Evaluación de programas

Two important pieces of New Zealand research exploring the phenomena of return or ‘re-entry’ for international students are the studies undertaken by Butcher (2002) and McGrath (1998). Butcher’s research focuses on the experiences of students from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and Hong Kong, while McGrath’s study examines the experiences of students from Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. The majority of the participants in both studies were young, full-fee paying students, so, as a result, this research tends to centre on the issues faced by this demographic. In particular, both studies tend to position the re-entry process within the broader processes of transition from adolescence to adulthood. There are, however, a small number of older students and scholarship students in both studies, and a number of important points are made about the distinctive aspects of their experience.

Both McGrath (1998:42) and Butcher (2002:139) point to employment, and, in particular, finding a job as one of the biggest sources of frustration and disappointment experienced by returnees. Further, when returnees do find a job, McGrath argues, they tend to face difficulties reconciling their expectations with the realities of their new work environment. Returnees in his study reported that their sojourn had changed their ideas about what to expect in the workplace. New expectations of teamwork, friendships between workmates, the use of initiative, and rapport with one’s supervisor had been challenged by the realities of work environments characterised by competitiveness, rigid hierarchies, and long working hours (McGrath, 1998:43).

McGrath (1998:43) reported that, for this reason, students who had found jobs within ‘multinationals with a Western ethos’ had experienced fewer work-related adjustment issues. He also relayed that scholarship students who had a job to return to found re- entry less problematic, because they didn’t face the stress of job hunting (McGrath, 1998:42). Interestingly, however, Butcher (2002) found that scholarship students who were financially ‘bonded’ to return to secure government jobs faced other sorts of stresses around the need to abandon desires to pursue new career opportunities or to seek out better working conditions. As he noted:

[W]hile the bond secured their employment, it may have been for a company they would have rather not worked for, perhaps because of the hours worked or the company ethics or other reasons, and for a period of time (up to seven years or more) that they would rather not have worked to. Bonds, therefore, significantly limited the options of their holders. (Butcher, 2002:140)

Both Butcher (2002) and McGrath (1998) found that returnees had also experienced important shifts in their worldview. Most felt that their time in New Zealand had challenged their belief in materialism as the only route to personal and cultural success. According to McGrath, the sojourn in New Zealand had led many students to challenge the emphasis on the “5 Cs of success”, “cash, credit card, car, condominium, career, and country club5_{”, valorised by the middle class within their culture. He argued that after}

their time in New Zealand many students now found “aspects of this pursuit repugnant” (McGrath, 1998:57). Butcher (2002:133) reached similar conclusions, stating that returnees felt that “being in New Zealand gives you a picture of what alternatives to materialism can look like”. McGrath (1998:50) noted that this change in values was often a source of conflict with family, who had expectations that returnees would embrace the 5 Cs lifestyle and earn a high income on their return.

Interestingly, in a result not mentioned within other studies, McGrath (1998:58) noted that these family expectations were a particular cause of stress for a number of women in his study, who had decided to adopt a ‘Western’ model of stay-at-home motherhood on their return. He argued that, as middle-class women, they faced strong societal expectations to use their new qualifications to improve the income of the family, and that the decision to stay at home with children was a source of conflict with family.

Neither McGrath’s (1998) nor Butcher’s (2002) research provides any in-depth discussion of the impact of gender on the experience of returnees. McGrath did disaggregate his statistics by gender, and found that while women and men generally had similar re-entry experiences, women had more problems related to being “expected to listen to elders”, and expressed more “impatience with slow promotion and concern over the lack of quick material success” (McGrath, 1998:96,100). It is not clear whether this latter statement means women were experiencing greater problems securing a promotion or pay rise than men, or whether the experience was similar for both, but women

5 _{McGrath notes that while this term was widely used by returnees, they provided slightly different}

experienced greater frustration related to it. If the latter were true, it is unclear what factors would make women more “impatient”. While Butcher (2002) does not directly address the issue of the ‘gendered’ nature of international student experience, he includes one quote from a woman that touches on some of the cultural challenges women, in particular, face fitting back into families again:

My father always tells me that he … regrets sending me away because I am so … defiant, as a girl. I now don’t come home by ten, and I do what I want, whereas Asian girls should be quiet and not seen. (Participant in Butcher, 2002:146)

Four other studies that specifically address the long-term impacts of overseas education, and are particularly relevant to this study because they interview former NZAID scholarship students, are those produced by Quinn (1994), Inoncillo (1997), Davenport and Low (2004), and Strachan et al. (2007). Quinn’s study examines the experiences of women from the Solomon Islands who had received an NZAID scholarship to complete a tertiary qualification in New Zealand or at another Pacific university. Inoncillo’s (1997) research investigates the impact of the NZAID scholarship programme on the lives of recipients from the Philippines. Davenport and Low’s (2004) study examines the experiences of NZAID returnees from the Cook Islands, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu. Finally, Strachan et al.’s recent research explores the experiences of ni Vanuatu6 _women

who have returned home after studying in New Zealand through an NZAID scholarship scheme.

