Issue 146 | January 2023

School of Social Work Office of Global Activities logo
OGA Newsletter
The Office of Global Activities (OGA) is dedicated to connecting MSW students to international social work opportunities through fundingspecial programs, academic resources, internationalized curriculum, and arranging faculty and student exchanges at partner institutions.

Happy Lunar New Year!

This past Sunday, January 22, marked the start of the Lunar New Year or Spring Festival. It is estimated that nearly 2 billion people worldwide celebrate Lunar New Year, with two-week long celebrations taking place in China, Korea, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, the United States, Canada, and many other countries. Tied to the lunar calendar, festivities begin on the first new moon and end on the first full moon, fifteen days later. The Lunar New Year is typically a time for feasting, being with family, cleaning and decorating the home, and honoring one's ancestors. If you celebrate Lunar New Year, may peace and joy find you this new year!

Spotlight: European Attitudes Toward Immigrants: Exploring Anti-Immigrant Attitudes and Welfare Chauvinism in Contemporary Europe

European Attitudes Toward Immigrants: Exploring Anti-Immigrant Attitudes and Welfare Chauvinism in Contemporary Europe

Date: Wednesday, January 25, 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

Hostility towards immigrants can be found in virtually every European country today. This presentation will explore the central developments and drivers of majority populations attitudes towards immigrants across Europe. This will be done on an overall European level, but also into specific European regions like the Nordic and the Central-Eastern European regions.


The presentation will focus on four published articles that make up David Andreas Bell’s doctoral thesis. It begins with an overview of how anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim attitudes have developed differently in Western and Eastern Europe in the period between 1990-2017.


It will also explore the concept of welfare chauvinism, i.e. majority populations’ hesitation to grant the benefits of the welfare state to immigrants. It will show how a country’s economic conditions may or may not be important for understanding welfare chauvinistic attitudes. Following this we zoom in to the Nordic region to explore how the distinction between strict and moderate forms of welfare chauvinism are important for understanding the phenomenon in Sweden, Norway and Finland.



The presentation ends with an exploration of racist attitudes in Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic. It will show how these attitudes were already prevalent before the so-called refugee-crisis of 2015-2016 when the three countries became the most staunchly hostile countries in the EU to receiving refugees.

Click here to RSVP!
Events

Journeys in Global Health Equity: A Conversation with Richard Adanu (Click here to RSVP)

Date: Monday, January 23, 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

Brief Description: The Center for Global Health Equity’s 2022-2023 seminar series continues with Dr. Richard Adanu, whose global work focuses on maternal health in Ghana, including the epidemiology of obstetric and gynecological conditions, family planning, and cervical cancer screening. Dr. Adanu is rector of the Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons, where he is a specialist obstetrician gynecologist in the University Hospital. He is also professor of Women’s Reproductive Health in the University of Ghana School of Public Health. Dr. Adanu will discuss his extensive experience as a physician focused on reducing maternal mortality, as a clinician focused on technological innovation, as well as his leadership in global health and medical education.

Global Course Extension in NYC Information Session (Click here to RSVP)

Date: Tuesday, January 24, 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

Brief Description: During the Spring/Summer 2023 semester, the School of Social Work Global Social Work Practice Pathway is offering a unique opportunity. This will consist of two courses focused on human rights: a 1-credit classroom-based introductory course and an optional 2-credit engagement course that will take place in New York City taught by Dr. Ashley Cureton. The application deadline for the New York City Human Rights & Social Justice Global Course Extension trip is coming up on February 5. Join us for an information session to learn more about this unique opportunity! This event will include time for Q&A. This information session will take place in hybrid format. A Zoom link will be provided to registrants closer to the event date.

