Rural Colombian College Students’ Motivations to Participate in an International Agricultural Internship

Authors

Carlos Alberto Parra SalinasFollow
Neil A. Knobloch, nknobloc@purdue.eduFollow

Keywords

Colombian youth, rural education, study abroad, student expectations, student motivation

Abstract

This qualitative study explored rural students' motivations to participate in agricultural study abroad. Thirty-five undergraduate students (24 women and 11 men) applied to participate in a 6-month cohort internship program through the application form and statement of purpose. The analysis of this information allowed us to identify the motivations of rural students to apply to a cohort internship program that offer possibilities of international exchange at a large university in the U.S. Four motivational categories to participate in the study abroad were described (i.e., academic, personal, career, and community motivations). Practical implications are provided for government and university administrators and program coordinators with rural youth motivation information to help them plan their internationalization efforts for academic exchanges.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License

Recommended Citation

Parra Salinas, C. A., & Knobloch, N. A. (2025). Rural Colombian College Students’ Motivations to Participate in an International Agricultural Internship. Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education, 32(1). DOI: https://doi.org/10.4148/2831-5960.1481