing graduation thesis data in scientific journals. To encourage international students to participate in research, the study found that colleagues’ examples were more important, and both time and funds were key barriers. The research also shows that 2022 and 2023 graduates will organize more scientific conferences. According to the study, 2022 graduates began their research earlier than others.

Conclusions

To increase student engagement in research activities, medical schools should prioritize the promotion of positive factors, minimize common barriers, offer customized support and resources, encourage collaborative research activities, and facilitate cross-cultural learning.

Peer Review reports

Introduction

Medical schools play a crucial role in providing professionals with the necessary knowledge and skills to excel in their careers and contribute to the healthcare system [ 1 ]. The conventional medical education structure has created skilled and scientifically grounded healthcare professionals, but it is essential to adapt learning methods to align with new technological advances, diagnostic strategies, and medical treatments [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]. As healthcare environments change, medical education must advance to meet the evolving needs of patients and healthcare professionals. To stay informed about medical innovations, medical students must develop practical skills, synthesize information, and analyze vast amounts of information. They should also maximize interprofessional learning possibilities and balance the risks and benefits of various treatment options to provide the best possible patient care [ 5 , 6 , 7 ]. Currently, the requirement for enhanced competence in evidence-based medicine and concerns regarding the declining representation of physician-scientists have emphasized the necessity of promoting and encouraging research in medical education [ 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ].

Research involves data collection and analysis, gathering key information, and then analyzing and interpreting that information according to academic and professional procedures. This suggests that research helps students develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills, which are crucial for healthcare practitioners, and it is essential to actively involve and motivate the upcoming generation of physician-scientists from earlier stages [ 12 , 13 ]. Throughout the years, medical students have produced important innovations that have had a significant influence on current medicine through the adoption of evidence-based practice. Students made notable progress in several areas, such as the discovery of heparin, Raynaud’s disease, brachial plexus palsy, the atrioventricular node, ether anesthesia, penicillin, and insulin. Those historical examples play a crucial role in sustaining students’ motivation and developing their enthusiasm for excellence [ 14 ].

Scholarly research training programs help undergraduate medical students critically assess new information, communicate, and share research findings, making valuable contributions to the advancement of medical knowledge [ 15 ]. According to Yin et al., medical schools must prioritize research by offering enough opportunity, motivation, and assistance for student engagement [ 16 ]. Previous studies have investigated the training and participation of medical students in curricular and extracurricular research activities. Since the 1960s, some medical schools, such as Duke University and Stanford University, have offered research programs that accompany traditional education, widening students’ scientific knowledge and recruiting them to academic medicine [ 17 ]. Many medical schools nowadays offer students either mandatory or optional research alternatives that enhance their research skills. The Bologna process contributed to a restructuring of the medical undergraduate degree in Europe. It was launched in 1999 by several European countries with the goal of improving the acceptance and quality of higher education qualifications in the region. According to the Bologna process, European universities must evaluate scientific training and include research in their undergraduate medical degrees. As a result, medical students must complete a research project in order to graduate [ 8 , 18 ]. To promote supervised research, Asian universities have implemented graduation requirements, which generally require undergraduate participation for a semester or academic year, either individually or with the support of the government [ 19 ]. The Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) conducted a survey among 147 medical schools in the United States between 2017 and 2018, which revealed that 65 of them mandated medical students to conduct research [ 20 ]. On the other hand, extracurricular research programs (ERPs), such as summer research programs, Honours programs, or any other student research organizations worldwide, such as Harvard College Undergraduate Research Association, Cambridge University Students’ Clinical Research Society, and John B. Graham Medical Student Research Society, have been set up by many medical schools to encourage students to do research, develop an academic mindset, and become future doctors who are also scientists [ 21 , 22 ].

