Education Development Toolkit

International Mobility

An Employability Theme Page

Getting Started with International Mobility

A decorative image. A female student sits cross legged on a grey rock with her back to the camera. She stares out onto a peaceful blue lake bordered with rugged mountains and forestry (New Zealand).

What is International Mobility?

International mobility refers to where students work or study abroad as part of their Cardiff University experience.

There are a variety of ways that international placements can be undertaken and developed:

Curricular opportunities:

Semesters or academic years of study abroad at an international partner university
Years of work or research abroad as part of a professional training year / year in industry
Shorter-term periods abroad contributing towards a specific module / programme. Some examples of these include medical elective placements abroad; Earth Sciences summer mapping projects; and Biosciences international field trips.

Extra-curricular opportunities:

The Global Opportunities Team (part of the wider Student Futures Team) develop short-term extra-curricular study, work or volunteering placements. These usually take place over the summer months and are open to all undergraduate students.

Why is International Mobility Important?

In the ‘International Sub-Strategy, The Way Forward 2018-2023, Recast following Covid-19’ the University commits to the following:

Investing in global opportunities for our students.

Continuing to encourage all of our students to be internationally connected by providing excellent opportunities and support for study, work or volunteering in an international setting; explicitly, at least 20% of our home undergraduate student population will have studied, worked or volunteered abroad for at least two weeks, or gained other substantive international experience during their degree with us.

The University recognises the many benefits of undertaking an international placement: for example, in terms of enhanced employability outcomes; personal development; academic attainment. As mentioned above, Staff in the Global Opportunities Team within Student Futures can work with Schools to discuss embedding international opportunities into the curriculum and there is a range of paperwork and support available for the process of embedding available on the Intranet and created by Registry.

Providing Opportunities Abroad

Working with Global Opportunities Staff in Student Futures to Create Opportunities Abroad

What support is for me to provide international mobility opportunities for my students?  

Staff in Global Opportunities can provide the following support:

Curricular opportunities:

Provide examples of best practice across the institution; explore potential new or existing partnerships to support the programme; provide detailed information on funding available to students; explain processes for the subsequent promotion and management of the period abroad. Please note: it is essential to also engage, and seek guidance from, members of staff in the Academic Quality Team and Education Partnerships Team at the earliest possible stage when developing curricular opportunities abroad.

Extra-curricular opportunities:

Provide information on, and promote, existing opportunities; provide guidance on funding to support academic school-led extra-curricular opportunities abroad including examples of best practice.

Essential Policies and Paperwork

Explore here to see the paperwork and supporting policies for Study Abroad and Placements.

Study Abroad Guidance

Access the Study Abroad Intranet pages, to find the following policy documents and paperwork:

Study Abroad Policy
Collaborative Provision Risk Assessment for the Introduction of Study Abroad
Study Abroad Module Description template
Study Abroad Partner Application Form
Learning Agreement for International Exchange Students

Placement Policies and Paperwork

Access the Placements Intranet pages, to find the following policy documents and paperwork.

This includes links to:

Placement Learning Policy
Risk Assessment Form for the introduction of Placements
Risk Assessment Guidance

Case Studies

Here are a number of examples of how international mobility has been offered across Cardiff University Schools.

The School of Music has established a Year of Study Abroad for students enrolled on BMus Music with a Year Abroad and BA Music with a Year Abroad programmes. Students study the equivalent of 120 credits per year at a range of partner institutions in Europe, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Thailand and the USA.  Over recent years numbers of students participating in these programmes has steadily grown.

School of Biosciences, Professional Placement Year Abroad

The School of Biosciences has a long-established Professional Placement Year programme.  Students can complete a full year research or industry placement as part of this programme, either at a partner institution or at an external organisation. The School has designed a suite of robust documentation to assess risk and judge the placement’s academic suitability. They maintain a comprehensive database of previous placement destinations and hosts, meaning students have a starting point in their search for a suitable placement. Assessment takes the form of a written report in the style of a scientific paper, a poster presentation, marked by academic staff, and a report from the placement host, evaluating the student’s performance in a workplace context.

School of Medicine, Electives Abroad

The School of Medicine provides opportunities for students to undertake year 4 or year 5 practical Elective placements abroad. The School manages the application and selection process of students, and provides comprehensive guidance around risk assessment as well as pre-departure training to all participants. This is led by an academic member of staff, with administrative support provided within the School. In a typical academic year around 200 students take part.

School of Physics and Astronomy, Extra-curricular Research Placements.

The School of Physics and Astronomy offers students the opportunity to undertake extra-curricular short-term placements at research facilities in Canada, Germany and Australia. These opportunities have been developed through existing academic connections.  