The role of international educational exchange programs as a U.S. foreign policy tool

Abstract

International educational exchange programs are renowned for their role in exposing Americans to the world while giving foreign nationals an intimate look at the U.S. from within. The benefits of participation include experiencing another country and learning new languages and cultures. What is less known about exchange programs is that they also play a critical role in promoting U.S. foreign policy, dating back to over seven decades to the enactment of the Fulbright Act of 1946. Since then, this diplomatic role has strategically grown and helped to project an image of the U.S. as a world leader that embraces 'soft power,' a practice favoring influence over coercion. Changes in U.S. foreign policy can limit its soft power, which-in turn-can adversely affect exchange program participation, operations, outcomes, and overall utility. One such change took place at the onset of 2017, when the new nationalist foreign policy of the Trump administration emerged, swiftly replacing the globalist approach of the various presidential administrations preceding it. To understand the impact of this shift on exchange programs, this qualitative research examined the Fulbright Program-the premiere international educational exchange program-via an exploratory case study of those overseeing program operations post-2017. The findings unveiled the experiences of a subset of Massachusetts-area Fulbright advisers and their commitment to help the program stay true to the mission and vision of its founder, Senator J.W. Fulbright, in promoting intercultural relations and mutual understanding via citizen-to-citizen diplomacy amidst shifting foreign policies that threaten the ideals of democracy.