Although the level to which medical graduates participate in research activities is influenced by a variety of factors and obstacles. Prior research has identified that to encourage and sustain the engagement of medical students in research, it is imperative to identify the fundamental factors that motivate their research efforts throughout the early years of their medical education [ 23 ]. In their study, Ommering et al. investigate the motivation of medical students to conduct research, and their findings suggest that students may have both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations. For extrinsic motivations, medical students may engage in research to enhance their training and career opportunities, such as securing a competitive residency. Furthermore, there is proof that students can be really interested in research and contribute out of satisfaction, as regards intrinsic motivations. Self-efficacy, curiosity, and challenge, prior training in scientific research, supportive teachers, and an environment that encourages research are the valuable motivational variables [ 23 , 24 ]. While there is a tendency to refine involvement in research during medical school, the literature highlights both institutional and non-institutional barriers to successful participation. Previous studies have found several common barriers to research involvement, such as time constraints, insufficient funds, insufficient support from mentors, and a lack of knowledge and experience. Thus, Andrea and Sarah Cuschieri found that medical graduates often receive inadequate assistance and direction from faculty members and mentors, insufficient resources for carrying out research, minimal opportunities to participate in scientific initiatives, and a lack of motivation [ 25 ]. Griffin and Hindocha also highlighted barriers perceived by medical students to publishing, such as a lack of opportunities to conduct research, insufficient support from seniors, limited education on writing manuscripts, limited time, insufficient knowledge of publication standards, and insufficient research infrastructure [ 26 ]. Stone et al. also demonstrated the existence of institutional and non-institutional barriers to conducting research during undergraduate medical school. These barriers include time constraints, a lack of mentors, inadequate support, limited access to resources, curriculum design, a lack of skills and self-efficacy, awareness and motivation, funding, internet access, and gender and cultural issues, all of which hinder medical students’ engagement in research activities [ 9 ]. Furthermore, in prior studies, the unequal attainment gap among ethnic groups begged serious concerns about performance differences, therefore affecting medical education and the medical profession. The ethnicity of medical students often influences learning and performance due to limited educational resources, unadapted curricula, and medical school populations [ 27 , 28 , 29 ].

According to our knowledge, little is known about the practices, factors, and barriers affecting research engagement among medical graduates, especially when comparing national and international students. There are no other studies on medical undergraduate research in Romania, except for our previous study, which examined the first-time research perspectives and behaviors of students in their third and fifth years of study. The previous findings indicated that Romanian medical students value research possibilities, which promotes institutional attempts to support their curricular and extracurricular research [ 30 ]. This present study can be considered a continuation of the first investigation, as it aims to examine the factors that influence the engagement of undergraduate medical students in research, as well as the research practices performed by graduates until they complete their final year at the Faculty of Medicine of Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Cluj-Napoca. This is one of the most prestigious medical universities in Romania. The university’s Faculty of Medicine admits three cohorts per year, and there are programs offered in various languages: Romanian, English, and French. The student selection process varies between programs. The Romanian program selects students for admission through a written exam. International applicants to the English and French language programs are admitted based on their academic performance and personal accomplishments. Although they share clinical areas and classrooms, local and foreign students do not show up to attend the same seminars. Every cohort has different clinical rotations and class schedules, so their academic activities never cross. Each year, the university’s Faculty of Medicine admits a specific number of students into the medical program. For example, in the last ten years, the admitted number of students per year varied between 500 and 600 students per year, until recent 4 years, when the university admitted approximately 800 students per year into its medical programs. The proportion of students has an equal distribution of 50% Romanian students and 50% international students [ 31 ]. The Cluj-Napoca Faculty of Medicine offers six-year undergraduate medical education that includes, in the first year’s curricula, a module on medical biostatistics and, in the second year’s curricula, a module on scientific research methodology. Until the final year, the students must prepare and present a demanding scientific report known as a graduation research thesis in accordance with the Bologna process. Teachers also offer guidance and support throughout extracurricular research.

This study aims to investigate the factors that encourage student engagement in research, as well as the barriers that limit their decision to participate in research. Furthermore, in terms of practices, behaviors for both mandatory and optional research activities have been followed. Furthermore, socio-demographic aspects were examined. This research would be valuable in creating an overview of the research motivation, barriers, and best practices for fostering research involvement in the current situation, while there is a persistent pedlary for medical students to become physician-scientists in the context of the physician-scientist deficit worldwide. This research seeks to provide insights into the research culture, resources available, and levels of student involvement in a medical school, along with potential differences between Romanian and international students in three graduating cohorts (2021–2023). Furthermore, examining the trends across graduation years may shed light on how medical education and research opportunities are evolving. If we understand students’ perspectives, we may use evidence-based ways to increase medical students’ interest and ameliorate barriers in research to prepare the future generation of physician-scientists.

The current research aimed to use a survey with 5-point Likert scales and multiple-choice questions to evaluate factors influencing research involvement and scientific activities among graduates from 2021 to 2023, along with exploring their socio-demographic characteristics. This study provided a focused examination of the following research objectives:

Identification of socio-demographic indices: gender, section, and year of faculty graduation.

Evaluation of factors that encourage student participation in research activities: personal influence, community influence, educational influences, and financial influences.

Evaluation of the barriers that limit medical students research participation: personal influence, educational influences, and financial influence.

Identifying research behaviors: the year of debut, complexity of research activity, contributions, participation in scientific congresses, participation in the process of writing a scientific article, aspects of publishing graduation thesis data in a scientific journal, and interest in participating in research activities after graduation.

Comparing factors for involvement in research and scientific activities between Romanian and international students and analyzing them throughout time from 2021 to 2023.

Material and methods

Study sample and data collection.

