Educational Research and Reviews

  • Abbreviation: Educ. Res. Rev.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 1990-3839
  • DOI: 10.5897/ERR
  • Start Year: 2006
  • Published Articles: 2008

Full Length Research Paper

Constructing and measuring of the critical success factors of college students' international mobility: Application of Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method

Shu-Min Tsai
  • Shu-Min Tsai
  • Central Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan.
  • Google Scholar
Yaw-Yih Wang
  • Yaw-Yih Wang
  • Central Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan.
  • Google Scholar
Yuan-Duen Lee
  • Yuan-Duen Lee
  • Chang Jung Christian University, Taiwan.
  • Google Scholar
Song-Tsan Hong
  • Song-Tsan Hong
  • Chang Jung Christian University, Taiwan.
  • Google Scholar


  •  Received: 01 March 2020
  •  Accepted: 23 June 2020
  •  Published: 31 July 2020

Abstract

With the increasing popularity and importance of globalization issues, “global mobility” has become one of the important education policies of Taiwan's higher education. Many universities have actively applied “Shuei-Hai-Fei-Yan” and “Shuei-Hai-Shi-Jhu” programs to follow the trend of globalization and arrange outstanding students to participate in overseas training or internships in order to strengthen the cultivation of university students' global mobility. However, under the impact of the trends of “globalization”, “lower birth rate” and “digitalization”, it is necessary to explore the critical success factors of global mobility of college students. This study takes a teacher and Student University in southern Taiwan as the research object, and applies Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and questionnaires on 11 experts and 174 students. The results of the study found that: (1) the major aspects of factors for teachers using AHP to recognize the critical success factors of university students’ international mobility are “environmental adaptability”, “international language skills”, “challenges and adventures”, and “global vision”; the perspectives of college students are “challenging and adventurous”, “global vision”, “environmental adaptability”, and “international language ability”; (2) AHP experts recognize that among the 13 key elements of the secondary aspect of the key success factors for international mobility of college students, their weights are ranked in the top five in sequence: “fluent international language or oral expression ability”, “oversea life adaptability”, “clear message conveyed in international languages”, “overseas psychology adaptability”, “adaptability for overseas work/study abroad”; and the perspective of university students is “multicultural tolerance or acceptance”, “try or experience new things”, “dare to challenge difficult tasks”, “cross-cultural thinking perspective”, and “without the fear of risks or failure”.

 

Key words: College students, international mobility, T-type talent, critical success factors.