SEEU Review vol. 6 Nr. 2 (pdf) - South East European University

SEEU Review Volume 6, No. 2, 2010motivation, commitment, and identification, I studied the Center forInternational Programs (CIP), at a Midwestern university in the UnitedStates. The university will remain unidentified for anonymity reasons thusthe institution will be referred to as “the center for international programs(CIP) at a Midwestern university in the USA”. I provide an in depth detailedaccount of the organization in order to provide a clearer picture of whatprocesses and practices take place in order to present its culture whilepresenting its premises under which the organization operates.To obtain my data that I provide below, I conducted observations alongwith minor interviews. I started with the observations after the directorapproved my request. I promptly informed the director that the data I collectwill solely be used for academic purposes and employees will remainunidentified. To get a deeper understanding of the organization, Iinterviewed employees who gave me valuable information to get the neededinformation about the overall atmosphere in the organization as well as somespecific account about the organizational processes and practices. Theinterviews lasted 30 minutes each. During the meeting I concentrated on thedecision making processes or in other words, I concentrated on how muchthe employees get to take part and participate during the meetings as well asin the compilation of the agenda prior to the meetings. My otherobservations concentrated on the routine daily activities which displayed agood framework for me to identify the operations and the overallcommunication processes in the organization.The organization that I chose to observe and study is the Center forInternational Programs (CIP) at a Midwestern university in the USA. Themission of the organization is the following: “To foster internationaleducation and exchange and to create and maintain opportunities that enrichstudent and faculty experience and maximize the development of the skillsnecessary to function and succeed in a culturally diverse world. The missionis quite ambitious and the center indeed provides numerous services such asthe following: 1) advising students and scholars on visa issues; 2) assistingwith visa documents; 3) providing orientation programs and activities; 4)processing admissions for international students and scholars; 5) assistingwith health insurance programs; 6) assisting and supporting internationalstudent organizations; 7) providing assistance in matters of daily life; andother services which enhance the experiences of international students andscholars. On the other hand, the vision of the organization reveals howbound the organization is with its other organizational sub-units or with thegeneral unit or the university itself. Their vision states: “Champion theinternationalization of campus curriculum and campus life through the85