This research is a component of a larger study centered around evaluating the engagement of medical students in research and voluntary activities. The project received ethical approval from the Ethics Commission of Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy under Approval Number DEP27/03.11.2021.

A cross-sectional investigation was conducted among graduate students of the Faculty of Medicine at the Iuliu Hațieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. From 2021 to 2023, all graduate students from the Romanian and international sections of the faculty were asked to participate in the study by filling out an anonymous online questionnaire (a total of 1878 students were invited). We chose to investigate the Romanian and international cohorts separately in order to learn more about how their educational and cultural backgrounds influence their research attitudes and practices. We separately looked at these groups to identify their unique requirements and obstacles in order to create focused strategies to increase student research participation. The questionnaire was distributed using the Microsoft Teams platform, which is commonly used by all affiliated members of the University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iuliu Hatieganu. The students received an invitation explaining that participation was voluntary, and they agreed to participate by filling out the questionnaire. Those who did not wish to participate did not complete the questionnaire.

Instrument for data collection

For this research project, we specifically designed an online survey to evaluate socio-demographic factors (age, gender), academic aspects (section, year of graduation), opinions about factors that encourage or limit involvement in research, and the research practices of undergraduate medical students. To identify common themes and factors reported in previous studies, we conducted a thorough literature review, which helped us derive the motivating factors and barriers related to student involvement in research. This influenced the development of our survey questions. Factors that encourage medical students involvement in research are the following: personal influence (motivation and personal interest, curriculum vitae improvement motivation), community influences (example of other colleagues), educational influences (teacher presentation of research participation options, teacher mentoring and support, medical research student courses or training), and financial influence (the existence of research grants for undergraduate students, monetary remuneration); The response choices were presented on a five-point scale that varied from “not at all” to “to a very high extent.” The barriers to medical students’ involvement in research are as follows: personal influence (lack of time caused by required medical training courses or internships during medical studies, lack of interest or lack of motivation for research), educational influences (difficulty finding a research coordinator, team, or research project), and financial influence (lack of or insufficient financial compensation for work done). The response choices were presented on a five-point Likert scale that varied from “not at all” to “to a very high extent.” Additionally, the questionnaire examined the research practices of medical students as follows: the year of study when students started their research activity, if they had been engaged in research projects only for their graduation thesis, or if they performed more complex research activities till graduation. The questionnaire asked about the contributions of students to research activities (data review of scientific literature, development of research ideas and hypotheses, research methodology and protocol, data gathering tools, statistical analysis, laboratory experiments, abstract and presentation development for scientific conferences, and writing medical articles). Moreover, the questionnaire asked about students’ involvement in medical congresses, if they had presentations such as oral or poster presentations (the response choices were presented on a four-point scale that varied from “not at all” to “more than three times”), if they had been involved in writing scientific articles (the response choices were presented on a four-point scale that varied from “not at all” to “more than three times”), or if they were publishing various types of scientific articles (publishing editorials or letters to the editor, reviews, original articles, clinical case presentations), and if they were first authors or co-authors. The students were asked if they had participated in research projects during medical school (the response choices were presented on a four-point scale that varied from “not at all” to “more than three times”). Additionally, the questionnaire asked about the interest in publishing graduation thesis data in a scientific publication. The questionnaire also evaluated interest in enhancing knowledge of proper scientific article writing, interest in better comprehension of abstract writing, and interest in understanding the publishing rules of a scientific paper. The questionnaire aimed to gather data on motivation and interest to participate in research activities after completing medical studies (with response options being ‘Yes,’ ‘No,’ or ‘I do not know’). Students received the questionnaire in Romanian, English, and French, and the average time to complete it was 15–20 minutes. We assessed the reliability of the questionnaire using internal consistency and found Cronbach’s alpha for each index. We found that the Research Involvement Index, which included 6 items, had a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.74; the Index of Factors Encouraging Student Research, which included 9 items, had a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.71; and the Research Involvement Barriers Index, which included 5 items, had a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.70. Each of the three indexes indicates good internal consistency. Our previous study, which examined the perspectives and behaviors of medical students in their third and fifth years of study for the first time, also tested the questionnaire. We made minor revisions to align with the actual research questions, thereby enhancing the questionnaire’s comprehensibility and reliability.

Data analyses

The prevalence and mean values were calculated for the investigated topics separately for the Romanian section and international section, as well as for graduates from the 2021, 2022, and 2023 generations. Chi2 tests and t-tests were used to analyze differences among students in the Romanian and International sections, as well as among graduates from the 2021, 2022, and 2023 generations. Three types of indexes were developed to provide greater clarity into the factors influencing involvement in research and research practices.

