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The purpose of this case study is to summarize a task force's efforts to change the educational degree requirements for open librarian positions at a large university in the Midwestern USA.

The paper reviews the literature on degree requirements in academic libraries and the nature of LIS degrees from countries outside the USA. It analyzes 136 position advertisements for academic librarians by required terminal degree and the type and Association of Research Libraries (ARL) status of the institution.

The paper concludes that, while most position advertisements do not specifically address foreign Library and Information Science (LIS) degrees, many advertisements, especially those at ARL libraries, contain flexible language that allows for degrees that are “equivalent” to the American Library Association (ALA) accredited LIS degree.

The data collected from the relatively small sample of 136 job advertisements for academic librarians posted on the ALA Joblist and Chronicle of Higher Education web sites were largely meant to be anecdotal.

The paper provides useful information for academic libraries in the USA, receiving applications for professional positions from applicants with foreign LIS degrees.

Although the literature on the ALA‐accredited Master's of Library and Information Science (MLS) degree is extensive, no study considers the availability of positions to those with MLS degrees from other countries.

This paper aims to present an overview of the situation with international credentialing, certification, and recognition in the USA from the perspective of the American Library Association.

Reviews history of changes to methods of international credentialing and recognition in the USA.

Though the recent changes in policy from ALA now allow for equivalency of degrees at the Master's level, libraries in the USA are not bound by the policy and many still have questions about accepting applicants with foreign degrees based on concerns such as compatibility, quality assurance, and acceptability.

More work has to be done by ALA to publicize its new policy and gain acceptance by libraries in the USA and to gather lists of accredited or recognized programs from other countries. The issue of international credentialing, certification, and recognition needs to be addressed by IFLA and library educators, library associations, and libraries as employers to make progress toward creating “global librarians.”

Points put forward by the author will be of interest to those involved in the same field.

This paper explores the development of microcredentials (MCs) through a regional lens, considering their implications for lifelong learning and skilled labour mobility in Asia and the Pacific. It also examines recent global initiatives led by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

The study reviews recent global initiatives aimed at developing shared definitions and principles for MCs, as led by UNESCO, taking into account the importance of existing initiatives such as the pilot project launched by the Australian government in 2022. The formalization of MCs within national education systems is also examined, with reference to frameworks developed by organizations like the European Union (EU), Australia and the Malaysia Qualifications Agency (MQA, 2020).

The paper underscores the increasing attention from international organizations and governments to the development and recognition of MCs, with significant efforts in countries like Australia and pilot initiatives in New Zealand and Malaysia. However, it also highlights that many MC projects in Asia are still in their early developmental stages, emphasizing the need for further progress and formalization.

This paper offers a unique perspective on the development of MCs in the Asia–Pacific region and their potential role in international education. It explores the prospects for MCs in international education, including student mobility and cross-border online courses. The challenge of integrating MCs into existing systems for recognizing international qualifications is discussed. Overall, the paper contributes to the understanding of MC frameworks as essential tools in the formalization of lifelong learning in the region, supported by the provided citations (OECD, 2021).

This study explores employer perspectives regarding barriers to and responsibility for the workforce integration of skilled immigrants. Specifically, this study assesses employer perceptions of how influential various barriers are to the integration of self-initiated expatriates (SIEs) in the workplace, uncovers employer perceptions of SIEs competence levels, identifies employer perceptions regarding multiple stakeholders’ levels of responsibility for SIEs integration and explores impactful means to overcome these barriers.

Given Canada’s dependence on SIEs for labour force growth, an online survey was conducted with hiring managers of 99 firms in a mid-sized city in Ontario, Canada.

The results demonstrate that employers shift the onus of responsibility for SIEs integration to other stakeholders (namely, the immigrant or government agencies), require documentation to evaluate human capital attainment of SIEs and may be systemically discriminating against SIEs.

The results indicate a need for documented evidence to validate foreign education and skills previously acquired by SIEs. They advance research by providing a comparative assessment of barriers from the employer’s point of view.

The findings support the notion that employers should strategically partner with specialized private or government agencies to help with efforts to attract and evaluate SIEs.

Given that employers are key decision-makers regarding employment outcomes, this study investigates the underexplored role and perspective of employers in integrating SIEs. Additionally, this study provides both a holistic and a relative assessment of the barriers to and responsibility for SIEs integration, exploring the impact of each factor on employer decision-making.

This research paper aims to present a specific outline of the library decision makers’ perceptions and the hiring patterns and acceptability of online library science degree holders in academic libraries across the Arab world. It also investigates whether such degrees compare favorably with traditional degrees or not.

This study data were collected using an online questionnaire, which was sent out to 74 library managers in academic libraries across the Arab world. The libraries were selected from the QS stars Worldwide University Ranking for the Arab Region 2015, which ranks the Arab world’s top 100 universities.

The findings reveal no significant relationship between the hiring decision of library managers and the degree type, whether earned through traditional education or online. The analysis notes different factors influencing the hiring practices and acceptability of online library science degree holders, the most influential factors being candidate skills, accreditation of programs and candidate experiences.

To date, no study has investigated whether employers in academic libraries across the Arab world perceive online library science graduate degrees “less than” or “equal to” those obtained through traditional education. This study will contribute to the literature on the acceptance of online degrees in general and in the library science field in particular. The study is a significant contribution to knowledge for students, job seekers and employers alike.

