This paper presented at the HEA Annual Conference 2009 identifies how the Building Cross Cultural Competencies project redesigned and developed ideas taken from Australian and New Zealand Universities for use in a UK context.
The Building Cross Cultural Competencies project was developed with the aim of equipping undergraduate students at the University of York with skills to work in the globalised world while at the same time assisting with the induction and orientation of international students new to the institution and to study in the UK. The inspiration for the programme dates back to 2006 when one of the authors visited three Universities in New Zealand and Australia. This paper identifies how the project redesigned and developed ideas taken from Australian and New Zealand Universities for use in a UK context. It makes links to the literature on student adjustment and institutional adaptation; peer teaching and cross cultural communication skills. It will also consider the problems and difficulties experienced as the project progressed.