An index of encouraging student research factors was developed by summing the scores (to a very high extent, coded + 2, to a high extent, coded + 1, I do not know, coded 0, to a low extent, coded − 1, not at all, coded − 2) of the following criteria: motivation and personal interest, curriculum vitae improvement motivation, examples of other colleagues, teacher presentations of research participation options, teacher mentoring and support, medical research student courses or training, the existence of research grants for undergraduate students, and monetary remuneration. The minimum value was − 16, and the maximum was + 16.

An index of research involvement barriers was developed by summing the scores (to a very high extent, coded + 2, to a high extent, coded + 1, I do not know, coded 0, to a low extent, coded − 1, not at all, coded − 2) of the following criteria: lack of time caused by required medical training courses or internships during medical studies, lack of interest or lack of motivation for research, difficulty finding a research coordinator, team, or research project, and lack of or insufficient financial compensation for work done. The minimum value was − 8, and the maximum was + 8.

An index for the involvement of medical students in research (research involvement index) was developed by summing the scores of involvements in the following research activities: participation at medical congresses, presenting papers at medical congresses (oral or poster presentations), participation in writing a scientific article, article publications, and participation in research projects. The available responses for each issue are 0 (no) and 1 (yes); therefore, the minimum value obtained for each participant was 0 and the maximum value obtained was 5.

We used forward selection in two stepwise multivariate linear regression analyses to find out what factors influenced the variations in the Research Involvement Barriers Index and the Index of factors that encourage student research. The dependent variables were the index of factors that encourage student research and the research involvement barriers index. For both, the independent variables were age, gender (coded 1–males, 2–females), and sections (Romanian section, international section). The analyses were performed separately for each index. Another stepwise multivariate linear regression analysis was conducted using forward selection to determine factors that contributed to the variation in the research involvement index. The dependent variables were the research involvement index, and the independent variables were age, gender (coded 1–males, 2–females), sections (Romanian section, international section), the index of factors that encourage student research, and the Research Involvement Barriers Index.

The data were analyzed using SPSS 22 statistical software, and significant findings are presented at a significance level of 0.05.

Sociodemographic characteristics

The final sample included 572 participants, which represents a response rate of around 30%. Of the participants, 215 (37.6%) were male and 357 (62.4%) were female, aged between 22 and 54 years (mean 25.25, SD 2.1). Ranking them according to the study section, 392 (68.5%) were students from the Romanian section and 180 (31.5%) were students from the international sections. Ranking them according to the years of graduation, 232 (40.5%) students graduated in 2021, 172 (30%) in 2022, and 168 (29.5%) in 2023.

Opinions on research and comparative analysis of graduate students from Romanian and international sections of different generations

Both Romanian and international students emphasize motivation, personal interest, and teacher mentoring and support as significant factors in research participation. Romanian students, in proportion to 67%, value motivation and personal interest, and 59% value teacher mentoring, while international students, in proportion to 58%, value motivation and personal interest, and 47% value teacher mentoring. Over one-third of Romanian students highlight CV improvement, research opportunities presented by teachers, and research training. Also, among international students, 40% report research training as influential, with around one-third citing CV improvement, examples of colleagues, and student research grants. The major barriers identified by Romanian students are as follows: 53% mention a lack of time and difficulty finding a research coordinator; 41% mention a lack of interest or motivation; and 20% mention insufficient financial compensation. Regarding the international students, 63% report difficulty finding a research coordinator, and 56% cite a lack of time, with a considerable proportion also noting financial constraints. The index of factors encouraging student research shows that Romanian students have a calculated score that varies between − 14 and + 16, with a mean of 8.38, whereas international students have a score ranging from − 4 to + 16, with a mean of 7.98. No statistically significant difference was seen between the two groups. The research involvement barriers index scores for Romanian students vary between − 6 and + 8, with a mean of 3.43, and for international students, they vary from − 4 to + 8, with a mean of 4.11. No statistically significant difference was seen between the two groups. Table  1 reports detailed information about the factors and barriers that could affect Romanian and international students’ participation in research activities.

Analyzing the answers of all students in the three graduating cohorts, several key factors emerged as influencing their involvement in research activities. The students consistently identified motivation, personal interest, teacher mentoring, and support as significant factors. Between 60% and 67% of all graduates attributed high importance to these factors. Teaching staff’s presentations of research opportunities, CV improvement, and the availability of student research funds enhanced the interest of about 40% of all cohorts of graduates in research. Colleagues’ examples and financial rewards significantly influenced the engagement of about 30% of 2023 graduates and one-third of 2021 and 2022 graduates. Throughout the years, barriers to research involvement remained consistent. Around half of students in all graduating cohorts identified a lack of time and difficulty finding a research coordinator, team, or project as major obstacles. Around 40% of graduates reported a lack of interest or motivation. Between 25% and 33% of graduates identified insufficient financial compensation as a significant barrier. However, the 2023 graduates placed more importance on the influence of examples from colleagues compared to the 2022 graduates. Furthermore, 2022 graduates emphasized the lack of funds as a barrier in comparison to 2021 graduates. The index of factors encouraging student research showed mean scores of 8.45 for 2021 graduates, 7.69 for 2022 graduates, and 8.57 for 2023 graduates, with no statistically significant differences between the groups.