Fulbright Info Session Kick-Off (Click here to RSVP)

Date: Tuesday, January 24, 6:00 - 7:30 PM ET

Brief Description: The Institute of International Education (IIE), on behalf of the U.S. State Department, administers the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, which offers research, study, and teaching opportunities in over 140 countries to recent graduates and graduate students. This competition is administered on campus by the International Institute (II). Over the course of winter semester, the II Fellowships & Grants team will be providing a series of workshops to help prepare your application! You may sign up for any and all sessions that feel most relevant to you, starting with this info session kick-off.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Events (Click here to learn more)

Date: Tuesday, January 24 - Friday, February 10

Brief Description: The U-M Office of Academic Multicultural Initiatives coordinates the university’s MLK Symposium, which offers a wide-range of events. This is one of the largest celebrations of the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. sponsored by colleges and universities in the nation. Click here for a full list of the events being held this year.

International Coffee Hour (Click here to RSVP)

Date: Friday, January 27, 12:30 - 1:30 PM ET

Brief Description: The Office of Global Activities hosts a bi-weekly coffee hour for all international students and visitors in the School of Social Work. In this coffee hour, we will be catching up after winter break as this new semester begins! Milk tea will be served at this Coffee Hour. Please fill out this RSVP form to confirm your attendance and select your milk tea flavor. We hope to see you there!

Announcements

Free Professional Headshots with the University Career Center

Need a professional headshot? The University Career Center has a brand new self-service photo booth you can use to take as many photos as you'd like. It's FREE to use and you have immediate access to your photos. You only need to reserve a time slot via Handshake. Under 'category', select your school year, and under 'appointment type', choose the 'Professional Headshots Photo Booth' option. For any questions, please reach out to the University Career Center. We hope this is a useful resource for you!

U-M Graduates Now Eligible for "High Potential Individual" (HPI) UK Visa

U-M graduates are now eligible for a United Kingdom (UK) work visa, the High Potential Individual (HPI) visa. This visa aims to recruit skilled young workers from top universities across the world to elevate Britain’s workforce.


The HPI visa policy states that any person who graduated from a list of top eligible universities within the past five years is able to receive this visa to reside in the UK for two years. Those with doctoral qualifications are eligible to reside for three years. 


A job offer in the UK is not required to apply for the visa and those applying for the visa are allowed to bring dependents along with them. For more information about the HPI visa, visit the UK Government's website here and read this Michigan Daily article.

Professional Opportunities

Multiple Positions Available: International Rescue Committee

Application Deadline: N/A

Brief Description: The International Rescue Committee responds to the world's worst humanitarian crises to help to restore healthsafetyeducationeconomic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. They have several job openings available. These include:

For a full list of the available positions, click here to access their job postings page.

Multiple Positions Available: Jewish Family Services - Ann Arbor, MI

Application Deadline: N/A

Brief Description: Jewish Family Services of Washtenaw County is a private non-profit social services agency serving the greater Ann Arbor community since 1993. Originally established by the Jewish Federation of Washtenaw County to assist the growing number of refugee families in Ann Arbor from the former Soviet Republics, JFS has since grown into an organization providing programs and services ranging from older adult caregiving to immigrant resettlement and career services. They have several job openings available. These include:

For a full list of the available positions, click here to access their job postings page.

Multiple Positions Available: International Justice Mission Virtual and Hybrid Internships

Application Deadline: Varies by position

Brief Description: International Justice Mission (IJM) has opened applications for several virtual and hybrid internships. Click here for a full listing of the positions and to apply. As a note, IJM does require that all employees "possess a mature orthodox Christian faith, as defined by the Apostles' Creed."

U-M Intercultural Leadership Seminar

Application Deadline: Sunday, February 12, 11:59 PM ET

Brief Description: The Intercultural Leadership Seminar (ILS) is designed for international and U.S. students who want to learn how to be more effective in a global environment. ILS is part of the M-LEAD collaborative of leadership programs for students, and it is connected to M-Lead's Collective Impact Framework. While at ILS you will increase your awareness of the impact of culture on communication styles, gain skills necessary for effective intercultural communication, discover your own leadership potential, and develop and enhance your intercultural competence. ILS includes brief lectures, discussion, experiential activities, and small group work. Click here to learn more and apply.

