Cultural Analysis Toolkit
The UT CIBER has developed a set of materials students can use while abroad to perform a self-guided cultural assessment of a new environment. The materials help them anticipate problems they will face in the new context, solve problems that arise while abroad, and learn from the experience. The toolkit can be deployed with minimal introduction and no in-country supervision. It is suitable for study tours and short-term, semester and year-long programs. It is designed to be used by students from any cultural environment going to any destination, and is available free of charge.
For background information and instructions on how to implement the program please download information here:
Project Background and Analysis Instructions
Obtaining the Toolkit
The toolkit is updated as we receive feedback from students and faculty who have used it. The University of Texas at Austin CIBER will gladly make the materials available to you at no charge. Please contact us to receive the most current version as well as a copy of the introductory presentation and sample exercises and assignments. We ask that you collaborate with us by providing feedback regarding your experience using the materials so that we may continue to improve them. For additional information, please contact:
Deirdre Mendez, PhD
Center for International Business Education and Research
McCombs School of Business
The University of Texas at Austin
1 University Station B6000
Austin, TX 78712
Ph: +1 (512) 471-8031
Deirdre.Mendez@McCombs.utexas.edu
K-12 Resources
From 2009 until spring semester 2011, CIBER provided a mentorship program with the Eastside Memorial Highschool. The goal of the mentorship program was to present options for their future to the high school students. The program was led by two McCombs students Diana Garcia and Claudia Rodriguez who collected all sessions and materials on a website to provide as resource to high schools, their students and teachers:
K-12 CIBER Mentorship website
More Projects
To learn more about the projects of Dr. Orlando Kelm, visit his blog.
Tools for Business Language Learning
Video Series: Cultural Interviews with International Business Executives
This CIBER-funded program is a compilation of over 800 brief video clips. Foreign executives discuss cultural issue of interest to North Americans - from negotiation practices to social situations.
The interviews offer the opinions of real people, which are at times contradictory, and serve to stimulate discussion. They introduce diverse vocabulary in a professional setting, and offer non-native speakers of foreign languages examples of natural speech, illustrating the way that speakers really talk. The video clip library includes interviews in Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Chinese, German and Turkish.
Other Tools for Foreign Business Language Learning
Business Spanish
Business Portuguese
Promotional Resources
Study Abroad and Recruiting
The UT CIBER has collaborated with the CIBER at Michigan State University to produce an Online Resource for Study Abroad and Recruiting to help institutions and their students convey the value of study abroad to recruiters. The site includes a discussion forum in which study abroad and career professionals discuss ways to structure, undertake and describe study abroad to maximize its value as a differentiator on resumes and in interviews. It also features a video of an advising technique that helps students articulate their business-relevant experiences and learning from study abroad.
CIBER contributes every year a number of programs for UT’s International Education Week. We thought these presentations might be of interest to students and coordinators at other schools as well.
Do you speak American? (video)
Exchange Students and Study Abroad alumni share their experiences abroad. Hear their challenging, funny, and true student stories about studying abroad in the US or being an American student studying abroad.
Unpacking Seminar: I studied abroad. Will it get me a job?
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
Study abroad alumni, study abroad advisors, academic advisors, and career services advisor talk about making the most out of their study abroad experience. Watch Fenny Jie, a CIBER Summer Program participant, and Andrea Chytil, a McCombs acadmic advisor, "unpack" Fenny's study abroad experiences from the CIBER Edinburgh Program.
CIBER Alumni Student Panel
Question: How did you pay for study abroad?
Question: What were the dorms like?
Question: Were you able to access the internet?
Money Matters (video and PowerPoint)
Learn more about the scholarship process and putting together successful applications from study abroad alum Bryan Turnbough and former CIBER program coordinator Angie Carter.
Money Matters Presentation from Ciber Summer Study Abroad on Vimeo.
Money Matters: Scholarship and Financial Aid Information (PowerPoint)
Bryan Turnbough, a UT International Business and Asian Studies Major, presents the financial aid and scholarship process from the student perspective. Bryan has put this presentation together from his own study experiences and his research working at the Study Abroad Office on the Abroadly Speaking magazine.
Strong Scholarship Applications (PowerPoint)
Learn more about scholarships available to CIBER students and how to prepare a strong scholarship application through Global Assist.
International Program Models
Our goal in assembling this information is to provide examples of McCombs program models and materials that might serve as templates for other departments and institutions. The UT-Austin CIBER has had a role in developing a number of international program models for McCombs students, including:
- Semester exchange (MBA and undergraduate)
- Double degree (MBA)
- Five-week study abroad (undergraduate)
- Two-week course-based study tours (MBA)
- An on-campus short-term program bringing undergraduate students from three partner universities to work with McCombs students
Information about each of these can be found in the links below. In addition to the list of program models, we have compiled materials we have created for a variety of purposes. Below are web pages and documents you may find helpful in designing and implementing study abroad programs. There is a great deal of additional information available on the CIBER Summer Programs web page as well. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Deirdre Mendez at deirdre.mendez@mccombs.utexas.edu.
Resources for International Programs
- Five-Week Study Abroad Program Model
- Program Liaison Description
- Program Liaison Application
- Program Liaison Responsibilities and Orientation Reminders
- Program Liaison Presentation Five-Week Program Peer Advisors