The index of factors encouraging student research shows that 2021 graduates scored between − 7 and + 16, with a mean of 8.45. In comparison, 2022 graduates scored between − 14 and + 16, with a mean score of 7.69, while 2023 graduates scored between − 8 and + 16, with a mean score of 8.57. There was no statistically significant difference observed between the two groups. The Research Involvement Barriers Index scores for 2021 graduates range from − 6 to + 8, with a mean of 3.44; for 2022 graduates, the scores range from − 4 to + 8, with a mean of 3.78; and for 2023 graduates, the scores vary from − 3 to + 8, with a mean of 3.77. There was no statistically significant difference observed between the groups. Table  2 provides detailed information about the factors and barriers that could affect the students’ participation in research activities in the three graduating cohorts (2021–2023).

Practicies on research and comparative analysis of graduate students from Romanian and international sections of different generations

Around one-third of students from both sections began participating in research during their sixth year, with Romanian students starting earlier on average (t-test, p  < 0.01). About 70% of Romanian and over 80% of international students engaged in research linked to their graduation thesis, with a significant difference between groups (chi-square, p  < 0.05). Less than 20% performed more complex research. Romanian students more frequently participated in data collection compared to international students who preferred performing literature reviews (chi-square, p  < 0.01). Around 80% of Romanian and less than half of international students attended medical conferences (chi-square, p  < 0.01). In proportion, 36% of Romanian and 21% of international students were on the scientific meetings organization staff (chi-square, p  < 0.01). Approximately 12% of Romanian and 5% of international students presented posters at scientific conferences (t-test, p  < 0.05). One-quarter of Romanian and 20% of international students contributed to the writing of medical research papers, with Romanian students having a higher co-authoring rate (chi-square, p  < 0.05). A proportion of 29% of Romanian and 20% of international students were interested in publishing their research data (chi-square, p  < 0.05). Overall, 7% of international students and 6% of Romanian students have published their graduation thesis output. The research engagement index was higher for Romanian students (mean 1.53) compared to international students (mean 1.06) (t-test, p  < 0.01). Over 80% of students showed interest in improving their skills in scientific writing, with higher interest among Romanian students (chi-square, p  < 0.05), and around 60% were interested in post-graduation research activities. Table  3 provides detailed information about research practices and comparative analyses of Romanian and international graduates.

Approximately one-third of each cohort began research in their sixth year, with 2022 graduates starting earlier on average (t-test, p  < 0.05). Over 70% of graduates from all years participated in thesis-linked research, while less than 20% conducted more complex research. Around 31–38% of participants reviewed scientific literature, 25% developed research ideas and methodologies, and 28–37% performed data collection. More than one-third of 2021 graduates, as well as 40% of 2022 and 2023 graduates, performed statistical analysis. Most students attended medical congresses, with 12–15% presenting papers, 9% presenting posters, and 6.5–9.9% giving oral presentations. A quarter of 2021 graduates, 42% of 2022 graduates, and 30% of 2023 graduates were on the scientific meetings organization staff, with higher engagement in 2022 and 2023 (chi-square, p  < 0.05). Around 23% of graduates contributed to writing medical research papers. About 29% of 2021 graduates and 25% of 2022 and 2023 graduates were interested in publishing their research data, while 6% of the three graduating cohorts had accepted or published articles. Approximately 20% of graduates engaged in faculty research projects, with a mean of 1.3 regarding the research index scores. Interest in improving scientific writing skills was high. Over 79% of graduates showed interest in improving their skills in scientific writing, with higher interest among 2022 and 2023 graduates (chi-square, p  < 0.05), and around 60% were interested in post-graduation research activities. Table  4 provides detailed information about practices in research and comparative analysis in the three graduating cohorts (2021–2023).

Regarding aspects associated with involvement in research, the multivariate linear regression findings show that the index of positive factors was higher among female students (standardized beta 0.146, CI = 4.715–7.322, P  < 0.01). Additionally, the negative factor index was shown to be higher among female students (standardized beta 0.144, CI = 0.363–1.308, P  < 0.01) and in international sections (standardized beta 0.131, CI = 0.296–1.282, P  < 0.01). Also, the research index was higher among the Romanian section (standardized beta − 0.174, CI = -0.688–-0.251, P  < 0.01).