(a) To examine “native-born/immigrant” (nativity) and “national/foreign professional credentials” (country of credentials) as status factors in terms of expectation states theory, and (b) to lay out a blueprint for a theory-based, experimental research agenda in this area.

(for (b) above). I propose a research program based on three types of expectation states experimental designs: the open group-discussion, the rejection-of-influence standardized setting, and the application-files format. All three incorporate measures of either biased evaluations or double standards for competence, or of both. I illustrate how these designs can be adapted to assess, through the presence/absence of one or the other of those practices, the separate impacts of nativity, country of professional credentials and selected additional factors on the inference of task competence. The need for and the advantages of systematic, experimental work on this topic are highlighted.

(from (a) above). I review evidence of the status value of nativity and country of credentials through data on evaluations, employment, and earnings. My evidence originates in contemporary Canadian studies that present results from surveys, interviews, census records, and – to a lesser extent – experiments, and these findings support my claim.

The proposed research will facilitate the development of interventions toward the standardized and unbiased assessment of immigrants’ foreign credentials.

The agenda I put forth constitutes a novel approach to the study of nativity and country of credentials. The work will extend the expectation states program, and enhance immigration research both theoretically and methodologically.

The present study aims to demonstrate that the volunteering licenses people to indulge in luxury purchase, and both heightened moral self-evaluation and reduced guilt mediate the effect of licensing on ratings of a luxury item by implementing three experimental studies. This study explained the moral licensing behavior using a passive goal guidance model: i.e., people license themselves to indulge when people perceive progress on one of their long-term goals.

In this paper, three experiments were used to test hypotheses.

The present paper is new in terms of three aspects. First, moral self-evaluation as a mediator is tested using a more stringent method in comparison to prior studies. Second, reduced guilt which had not yet been explicitly tested is established as a mediator. Third, the present study demonstrates that the passive goal guidance model as a valid theory in explaining the licensing behavior by showing that when people perceive progress in a long-term goal by helping others in need, they are more likely to engage in dysfunctional luxury brand purchases. Previous studies have used credentialing theory to explain this.

The present study established and confirmed that reduced guilt is a mediator in the licensing effect on the purchase of luxury items.

International student employability has been accorded increased emphasis in the internationalisation agendas, especially in major destination countries as it shapes universities' attractiveness to prospective international students. Having insights into returning graduates' employability in their home country has become critical given that a majority of international graduates return home after their overseas study. This study responds to this critical need by examining how foreign credentials are valued by employers in the field of accounting in China, based on in-depth interviews with employers, alumni and policymakers.

This study draws on a qualitative approach involving literature review and in-depth interviews with 28 key stakeholders: employers, returning graduates and policymakers in China and India. The key research question of the study is how foreign credentials are valued by employers in the field of accounting in China and India. This article focuses on the Chinese context. In-depth interviews with employers and policymakers focused on eliciting nuanced socio-cultural understandings as to perceptions and decisions associated with desirable graduate attributes and the relative value of credentials. Interviews with returning graduates aimed to understand how different capitals were mobilised to gain employment in the Chinese labour market.

The empirical findings of the study show that Chinese returning graduates could be seen to lack the localised knowledge needed to work in Chinese companies and ability to adapt to the local environment. However the possible development of a dual local and international guanxi through overseas study can be regarded as a marker of distinction in the home labour market. The associated value of such a dual guanxi signals the importance for Chinese international students to develop transnational networks while simultaneously maintaining their kinship, social and business networks locally during their overseas education.

The study provides fresh insights into a marked shift in China, with less of a preference for Western credentials, as compared to 10 years ago when overseas credentials were often regarded more favourably. Even though overseas study generally provides Chinese graduates with an exposure to international practices and global perspectives, whether such an overseas exposure and foreign language competency would be an advantage also depends on the business needs and sometimes the business model of organisations.

The recent development of higher education in Africa has been spurred, in part, through a variety of cross-border higher education (CBHE) initiatives. However, this is not a new trend and this chapter traces the development of CBHE activities in Africa from the early 1900s through the current era. While the earliest forms of CBHE were largely fostered through Western nations providing advice and validation to institutions in Africa, the types of CBHE engagements are much more varied, including collaborations among African nations. The chapter also explores the push by some African nations to become educational hubs, the variability of CBHE policies across nations, and the shift of collaboration from the global north to south.

The ‘Australian workplace’ has been used as a study ground in this book to explore the integration process of immigrant Indian professionals in Australia, as well as the link between exclusion after inclusion and its influence on these professionals’ emotional labour. This chapter will examine how exclusionary inclusion impacts immigrant Indian professionals and how they try to hide or repress parts of their cultural identity to be accepted equally in Australian workplaces. Inclusion is defined as ‘the degree to which an employee thinks he or she is a valued member of the organisation’ (Shore et al., 2011). When they are excluded, they are disappointed and fear losing their cultural identity (Aydemir & Skuterud, 2008). Inclusion in the workplace is closely related to higher commitment and better performance (Cho & Mor Barak, 2008). When ethnic workers feel supported in the job, where they spend a significant amount of their life, they perform better. Skilled immigrants come to a country with hopes and dreams of experiencing equality and finding employment. According to Roberts et al. (2009), when an individual’s internal experiences and external displays are in alignment, they will have no identity conflict and will feel appreciated at work.