The Importance Of Global Mindset For University Students In Australia

What is global mindset and why it is important in general

Concept of global mindset and its importance

There is an ability on the part of individuals to cope up with the day-to-day activities. In this regard, it is essential to understand the flow of information that that they are receiving from the outside world (Lester, Virick and Clapp-Smith 2016). Over a long period, an individual’s mindset becomes fixed which in turn is associated with their responses and interpretation of the underlying circumstances. Such a concept can be referred to as mindset. Mindsets can be associated with individuals and organizations as well. Individuals especially those associated with educational institutions must develop a global mindset with the purpose of connecting with people all around the world and gain valuable knowledge (Henson 2016). However, these days educational institutions do not depend upon one individual and his ability to think globally (Andresen and Bergdolt 2017). Institutions generally rely upon the network or series of interconnected global mindsets of students and graduates across countries with the purpose of providing global opportunities.

The main advantage of developing a global mindset is about to gain appropriate knowledge regarding the existing complexities and the drawbacks of global environment. In this regard, it has been argued by modern researchers that, because of development of global mindset among students, they were able to take part in the functional interests of their country (Lappe and Dörrenbächer 2017). It is noteworthy to mention here that, as a result of maximization of global mindset, it has proved to be beneficial for any organization to comply with the speed and accuracy of an individual. This is due to the reasons that, the organizational global mindsets can prove to be beneficial in manifesting the individuals in an organization concerning those competitive advantages (Kuada 2016). There are different ways in which global mindset can prove to be beneficial for an organization and an individual. These can be categorized as early movers, best practices, trade-offs, introduction of new products and coordination. As a result of development of global mindset, there must be early realization on the part of the individual regarding the emerging opportunities. Due to this, it gives rise to greater sophistication and in depth-evaluation of the trade-offs between the limits of local adoption and the existing global standardization processes (Wu and Huarng 2015). In order to develop global mindset among individuals emphasis must be laid upon the effective methods of best practices all across the subsidiaries. With the introduction of new products and technologies, the concept of global has taken a new shape (Aggarwal and Zhan 2016).  With the coordination of existing activities in and across borders global mindset can be achieved to the highest degree possible.

Why is it important for University students in Australia to have a well-developed global mindset

It is worthwhile to refer here that, a global mindset can prove to be beneficial for the individuals in viewing the world from a different point of view. In this regard, individuals would be able to work on decisions both globally and in local territories (Lokkesmoe, Kuchinke and Ardichvili 2016). As a result of this, it shall increase the ability on the part of the individual to compete in the global marketplace. In this regard, according to the perspective of the scholars, debates have been conducted on the subject matter of conceptualization and measurement of global mindset (Minola, Donina and Meoli 2016). It is worth noting that, in Australian business schools and communities, strong support have been raised which is essential in achieving success within the global economy.

Importance of University student to have a global mindset

Global mindset is important for the University students of Australia during the critical phase of challenging financial times. With the purpose of supporting the growth and development of global business, developing global mindset is equally important. With the development of global mindset, these university students shall have opportunities in viewing the business frameworks in a different way. It is worth mentioning that, a student with global mindset shall have a capability of observing the cultural and geographical distinctions are potential opportunities (Glass and Gesing 2018). In this regard, these students would be able to evaluate the fact that how these students would be beneficial towards their institutions by expanding their ideas within other global locations.

There are certain benefits of having a well-developed global mindset among the graduate students of Australian universities. These students have a most expensive way of determining business opportunities from different perspective by considering the challenges and opportunities coming in their way of personal interests (Aggarwal and Zhan 2016). Therefore, students having global mindset are capable of carrying out business in global marketplace by conceiving various ideas and strategies on both national and international basis. In a way these university students will be able to gain appropriate knowledge regarding international markets and world economic trends that shall provide an in depth knowledge regarding cultural, political and economic structures of a country (Henson 2016).

It is worthwhile to mention here that, developing global mindsets within the students of universities takes a lot of effort and involves financial investment as well. In order to develop global mindset among students, cultural awareness programs needs to be implemented. With the implementation of cultural awareness programs, it will be potential for them in understanding cultural differences and in such process; there shall be development of global mindset capability to the great extent (Wu and Huarng 2015). International mentoring networks can be established with the development of global mindset among the students. Due to the establishment of international mentoring programs, it would prove to be beneficial for them in gaining worldwide experiences. Exposing students to various cultural and business environments with the help of guided study tours would help them understanding the change in environment by way of real world experience. In this regard, mention can be made about exchange programs and internships, which generally provide short-term experiences within the context of global organizational environment (Aggarwal and Zhan 2016). Due to this, the students of the Australian universities shall be capable of understanding the operational functions of the organizations that has been operating within various political, economical and cultural backgrounds.