This study investigates the research factors and practices of students in their final year at Cluj-Napoca’s Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy Faculty of Medicine.

The concept of originality is related to the evaluation of the aspects perceived by medical students regarding the factors that encouraged engagement in research activities, as well as the barriers that restricted their involvement, until the final year of study. It also refers to determining potential disparities in research culture and in student involvement in different types of research opportunities among Romanian and international medical graduates. Furthermore, performing an analysis of the patterns observed across different graduating years (2021–2023) may provide valuable insights into the dynamic nature of medical education and the potential for research advancements.

Factors encouraging and maintaining interest in medical student research

Ommering et al. found that to encourage and maintain the interest of medical students in research, it is necessary to understand the motivations that drive them to engage in research as well as the specific factors that contribute to their motivation for research [ 23 ]. In this light, our study’s results indicate that personal interest, which represents intrinsic motivation, is the most important factor that significantly encourages student engagement in research. Additionally, the authors of the previous cited study found that students may undertake research for future educational and professional options, such as a desired residency position [ 23 ]. However, our study reveals that the improvement of the curriculum vitae, a representation of extrinsic motivation, appears to have a less significant impact on students’ involvement in research. It’s possible that the lower significance achieved by improving their CV is due to the fact that, in the Romanian medical system, training possibilities and jobs post-graduation are based primarily on exams rather than CVs [ 30 ]. The absence of observed discrepancies between both sections is intriguing because this aspect was anticipated to have a greater impact on students from the international sections as the curriculum vitae continues to have significant importance in the residency applicant assessment process for most graduates globally [ 32 ]. Thus, according to our findings, medical schools should prioritize their students’ personal interests and curiosity in research. This might entail both research classes and practical research activities as part of the teaching program, which should promote curiosity and foster intrinsic motivations early in medical education.

Institutional factors influencing research involvement

In this study, educational influences, such as the presentation of research participation options by teachers, their mentoring and support, and the organization of medical research student courses or training, have a significant impact on students’ involvement in research. According to Abu-Zaid, teachers who encourage research have a substantial impact on students’ views towards this area and their aspirations for future careers [ 33 ]. However, the significance of teacher mentorship and assistance is perceived to a greater extent by students in the Romanian section. The observed disparity between the sections is unexpected, as both Romanian and international students interested in medical research receive the same guidance and assistance for research participation. This is due to the fact that the “Iuliu Hatieganu” University of Medicine and Pharmacy actively promotes research activities across all fields and departments. One potential reason for this disparity could be cultural differences in the perception of mentorship. Given their different origins, international graduates could have different expectations and mentorship experiences. Although the university strives to provide comparable mentoring, the increased perceived value of teacher interaction among Romanian students indicates underlying reasons needing further investigation.

Furthermore, when considering financial factors, it is observed that students view the presence of research grants as a significant and favorable factor that encourages their engagement in research. Similar findings were also expressed by Australian students, who said that one of the main elements motivating research activities throughout medical school is financing [ 34 ]. Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy ranks first among Romanian medical universities in the number and value of competitive research grants due to the extraordinary effort of teaching staff collectives, the institutional frame improved by creating the Department for Research and Development, and the more generous financing programs. Most research funding comes from grants and contracts [ 35 ]. However, the results of the present investigation showed that Romanian students expressed a stronger belief that the existence of funds has a higher impact on their engagement in research. Romanian students probably view financing as more significant because of their connections with local funding sources, prior expertise in financially sponsored research projects, cultural and socioeconomic issues, and favorable experiences with financed research. To enhance research engagement, it should provide customized support and resources, encourage collaborative research efforts, and promote cross-cultural learning and idea exchange.

Community influences

The benefits of collegiality and collaboration, knowledge acquisition, and career-mindedness for medical students were highlighted by Yin et al. in their investigation that examined the effects of graduates’ research experiences on their medical undergraduate colleagues. [ 16 ]. The current study found that the example of other colleagues influences their involvement in research, and the findings vary between the groups under investigation. International students place a higher importance on this factor, probably because they could be more collaborative with their colleagues in the context of their smaller number of colleagues than in the Romanian section. Thus, they could have more chances to work together on research projects and influence each other by personal example. Additionally, the cohort of 2023 graduates showed stronger confidence that the influence of their colleagues’ examples has a greater effect on their research engagement compared to the 2022 graduate cohort. This might be the result of more peer cooperation, more group research projects, or a developing university culture of common academic interests.

