Public Affairs

AUK - Dartmouth College Student Internship Program received a 2018 Best Practices in International Education Award from the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) International Education Knowledge Community (IEKC) during the NASPA Annual Conference in Pennsylvania, USA.

Since 2005, the AUK-Dartmouth internship program has offered over 70 students from both institutions the opportunity to gain valuable overseas experience in an up to ten-week non-academic credit program at the partner institution. The program is designed to assist both American and Kuwait-based students with personal and professional growth opportunities through on-campus placements in academic and administrative units. Past interns have returned to the Middle East and the US respectively as Fulbright Scholars or on other academic programs, and some have returned post-graduation to work as faculty or staff at their respective alma maters, including five former interns currently employed at AUK.

Accepting the award on behalf of their respective universities were Tadd Kruse, AUK Assistant to the President for Institutional Planning and Effectiveness and Dale F. Eickelman, Ralph and Richard Lazarus Professor of Anthropology and Human Relations Emeritus; Relationship Coordinator for the American University of Kuwait-Dartmouth College Program.

Tadd Kruse, who coordinates the program at AUK, commented that it "offers experiential learning for both American and Kuwait-based students, enhancing their cultural awareness and professional skills and building personal bridges between the two university communities." His Dartmouth counterpart, Dale F. Eickelman, stated that "Our reciprocal undergraduate intern program enables participants to overcome often media-inspired preconceptions about the two host countries and gain awareness of what a Liberal Arts education means in significantly different settings."

The NASPA selection committee unanimously endorsed the AUK-Dartmouth Student Internship Program as a best practice that could inspire similar work among other institutions. Dr. Ken J. Guan, Chair of the NASPA IEKC Best Practice in International Education Awards Committee stated, "We, as the selection committee, believed that the American University of Kuwait and Dartmouth College's Student Internship Program deserves public recognition for its longevity, fidelity, and impact, especially for its effort in dealing with the challenges of rapidly shifting educational, economic and political issues in the Middle East and the United States over the past decade."

Other institutions receiving 2018 Best Practice Awards included Michigan State University, Old Dominion University, University of Hawaii at Manoa, and Federation University in Australia. AUK President, Dr. Earl (Tim) Sullivan offered his congratulations and support, "The American University of Kuwait is pleased to receive this award for the American University of Kuwait - Dartmouth College Student Internship Program. This program has benefited students from both institutions, and it is our hope that similar partnerships can be initiated with other universities. I would also like to congratulate all universities whose programs have been recognized with the Best Practices Award."

The program currently has AUK hosting two interns from Dartmouth College during the spring 2018 semester, and will be hosting two more starting in September. Additionally, AUK will be sending several students to Dartmouth College over the summer to intern in the Office of Communications and the Tuck School of Business.

In the ten years that the NASPA IEKC has been recognizing best practices in international education, AUK has now been recognized twice. AUK's Student Affairs Graduate Student Summer Internship Program previously received the NASPA IEKC 2011 Best Practice Award for International Exchange Programs. Both accolades signify AUK's ongoing success and commitment to supporting its students' personal and academic growth.

For more information on the award, visit the NASPA IEKC website:
https://www.naspa.org/constituent-groups/posts/2018-iekc-best-practices-award-winners
 
For further details on the American University of Kuwait (AUK) - Dartmouth College Student Internship Program visit each institutions' website:
http://www.auk.edu.kw/academics/ip_dartmouth_auk_main.jsp
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~aukproject/