It's almost an everyday activity at this stage of the game. Cristoph Dutzler, a doctoral student at an Austrian university that conducts research for Rockwell, has weekly teleconferences with Rockwell staff from Cleveland. The main benefit of exchange programs, Dutzler says, is that it improves the students' English skills. It's a great feeling to open a manual and not be alarmed because it is written in English, he says. The quality education that American universities provide is another attraction.
Education is a huge exportable commodity.
Concordia is in the early phases of setting up a new exchange program with South Korea, similar to the Indian one, Gaschk says. But foreign students aren't the only ones who benefit from exchange programs. The three fastest-growing jobs are computer engineering, computer support specialists and systems analysts. The demand for all of these jobs is expected to about double by 2008. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of jobs in all engineering fields will increase 20 percent by 2008, which is about 5 percent more than the projected growth for all occupations.