Barriers to research participation

The outcomes of our study correspond closely to the available literature; many of the findings regarding barriers are comparable to the results of previous investigations. Key barriers to undergraduate research participation include a lack of knowledge and skills, limited faculty support and funding, as well as structural barriers like time constraints, limited research facilities, and a lack of motivation [ 36 ]. Our findings highlighted that the time constraints caused by time-consuming internships or mandatory medical training courses are the most significant obstacle impeding students’ engagement in research activities. According to our findings, “lack of time” has a greater impact on international students, who may have less time to do research because they must adapt to new educational systems and learn a new language. It is already known that medical curricula are often too rigorous to include sufficient time for extracurricular study [ 37 ]. Siemens et al. also identified a lack of time as a major obstacle to conducting research, citing a demanding school schedule [ 38 ]. Most students perceive the challenge of finding a research coordinator or team and a research project as a significant obstacle. Similar studies on the importance of research mentorship for medical students mirrored our findings [ 38 , 39 ]. In addition, their lack of interest in research and lack of or insufficient financial remuneration are perceived as minor barriers by respondents. Hegde et al. and Kumar et al. also demonstrated similar results, describing barriers such as lack of interest, funding, and poor availability of research mentors that can hinder undergraduate participation in research [ 39 , 40 ]. Developing flexible curricula, enhancing mentoring programs, developing research skills, offering time management support, and improving funding possibilities will help students participate in research without compromising their clinical training or academic responsibilities.

Integration of research into medical curricula

The Boyer Commission’s report on undergraduate medical education emphasizes the importance of integrating scientific research training into medical curricula. This trend has evolved, and currently, research-based learning is widespread. Medical schools engage students in undergraduate research in various ways. Research-driven courses, extracurricular activities, and graduate research projects are examples [ 24 , 41 ]. Medical students at Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy Faculty of Medicine participate in both compulsory research and extracurricular activities. Table  5 summarizes the main activities. These activities should improve abilities in critical literature evaluation, study objectives, methodology, data collection, analysis, interpretation, and oral presentation [ 30 ]. Incorporating scientific research in medical education at an early stage improves both cognitive and practical abilities, develops intellectual skills, encourages evidence-based learning, promotes the production of publications, stimulates future research, and facilitates career progression [ 33 ]. Although there are different opinions about compulsory research in the faculty. According to Abu-Ziad et al., this could lead to bad research practices that harm universities and research organizations.

Student involvement in research activities

The findings of the investigation indicated that most students commenced their research activities at a later stage, predominantly during their fifth and sixth years of study. This research commencement coincides with the most common timeframe for starting graduate research. Furthermore, the proportion of students who participated in more complex research activities varied from 12 to 18%. However, their research roles have been vast. These include a data review of scientific literature, the formulation of research ideas and hypotheses, the development of research methodology and protocol, the creation of data collection tools, data gathering in various environments, including hospitals, communities, and organizations, and data statistical analysis. The percentage of students engaged in activities such as conducting laboratory experiments, writing medical articles, and developing abstracts and presentations for scientific conferences was considerably lower. Romanian students were more involved in data collection, while international students focused more on literature reviews. The language barrier could be the key to these results, as international students could perform review-type research more easily than gathering data from local patients, while Romanian students were expected to collect information more easily due to their access to patient data and their improved interactions with local patients.

Data dissemination

Romanian students and international students have significantly different participation rates in medical conferences. Events like conferences, workshops, seminars, and symposiums offer unique learning opportunities. These events encourage medical staff to remain current on research, discuss best practices, and learn new skills, developing safety and quality [ 42 ]. Romanian students have a higher percentage of presentations, with around 15% presenting their work, while international students have around 10%. Posters were more common among Romanian students, while oral presentations were more common among international students. Our findings align with a previous study conducted in the United Kingdom, which showed that 17% of students had submitted an article for scientific meetings, which refers to their participation in poster and podium presentations [ 26 ].

Between 20% and 25% of students from the studied groups have contributed to writing medical publications at least once, while between 10% and 15% of participants published papers as authors. The Romanian section had a higher percentage of students who co-authored papers. Students from both sections contributed reviews, original articles, and clinical case presentations. Similarly, a previous investigation conducted among students from Dutch universities showed that 12% of the participants had published one or more papers either prior to or during their year of graduation [ 43 ]. In their study, Barbosa et al. showed that investigations conducted at the medical-degree level are an unexplored resource of scientific knowledge. Active participation in scientific research holds significant value in terms of enhancing one’s personal knowledge. However, it is equally crucial to share this knowledge to advance the medical field and, subsequently, improve healthcare outcomes [ 8 ]. More than one-quarter of students expressed interest in publishing their graduation research data, with Romanian students showing more interest. This may be due to the fact that most international graduates do not continue their training in Romania after graduation, making it difficult to work with the research team to disseminate graduation study results. Currently, there are international students with at least one paper at the peer review stage. Also, under 10% of students have articles approved or published already. Therefore, the publication rate for research graduation theses was lower than that of other European studies, with rates of 10.4% in Portugal, 17% in France, and 23.8% in Finland [ 8 ]. To contrast, our study exposed data collected around graduation, while these studies revealed data collected years after graduation [ 8 ].

