QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON U.S. SHORT-TERM TRAINING

"What is short-term training?"

Short-term training is intensive study of a particular field that does not lead to a degree but provides professional knowledge, often emphasizing hands-on experience.

"How long does short-term training last?"

It can vary widely, from a part of a single day to nine months or even a year. Most training appropriate for international participants lasts between one week and three months.

"Why would someone take short-term training?"

To improve professional skills and gain practical knowledge of a particular area. Reasons might include job advancement, new job responsibilities, employer requirements, change in employment, new technology, or simply a desire to learn a new skill.

"Why study in the United States rather than closer to home?"

Sometimes it would be much better to train in the home country or region,especially if cost is important or the English of the person being trained is not very strong. However, training in some areas of study may not be offered locally, though it is offer ed in the United States. Some other advantages of training in the United States might include opportunities to establish professional networks, to set up trade or business links, to exchange experiences and techniques within a multinational group, to obse rve actual operation of a system or technology, and to visit or gain hands-on experience in institutions actually using the methods or technology being taught.

"In what fields is short-term training available?"

In all fields, and usually in many very specialized areas of those fields. If regular training programs in a particular area are not scheduled they can usually be arranged. A few examples--regularly held short-term programs exist in such areas as financia l management of oil and gas enterprises, negotiation techniques, video production for training, management information systems for health, solid and hazardous waste management, and many, many other specialized fields.

"Is U.S. short-term training expensive?"

Costs vary by geographic location and by trainer, but generally will be high in comparison to local training. Short-term training is expensive but cost-effective. U.S. intensive short-term training programs meet six to eight hours a day during the trainin g period. The classroom contact hours in a one-week, intensive short-term training program are roughly the equivalent of fourteen weeks in a traditional university program of study. Another benefit of short-term training is that individuals are away from work for a shorter period of time than they would be in a degree program.

"Is there financial aid for short-term training?"

Not usually--it is much less common to get financial aid for a short-term program than for a degree program. Almost no trainers offer any financial aid.

"Do I need to know English to take short-term training?"

Generally, yes, unless the training can be offered in your own language. Although organizations that provide short-term training for international participants are aware of language difficulties and will make efforts to communicate clearly and simply, par ticipants really need to know English well (including the specialized vocabulary of the field they are studying), to benefit from short-term training. Participants whose English is not strong enough will gain very little from an intensive training program and can detract from the effectiveness of training for other participants in the program. Programs do exist that are regularly held in Arabic--examples would include some of the training offered by the Atlanta Management Institute, California State Polyt echnic University, Pomona, the University of Pittsburgh, the Management Training and Development Institute, and the Western Consortium for Public Health.
Other trainers (usually for an additional charge) can arrange training in languages other than English, can provide some English language instruction in weeks before the program, or can provide a translator. Learning through translators is not generally a s effective as learning directly from the instructor.

"Do I need to take the TOEFL or other tests?"

Few short-term programs require tests, though USAID and other scholarship sponsors may. If you want to see if your English (or your employees' English) is strong enough for short-term training, a helpful test exists called the TOEIC (Test Of English for I nternational Communication). This examination emphasizes speaking and listening skills, which are usually more important for short-term training than the reading and writing skills emphasized by the TOEFL. "What admissions requirements do short-term progr ams have?"
They vary but are usually not as difficult as the requirements for a degree program. Programs often want to know about candidates' level and length of professional experience, their education and degrees they have earned, and their English language profic iency. When a particular degree is requested, professional experience can often be substituted.

"Where is short-term training offered in the United States?"

Most commonly by colleges and universities (including two-year colleges and vocational schools as well as those offering four-year and graduate degrees). It is also offered by some (but not all) U.S. government agencies, professional and trade association s, manufacturers, and private and nonprofit organizations specializing in training.

"How many short-term training programs exist?"

Tens or hundreds of thousands of programs are offered regularly. More are starting all the time. AMIDEAST's Headquarters has a collection of brochures on well over 10,000 programs, focusing mainly on those designed for or appropriate for international par ticipants. And we still discover many new training providers each year.

"What office in U.S. universities is in charge of short-term training?"

It varies from university to university and there may be many offices within a single university that do short-term training. Sometimes this can make it difficult to find programs--one office doesn't always know what the other offices are doing. One good place to start is with the international student or international programs office--they should know what training other offices in the university may offer that would be appropriate for someone from overseas.

"What U.S. universities offer the best short-term training?"

That depends on what you want to study and on your individual needs. Training is usually offered in very specialized areas, so one good way to find out which universities might be among the best is to look at where professors are doing research in the des ired area of training.

"How can I tell whether short-term training is of a good quality? What else should I examine?"

At AMIDEAST, we are often able to tell this from past experience working with the trainer--we have almost forty-five years of experience in education and training and have placed many thousands of students in such programs. However, you may want to look i nto the academic and professional background of instructors, the number of hours of training offered each day, the training facilities and equipment, the resource materials and computer equipment available to participants, and the amount of hands-on, prac tical training involved.
Also consider whether the program will meet your own unique needs. A program can be of excellent quality and still be the wrong one for you. How flexible is the curriculum--can it change to meet your needs? Are site visits or internships included if that is of interest to you? What types of organizations and positions are participants from, and are they mainly U.S. or international? How does computer equipment and so forth compare with what you will be using at home? Is the program's geographic location g ood for you? What help can the training provider offer in arranging for housing, meals, and other needed or desired services?

The handout was last updated in 1993 by AMIDEAST.

Services *** American Higher Education Information Center