Student Learning Outcomes

The American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) defines Global Learning as:

Critical analysis of and an engagement with complex, interdependent global systems and legacies (such as natural, physical, social, cultural, economic, and political) and their implications for people’s lives and the earth’s sustainability. Through global learning, students should 1) become informed, open-minded, and responsible people who are attentive to diversity across the spectrum of differences, 2) seek to understand how their actions affect both local and global communities, and 3) address the world’s most pressing and enduring issues collaboratively and equitably.

The student learning outcomes developed by the International Studies Program at California State University, Long Beach are aligned with the Global Learning framing of the AAC&U and best practices in the Association of International Educators (NAFSA) and the International Studies field of inquiry. The International Studies Program blends these learning outcomes with a “toolbox” approach, focusing on the skill sets students need to succeed in the field upon graduation.

The primary purpose of this page is to inform students and the university community about the International Studies student learning outcomes. It is also meant to support faculty in their efforts to ensure that syllabi and instruction are aligned across the program leading to a balanced and well-integrated education. To that end, assessment of student learning outcomes at the course and program level are carried out on a regular basis.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the International Studies major students will be able to:

Effectively apply reading, writing, critical thinking, and analytical skills to address significant issues in the natural and human world based on articulating one’s identity in a global context.
Evaluate and apply diverse perspectives to complex subjects within natural and human systems in the face of multiple and even conflicting positions (i.e. cultural, disciplinary, and ethical.)
Describe the impact of international events and systems at the regional, national, and local levels in at least one major area of the world.
Adapt and apply a deep understanding of multiple worldviews, experiences, and power structures while initiating meaningful interaction with other cultures to address significant global problems.
Form the tools to take informed and responsible action to address ethical, social, and environmental challenges in global systems and evaluates the local and broader consequences of individual and collective interventions.
Use deep knowledge of the historic and contemporary role and differential effects of human organizations and actions on global systems to develop and advocate for informed, appropriate action to solve complex problems in the human and natural worlds.
Blend knowledge, skills, and analytical reasoning skills to implement sophisticated, appropriate, and workable solutions to address complex global problems at multiple levels from the workplace through the global sphere.
Explore career paths in International Studies and International Affairs related fields at the bachelors level and hold entry-level skills for such positions; differentiate career paths in International Studies and International Affairs related fields at the graduate level.
Demonstrate a basic command of one professional development area.
Apply interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary approaches, including foreign language skills and international experience, to critical analysis of issues of international, comparative, and/or global significance.