Quinn’s (1994) research found that returning female scholars generally experienced improved employment opportunities; an increase in social status; and a greater sense of confidence, independence and purpose. She also found that these gains were accompanied by a number of losses, including increased conflict with spouses and family over gender roles and responsibilities, and, for a small number, a felt sense of alienation from their culture. Many of the women within Quinn’s (1994) study reported finding their homecoming harder than they had anticipated. They recounted feeling a mixture of pride at their accomplishments, excitement at reconnecting with home life and family, and confusion over how their new experiences and changed social status would affect their relationships. One of her participants, ‘Hilary’, describes her homecoming to Quinn:

My family are happy now that I have finished my studies and I can get a job and look after myself. I was the first woman from our village to have done tertiary study and some people seemed a bit shocked and kept quiet. They didn’t treat me as a normal woman in the village. They seemed to have a lot of respect and saw me as someone of ‘high rank’, an ‘academic’. Some people asked about life overseas. They had never experienced a woman who had done this and were keen to hear stories. I often felt uncomfortable … like I was an outsider. I had very mixed feelings about it all. My family is very important to me, and I’d been looking forward to going home, going fishing and swimming and so on. I did all those things, but I realised that I had changed a lot. My attitude to some traditional things is different. I’m still friends with people I was with in primary school, but I realise I’ve come back as someone else. I feel sad when I see people looking at me, as if I’m someone different. ('Hilary' in Quinn, 1994:183)

The sense that they had ‘changed’, Quinn (1994) reports, was most controversial within relationships with spouses and parents-in-law, who were particularly critical of efforts to be more assertive, and to combine a career with a family. While the women’s own parents were often very proud of their achievements, they did not always receive the same support from their husband’s family. As one woman, who had since separated from her husband due to this source of conflict, explained:

In terms of the family, I came back with a very open attitude. I used to just listen when my father-in-law spoke and agreed with everything, but I came back much more outspoken. At first I tried to get my husband to speak to him, but he couldn’t stand up to him. So I told him directly that they shouldn’t just depend on us for money. They should ask their other children for help, too. My husband was very upset at that. His parents think that it’s not right for me to teach adults, liaise with male staff, travel overseas, and so on. They say it is a bad influence. I tell my husband we should encourage our daughters to speak up for themselves. His parents can’t stand that, but my experience of teaching and the TESL course has taught me that there can be real problems if you don’t say anything. We need to change that. I encourage the children to be independent and try to introduce new ideas. My husband always says, “Don’t say anything that will upset my parents”… Lots of things have happened as a result of my New Zealand experience. I have different attitudes and am more outspoken. I have suffered because of it, but it is worth it. ('Therese' in Quinn, 1994:184)

Quinn (1994:185) found, however, that, for the majority of the women in her study, any increase in familial conflict was balanced out by the increased social standing they now have within their communities, and the new sense of purpose and commitment that they had to providing their community with a ‘return’ on this investment in their education.

She relayed that these women expressed a strong desire to use their new skills to contribute to the development of their nation, and that they were particularly focused on improving the lives of women in their communities (Quinn, 1994:204,212).

The women within Quinn’s study had no problems securing good employment, and most, including those who had failed to complete their qualification, felt that the skills they had gained overseas had made a valuable contribution to their current employment. She noted that these women were now occupying positions of considerable power and responsibility within the Solomon Islands, with a number of former students being the first women to take up important posts:

Among the women who had completed tertiary qualifications, there were a number of ‘firsts’ for Solomon Islands’ women. Most notable among these … was the appointment of the first woman permanent secretary in the public service in the history of the Solomon Islands. Gabrielle had also been the first Solomon Island’s woman to hold a New Zealand Government scholarship, attending USP7 _{in 1973/4. Other ‘firsts’ included the first woman lawyer, the}

first woman physical planner, and the first person to qualify for a dispensary assistant’s certificate. Former New Zealand scholarship holders also returned to become the first woman senior planning officer in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, the first woman Head of Department (not including Home Sciences) at King George VI Secondary School, and first woman in Solomon Islands Airlines (SOLAIR) management. (Quinn, 1994:187-8)

Quinn (1994:189) noted that a very high proportion of the female returnees had gone on to pursue further study. She links this to the high degree of frustration expressed by the participants about the sexist barriers they faced within their workplaces. While the women had not had trouble finding valued work, they did, however, report finding it difficult to advance within their positions. Many linked these difficulties to harassment in the workplace and discriminatory promotion practices (Quinn, 1994:192-3,200). She contended that the desire to undertake further education was likely to be linked to the need for women to be much more qualified than men in order to have a hope of overcoming sexist barriers to career advancement (Quinn, 1994:189). She reported that the women found their lack of career advancement particularly frustrating because they felt it was limiting them from fully utilising their new skills and knowledge to assist in their country’s development (Quinn, 1994:204).

