The Citizen Scholar in Developing Global Perspectives

The citizen scholar encapsulates the idea that the role of universities is to promote scholarship as well as active and engaged citizens—both national and global. That is, beyond the disciplinary knowledge students develop during their studies, universities must inculcate a set of skills and cultural practices that prepare students for a turbulent and constantly changing world. We argue that at the core of the citizen scholar is a set of graduate proficiencies that promote internationalization, which includes interdisciplinarity learning environments, cross-cultural understanding, a series of new literacies, internationalization, and inclusivity. These proficiencies are underscored by the frame of “cultural humility”; that is, a lifelong commitment of both self-evaluation and self-critique as one seeks to engage and understand the many complex cultures we interact with.