Importance of research writing skills and career motivation

Previous investigations showed that medical students need expertise in writing papers and abstracts. Teaching these abilities would be valuable, and medical schools should provide information and knowledge about writing scientific articles and abstracts to help students develop a solid foundation for their postgraduate medical careers [ 26 ]. Our findings demonstrated that almost all the students want to improve their scientific manuscript writing (writing of the scientific article, abstract) and publishing guidelines. The 2022 and 2023 graduates were more interested in learning how to write a scientific article and abstract writing, while the Romanian students were more interested in improving their scientific manuscript writing and publishing guidelines.

According to Waaijer et al., positive experiences can drive student motivation in a research career. Thus, the present investigation showed that over half of participants express a desire to continue conducting research after graduation, and they are probably likely to have had favorable experiences related to research throughout their medical school studies [ 43 ]. Moreover, a systematic review focused on career choice demonstrated that obtaining a medical degree or participating in a fellowship program is linked to a professional path in the field of research medicine. Also, the completion of research projects and subsequent dissemination of findings within the context of medical school and residency have a strong connection to a career path in the field of research medicine [ 44 ].

Strengths and limitations of the study

There are several limitations associated with this study. The first limitation could be the fact that the study provides valuable insights into research participation among Romanian and international medical graduates; the findings could be comparable only with those of other medical schools under the Bologna process that adopt similar curricular and extracurricular research activities. Furthermore, the research sample includes exclusively medical graduates from one Romanian medical institution, so the findings could restrict the representation of many points of view and experiences in the larger community of medical graduates. Moreover, participants who are more interested in research may self-select, which could influence the findings. Another possible limitation of our study is the low response rate observed. We also observed declining participation rates over successive years. Survey fatigue, demographic changes, methodologies, perceived relevance, privacy issues, benefits, and societal trends all could help to explain declining survey participation rates. Also, uncontrollable factors such as socioeconomic status, prior research experience, or personal motivations can complicate the relationship between identified variables and barriers to research participation, thereby complicating the ability to establish causal relationships. Moreover, the cross-sectional design of the study may restrict its ability to capture changes in research participation. It is very difficult to observe patterns and experiences over time or across different stages of medical education. However, a strong point of this study can be considered a continuation of the first investigation, as it aims to examine the factors that influence the engagement of undergraduate medical students in research in their third and fifth years of study, who graduated in 2021 and were part of the study’s sample.

The findings of this study offer important perspectives into the involvement of medical undergraduates in research during medical school, as well as the factors and barriers that interfere with research participation. The results demonstrate that intrinsic motivation is the primary factor driving student engagement in research, while institutional factors, such as educational, financial, and community influences, also have a substantial impact on research involvement. Lack of interest and time restrictions are the two main barriers. Furthermore, observed were financial issues, difficulties finding a research coordinator or team, and securing a research project. Also, this study revealed the existence of research culture differences between Romanian and international students and underlined the dynamic character of medical education. This work could be used as a foundation for future research to explore methods for removing these obstacles and fostering factors that may impact research engagement. These results could be adapted by teaching staff about practical medical education to offer effective strategies for encouraging undergraduate research field involvement and promoting cross-cultural learning. Also, universities and policymakers could utilize these findings to concentrate their initiatives on reducing the main barriers to achieving high-quality research. Overall, this study not only advances academic understanding but also offers tangible benefits to all parties involved, fostering a collaborative approach to encourage research participation among medical undergraduates.

Availability of data and materials

The datasets utilized and analyzed in the present study are accesible upon resonable request from the corresponding author.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to all the students who participated in the survey.

This research was funded through a research project by the Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Internal grant—Doctoral Research Project with registration number: 1032/49/13 January 2021.

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Contributions

A.I.P. conducted data collection, performed data analysis and interpretation, and wrote the article. L.M.L. developed the methodology, provided supervision, offered valuable insights regarding data analysis and interpretation, and contributed to the article’s writing. The authors have read and approved the submitted version of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Andreea Iulia Pop .

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The study was approved by the Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy Ethics Committee (Approval No. 27/03.11.2021).

The need for written informed consent was waived by the Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy Ethics Committee due to the nature of the survey, which did not collect any personally identifiable data.

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Pop, A.I., Lotrean, L.M. Comparative analysis of factors and barriers intervening in research participation among romanian and international medical graduates from one romanian medical faculty across three generations. BMC Med Educ 24 , 1028 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-024-05939-5

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Received : 07 April 2024

Accepted : 21 August 2024

Published : 19 September 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-024-05939-5

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