Assessment of global mindset of a sample of students

It is important on the part of the students to appreciate the significant and meaningful distinctions between the cultural backgrounds of individuals belonging to different countries. This process may be quite time consuming however; the results would be beneficial. In the modern era of globalization, universities are trying on their parts to introduce different international exchange programs in which students are supposed to spend one semester at an overseas university (Lappe and Dörrenbächer 2017). However, other universities are emphasizing more upon the topic of global mindset as a topic of discussion within the boundary of a classroom; that comprises of designed modules and classes regarding strategic management.

It is evident that, the concept of global competence is such that it has been recognized by many countries. This is due to the reason that, students must possess competitive skills with the purpose of surviving in a globalized world. With the advent of global reasoning among students; there is a need of policy implementation in universities. In most of the instances, assumptions are made regarding the fact that, global mindset develops naturally, when the class is comprised of professors and students belonging to different countries and cultural backgrounds (Kuada 2016). However, it is essential that professors are providing the students with specific instructional strategies that should be examined and determined properly with the purpose of developing global mindset. Therefore, in order to uplift the future well-being of the students understanding the importance of global mindset is very important.

Intellectual capital	1	2	3	4	5
1. I have the knowledge of how to transact business and assess risks of doing business internationally	·
2. I have a good analytical and problem solving skill			·
3. I have an up-to-date of knowledge of important world events		·
4. I have the knowledge of geography, history and important personalities from different countries			·
5. I have the knowledge of economic and political issues in major regions of the world					·

Psychological capital	1	2	3	4	5
1. I am willing to take risk				·
2. I enjoy dealing with unpredictable situations		·
3. I am energetic			·
4. I am interested in dealing with challenging situations				·
5. I consider myself witty in tough situations	·

Social capital	1	2	3	4	5
1. I am comfortable starting a conversation with a stranger	·
2. I have the ability to listen to what others have to say			·
3. I am willing to collaborate with others					·
4. I am good in networking with other people			·
5. I easily make friends with people from other cultures		·

Cultural capital	1	2	3	4	5
1. I am familiar with the traditions and norms of cultures other than my own	·
2. I am interested in or can speak foreign languages			·
3. I enjoy travelling and discovering new cultures			·
4. I enjoy listening to music from different cultures					·
5. I like to try new dishes/cuisines from different countries				·

The sample students need to be from various backgrounds such as 4 students from business which comprises of 2 students from local and 2 from international. 4 students from science, again consisting of international and domestic. The 8 students need to consist of both boys and girls in equal numbers.

Figure 1: Top countries with global mindset

(Source: Created by author)

Figure 2: Trends in the growth of global mindset over the years

(Source: Created by author)

Figure 3: International students adhering to global mindset

(Source: Created by author)

The findings suggest that people from Asia and Europe have the highest number of people engaged in global mindset. The numbers shown suggested that South Korean people have the interest to embrace the global education and apply it for the benefit of the organisation in which they work and for self. The concept of receiving global education has increased over the years and it is particularly in high during the month of March as it is normally considered as the time of a beginning of new sessions in Universities.

References

Aggarwal, R. and Zhan, F., 2016. Student characteristics and pedagogies in developing global mindsets: Introduction to this issue.

Andresen, M. and Bergdolt, F., 2017. A systematic literature review on the definitions of global mindset and cultural intelligence–merging two different research streams. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 28(1), pp.170-195.

Glass, C.R. and Gesing, P., 2018. The Development of Social Capital Through International Students’ Involvement in Campus Organizations. Journal of International Students 2018 Vol 8 Issue 3, 8(3), pp.1274-1292.

Henson, R., 2016. Building an Organizational Global Mindset Culture: Implications for Practice. In Successful Global Leadership (pp. 261-283). Palgrave Macmillan, New York.

Kuada, J., 2016. Mindsets and Global Organizational Strategies. In Global Mindsets (pp. 15-21). Routledge.

Lappe, C. and Dörrenbächer, C., 2017. Organizational identity, global mindset and the internationalization of small and medium-sized enterprises. In Organizational Identity and Firm Growth (pp. 183-207). Palgrave Macmillan, London.

Lester, G.V., Virick, M. and Clapp-Smith, R., 2016. Harnessing Global Mindset to Positively Impact Advances in Global Leadership through International Human Resource Management Practices. In Advances in Global Leadership(pp. 325-349). Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

Lokkesmoe, K.J., Kuchinke, K.P. and Ardichvili, A., 2016. Developing cross-cultural awareness through foreign immersion programs: Implications of university study abroad research for global competency development. European Journal of Training and Development, 40(3), pp.155-170.

Minola, T., Donina, D. and Meoli, M., 2016. Students climbing the entrepreneurial ladder: Does university internationalization pay off?. Small Business Economics, 47(3), pp.565-587.

Wu, C.W. and Huarng, K.H., 2015. Global entrepreneurship and innovation in management.