TNE: A partnership in higher education A 20-plus year history of facilitating Transnational Education programs (TNE) has made Western Michigan University a global leader in helping overseas students earn their degrees at WMU after completing two years of study at home.
Formerly known as “twinning programs,” WMU’s first TNE program was launched in 1987 at Sunway College in Malaysia; currently the University hosts six TNE’s in Asia and Africa. Transnational Education, or TNE, is the delivery and or assessment of programs/courses by an accredited provider in a country other than the provider’s home country, where delivery includes a face-to-face component. (Adapted from AEI white paper April 2005)
Here’s how it works: TNE students begin the first part of their course work for selected WMU degrees at partner institutions in their home countries, and then complete the final semesters of course work at WMU or another United States’ higher education institution. This means TNE students can complete one-half or more of their U.S.-based degree in their home countries.
The courses offered at WMU’s partner institutions are replicated from those offered at WMU, utilizing identical syllabi, teaching formats, and evaluation standards. Students may earn up to 60 hours of academic credit in beginning courses and required general education courses at their home institutions.
Cathleen Fuller, TNE director at the Haenicke Institute for Global Education, says TNE programs are a convenient, affordable way for students in countries that lack higher education opportunities to earn degrees from internationally recognized overseas institutions, such as WMU.
“Many TNE students now have educational opportunities that simply were not available to them before," Fuller says. “Market economies are expanding in several regions of the world, and many international students are returning home after completing their degree programs overseas. Regardless of whether or not students study at a foreign institution for two or four years, they're gaining valuable experience and knowledge that they can take back to their home countries.”
She points to WMU’s TNE program at Christ College in Bangalore, India, noting that after receiving their WMU diplomas, many of the Christ College students secure good-paying jobs back home, helping to develop the economic market and infrastructure that is enabling India to be a key player on the world stage.
WMU benefits from TNE partnerships as well, Fuller adds. These initiatives bring large numbers of international students to the campus, which diversifies the University community and promotes the exchange of inter-cultural knowledge.
"As the international educational markets develop, adapt and grow, we'll begin seeing a myriad of delivery systems described as TNEs," Fuller predicts. "WMU has been a U.S. leader in providing these international partnerships, and we intend to remain on the front line."
Benefits of TNE
● Students are guaranteed transfer of their home institution’s academic credits to WMU. Upon transferring to WMU, many are able to finish their bachelor’s degree in about two years.
● Students may choose to transfer to an American institution other than WMU, although some academic credits may not transfer.
● Students receive solid preparation for study in the United States because the instruction they obtain in their home countries is entirely in English.
● Families save 40 percent or more of the cost of an overseas degree because one-half or more of required course work is taken at home.
TNE at Western Michigan University
Our current TNE catalog includes the following institutions:
Undergraduate Programs
-Sunway College - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Founded in 1987, Sunway is our oldest and largest partner in terms of enrollment. More than 2,000 students have graduated from Western through this program. Sunway consistently enrolls between 175 and 200 students each semester on its campus in Kuala Lumpur. 
-Christ College - Bangalore, India
Christ College was started in 1997. We just celebrated the 11th anniversary of partnership and have enrolled more than 1,000 students in this program in India in that time. Our Christ College TNE students continue to make WMU proud – many are members of the Lee Honors College, receive prime internship opportunities at such places as the Kellogg Company, and return to India to compete in the ever-changing, ever-growing economy there.
-Saint Too College - Hong Kong
The Saint Too College partnership began in 2001. It’s a unique program in the WMU TNE program catalog, as most of the students choose majors outside of traditional TNE program curriculum. Our Saint Too students have focused their majors in the areas of communications, psychology and marketing/advertising.
-Rajagiri Insitute, Cochin, India
WMU hosts two programs with Rajagiri Institute – an undergraduate program with their school for engineering and technology, as well as a graduate, pre-MBA program. These two programs, begun in 1998, have allowed more than 100 students from the Indian state of Kerela the opportunity to complete degrees that may not have been attainable in their home countries. Most of the students in engineering are focusing on electrical and the MBA students are specializing in the area of finance. Both of these choices again show the intelligence of our TNE students – the Indian market is rapidly changing, with construction booming in every major city. 
-Egerton University - Nakuru Town, Kenya
A new entry to WMU’s TNE program catalog, the Egerton University partnership was made official in 2003, but the program did not begin until 2005. It now enrolls more than 50 students off shore each semester in another non-traditional curriculum for TNE programs –aeronautical engineering and aviation sciences. There has been an increase in recent years in the private aviation industry in Kenya and our TNE students are on the forefront of that expansion.
For more information:
Cathleen Fuller, TNE director
WMU Transnational Education Program
Haenicke Institute for Global Education
Second Floor, Ellsworth Hall
Kalamazoo, MI 49008-5245
Tel: (269) 387-5890
Fax: (269) 387-0630
fullerc@wmich.edu
http://international.wmich.edu/content/section/10/312/ |
