Kevin VAUGHN

Abstract: As artificial intelligence increasingly automates technical tasks across global industry, international higher education must focus on its ability to develop human capabilities and soft skills, such as emotional intelligence, intercultural competence, and broad communication skills, as a value proposition. While short-term mobility metrics often fixate on enrollment volume, true return on investment (ROI) can be measured by post-study outcomes. This session evaluates a premier, decade-long trilateral alliance between the University of California, Riverside Professional and Global Education, the Walt Disney Company, and Nagoya University of Foreign Studies, to provide students a relatively cost-neutral program integrating academic coursework with impactful work experience at Walt Disney World in Florida. The session will explore the human-centric skills students develop during their internships and examine how these skills impact career trajectories of Japanese graduates. Speakers demonstrate how combining academics with operational training at a Fortune 100 leader creates an accelerated path to career success. The presentation shares concrete evidence of how NUFS graduates have overcome traditional entry-level hurdles to achieve success in global hospitality, aviation, and multinational enterprises. Attendees will gain actionable ideas for measuring long-term employability success, configuring corporate-academic networks, and leveraging alumni success to demonstrate the enduring value of human-centric global education. Learning objectives: Design multi-year alumni tracking and data-collection systems to measure the exact return on investment (ROI) and longterm career velocity of global work-integrated learning graduates. Deconstruct how to synthesize professional university continuing education with elite corporate service training to cultivate high-level soft skills that resist AI-driven automation. Formulate collaborative frameworks between international offices and corporate partners that ensure visa compliance, academic credit validation, and equitable access for diverse student demographics. Target audience: Higher Education Leadership & Strategic Decision-Makers International Mobility & Operational Managers