Center for Global Health Equity: Graduate Summer Research Internship & Training Program

Application Deadline: March 1

Brief Description: Explore the field of global health equity and prepare for an impactful career through a unique combination of practical research experience, community-building, and professional development. Become part of the Center for Global Health Equity’s multidisciplinary community of experts engaged in projects that address critical challenges in global health equity. Their paid summer graduate student research internship and training program offers a practical, mentored research experience combined with CGHE’s unique professional training program. Participating students will explore global health equity from diverse perspectives and build a foundation for further work in this rapidly expanding field of research and professional practice. Click here to learn more and apply.

Call for Poster Session Proposals: Latino Social Work Organization National Latinx Social Work Conference - Portland, OR

Application Deadline: March 3

Brief Description: MSW and PhD social work students are invited to submit poster session proposals to present at the Latino Social Workers Organization National Latinx Social Work Conference in Portland, Oregon. This conference is in collaboration with Portland State University, and it will take place from Thursday, May 18 till Saturday, May 20, 2023. Click here to learn more about the conference and here to learn more about the poster session submissions.

Grant Opportunities

Robert J. Donia Graduate Student Fellowship (Click here to learn more)

Application Deadline: January 31, 2023

Brief Description: The Donia Human Rights Center Robert J. Donia Graduate Student Fellowship offers student summer grants of $6,000 to support graduate students engaged in research on human rights. Student grantees will conduct research leading to the writing of a paper on a relevant topic of their choosing. It is expected that during the spring and/or summer, grantees will devote their full time to their project in consultation with their faculty advisor(s). The grant will support a broad range of human rights issues but preference will be given to students engaged in historical research on human rights. The fellowship is limited to returning students. For further information, please contact dhrc-fellowships@umich.edu

Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowship (Click here to learn more)

Application Deadline: February 1, 2023

Brief Description: The Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship provides tuition and stipend to students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents and who are studying designated foreign languages in combination with area studies or international aspects of professional studies. The priority is to encourage the study of less commonly taught modern languages. The U.S. Department of Education (US/ED) funds these awards under the provisions of Title VI of the Higher Education Act. The eligible languages for this application cycle are: Arabic, Armenian, Bengali, Bosnian, Chinese, Croatian, Czech, Hebrew, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Nahuatl, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Quechua, Russian, Serbian, Swahili, Tamil, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Uyghur, Uzbek, Yiddish, Yoruba.

International Institute Student Fellowships (Click here to learn more)

Application Deadline: February 15, 2023

Brief Description: The International Institute Student Fellowships (IISF) are designed to support U-M students, regardless of citizenship, who are enrolled in a degree program and seek funding to participate in internships or conduct research abroad. The II Student Fellowships Application is the common application for several fellowships, including some from II centers. The IISF Application must be used to apply for any of the following awards:

  • Rackham International Research Award
  • Global Individual Grant 
  • African Studies Center Funding for Research or Internship Support in Africa
  • Center for Armenian Studies Summer Research Grants
  • Center for Latin American & Caribbean Studies Tinker Field Research Grants for Graduate Students
  • Weiser Center for Europe & Eurasia Summer Grants for Research and Internships in Europe & Eurasia

Center for Global Health Equity: Graduate Student International Research Development Grants (Click here to learn more)

Application Deadline: March 1, 2023

Brief Description: Explore new global collaborations and deepen your knowledge of the field of global health equity through a distinctive combination of international research experience, community-building, and professional training. CGHE provides funding to exceptionally motivated graduate students who are prepared to develop and implement a novel global health equity research project in a low- and/or middle-income country. Development grants cover international travel expenses for student-driven research projects that have potential for longer-term impact on health and wellbeing in low- and middle-income settings. Their grant program offers students support in shaping research projects in alignment with key CGHE values of building equitable global partnerships, co-designing research proposals with local collaborators in LMICs, and creating a line of sight to envision impact.

Resources

U-M Considerations for International Travel

To find previous OGA Newsletter volumes, click the OGA Newsletter Archive.
Email ssw.oga@umich.edu if you have any questions.