Inoncillo’s (1997) study on Fillipino NZAID returnees takes quite a different approach to that used by Quinn (1994). She uses a quantitative ‘human capital approach’8_{, which}

specifically focuses on employment and ‘skills-transfer’, omitting broader personal and relational aspects of life experience. However, her research does examine whether gender impacts on work-related dimensions of the scholarship experience. Inoncillo’s study found that women who took up an NZAID scholarship tended to be slightly older, and more likely to be working in urban areas than male recipients (Inoncillo, 1997:88-89). She also found that women were more likely to be studying for certificate training courses than men, who were more likely to undertake a Masters or PhD degree. She noted that this is particularly significant in the Filipino context, as the ‘diploma’, the qualification that most women received, is not a recognised qualification in that country. Her research showed that women and men reported a number of similar benefits from participation in the scholarship programme, including promotion, broadened experience, making new contacts, and a belief that it had led to an improved level of international understanding between their country and New Zealand (Inoncillo, 1997:119). Women were slightly less likely to have translated their qualification into an increased salary in the two years since their return (73%, as opposed to 85% of men). However, both women and men were equally likely to believe that their educational experience has been useful within their current job overall (Inoncillo, 1997:94). Women and men also reported experiencing similar employment-related adversities. Being assigned to another department or given a different job on their return was a particular source of frustration for some, who felt this had prevented them from fully utilising their new skills (Inoncillo, 1997:96).

Davenport and Low’s (2004) research is a tracer study contracted by NZAID. Their research examines the experiences of 124 former NZAID scholarship recipients from the Cook Islands, Samoa, Tonga, and Vanuatu. These individuals had participated in a range of NZAID scholarship schemes at both the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. The report examines the “development impact” of participation in these schemes, as measured by four criteria: “successful completion of programme of study; return to home country; use of skills learnt during study in paid employment; [and] use of skills

learnt during study in civic/private life (Davenport & Low, 2004:9).” The inclusion of civic/private life means that the scope of this study is slightly wider than Inoncillo’s (1997), which focuses almost exclusively on the impact on paid employment.

Davenport and Low’s (2004) research found that men and women had similar completion rates (93% and 91%)9 _{(pg.15); however, women were less likely to find their}

qualification useful in helping them to get their first job (61% of men said the qualification had been ‘absolutely necessary’, as opposed to 42% of women) (pg. 30), and women were slightly less likely to report that the skills gained during their study had been useful within their first job, and their current job (40% of women as opposed to 49% of men said that they used their skills ‘all the time’ during their first job. For the current job these figures were 22% and 29% respectively) (pg. 32, 35). Significantly, Davenport and Low (2004) noted that nearly a quarter (22%) of women (and no men) reported that these skills have been of ‘only a little’ use within their current job (pg. 35).

This study also found that women were significantly less likely to report that they would still be resident in their country in five years time (81% of men said ‘yes’, compared to 61% of women. Nine percent of men said ‘no’, and 9% said ‘maybe’. In comparison, 15% of women said ‘no’, and 18% of women said ‘maybe’). The potential reasons for these gender differences are not explored. Davenport and Low (2004) also reported that women were less likely than men (73% compared to 88%) to find that they had the opportunity to use skills gained during the study within civic/private life10_{. They noted}

that this discrepancy could be due to the greater responsibilities women have for childcare: “As one solo mother of four stated, she has sole responsibility for all her children and a full time, demanding teaching job – this leaves no time to get involved in other activities” (Davenport & Low, 2004:37).

Davenport and Low’s (2004) interviews also included an open-ended question asking respondents to comment on the benefits of the experience to themselves, their community, and their country. Unfortunately, these responses were not gender- disaggregated. Benefits to self included increased financial security, great self-knowledge

9 _{It is important to note that with a sample size of 124, the margin of error within this study was fairly high} at 8%.

10 _{This was defined fairly broadly. Participants were asked whether they had used their new skills in “areas} outside of paid work, such as in the church, in civic organisations, non-profits, NGO sector etc.” (Davenport & Low, 2004:89)

and self-confidence, greater career satisfaction, increased independence, and a broadened social ‘outlook’. Benefits to community strongly centred around an increased ability to provide financial support to family. Benefits to country were identified as increasing the pool of quality ‘human resources’ available within their nation (Davenport & Low, 2004:Annex 1, 22-25).

Strachan et al.’s (2007) research on the experiences of ni Vanuatu women who have received NZAID scholarships presents a generally positive picture of the impact of the study experience. They noted that almost all the returnees in her study believed that they had gained knowledge and skills that have been useful within their jobs (Strachan et al., 2007). They found that this was true even where students had studied topics that relied heavily on New Zealand-related examples and course material (Strachan et al., 2007:151). Despite this, however, a number of their participants also expressed concern that no one