Examining a model of scholarship for social justice

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to measure the impact of international scholarship programs for social justice – a case study of the Ford Foundation International Fellowships Program (IFP), the first model of scholarships for social justice. The human capability approach advanced by Amartya Sen is selected to conceptualize the measurement of the impacts. This study attempts to propose an alternative approach, which allows scholarship sponsors to see scholarship impact on the matter of people’s capabilities, rather than economic growth. By using the data from the 2012 IFP Alumni surveys (n = 1,794, 49.4% female, 50.6% male) and the fellows data (n = 422, 47.6% female, 52.4% male) collected in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006 by the Center for Higher Education Policy Studies, this study examined the relationships of the very foundational rationale behind the creation of IFP as well as the proposed structural equation model built upon the human capability approach with fellows’ impacts on social justice in their home country. Structural equation modelling was employed as the statistical technique. The results of the analyses revealed that: (a) fellows’ success of choices were positively related to fellows’ impacts on social justice; and (b) fellows’ capabilities and achieved functionings positively predicted fellows’ impacts on social justice. The proposed structural equation model was proved to be theoretically sound and explain the data well.

A Systematic Review of International Higher Education Scholarships for Students From the Global South

“…This idea is embodied in the model of the Ford Foundation’s IFP program (see Dassin et al, 2014b; Musa-Oito, 2018) where grantees were selected from among marginalized populations in the 22 target countries (providing access on a micro-level) while also expecting that the grantees would return to create national social change (macro-level outcomes). While national social change is difficult to measure, there are several scholars who point to the attempt of IFP alumni to engage in this work (Campbell & Lavallee, 2019; Kusakabe, 2014; Waluyo et al, 2019). That being said, there are also recognized barriers for marginalized people to acquire positions of leadership and drive widescale social change in their countries—despite their overseas education—especially when fighting against the status quo .…”

“…In Cambodia, international scholarships were credited with encouraging women to become professors in the male-dominated Cambodian academy (Maxwell et al, 2015). In a recent quantitative study, Waluyo et al (2019) found that IFP scholarship alumni had skills to change paths and respond to challenges as they emerged, which was related to their work to influence social change in 22 countries.…”

Government scholarships for international higher education: pathways for social change in Kazakhstan

“…Research on scholarship programs defines social change as shifts in society (Campbell & Neff, 2020 ) that “reduce injustice and increase well-being in all forms” (Dassin et al, 2018 , p. 5), including at the economic, social, cultural, political, and environmental levels. International education creates various pathways for social change (Clift et al, 2013 ; Dassin et al, 2018 ; Waluyo et al, 2019 ). Some scholarships contribute toward social change by providing discriminated and underserved populations access to a high-quality international education (Clift et al, 2013 ).…”

“…In addition, exposure to diverse cultures and ways of living during their study period helps alumni of international universities to reconsider their own culture, values, and identity; they essentially develop “cosmopolitan competencies” (Gu & Schweisfurth, 2015 ). This fact is expressed in their cross-cultural sensitivity (Waluyo et al, 2019 ) and ability to view factors from multiple angles (Tung & Lazarova, 2006 ). Hence, they tend to experience a sense of obligation and growing desire to give back to their home country and society (Arhin-Sam, 2019 as cited in Campbell et al, 2021b ; Baxter, 2019 ).…”

“…Both these programs aim to improve civic engagement, promote democratic values, and nurture leaders who can facilitate social change for local communities (Clift et al, 2013 ; Cosentino et al, 2019 ; Dassin & Navarrete, 2018 ). Furthermore, these scholarships purposefully target disadvantaged and marginalized individuals who demonstrate an aptitude for leadership and commitment to social justice and who are, therefore, more likely to foster social change after graduation (Boeren, 2018 ; Clift et al, 2013 ; Waluyo et al, 2019 ).…”