The Impact of International Virtual Exchange on Student Success

Abstract

This study expands the literature on high impact practices by assessing the effect of global experiences, including international virtual exchange (IVE) and study abroad, on student success, measured as GPA, first-year retention, and graduation rate. Our dataset tracks over 47,000 students over 10 years at a large U.S. university. Our fixed effects models show that IVE and studying abroad increase average GPA. Using logit models, we find that taking IVE courses or studying abroad positively impacts the probability students are retained and eventually graduate. Our findings also show that first-generation college students, financially disadvantaged students, female students, and Black and African American students who take IVE courses benefit more than their demographic counterparts who don't. Taken together, these results confirm that IVE is both a high impact practice and a pedagogy that offers significant benefits to under-resourced students and students who have historically been underrepresented in global learning activities.