The impact of erasmus exchange program on students' language proficiency, personal development and career planning: Application model of OKU university

The purpose of this study is to analyse if language proficieny, personal development, and career planning of the students who participate in Erasmus Exchange Programme are changed in terms of some variables. In accordance with this purpose, theoretical part of the research includes studies about EU Youth Programmes and Erasmus Exchange Programmes, Career and Career Planning, Personal and Career Development. In the study, data collection tools developed by Aydın (2012) and Norris and Gillespie ( 2008) are translated into Turkish. The study population includes 72 undergraduate and graduate students, from Osmaniye Korkut Ata University, who participate in Erasmus Exchange Programme. Workgroups includes 61 students from the population. The survey data used in this study were analysed using SPSS 18 and STATA 18. Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) - Barlett Test was used to measure sampling adequacy of the quantitative data collection tool which had been conducted on the students. According to test result, KMO value is 82. Factor analysis was applied after the sampling was proved to be adequate. Furthermore, the researcher assessed the validity and reliability and internal consistency (Cronbach Alpha) of the test is 92. Arithmetic mean, frequency and standard deviation values of the questions in the survey were calculated. Then, correlation analyses were done in order to find the direct relationship between the variables. Independent T test was used in comparing the means of the same qualities of two separate groups, while searching for the mean difference of more than two groups, One Way ANOVA test was used. Dummy variables were used to explain the impact of more than one independent or quantitative variables on one dependent variable and the data were analysed in STATA 11. A meaningful relationship was identified between the independent variable 'Units' and the dependent variable 'Language Proficiencies' in the means of Language Proficiencies, Personal Development and Career Planning Scores. According to Post Hoc multiple comparisons results, this difference is in favor of Faculty of Engineering (F=4,502; p<0.01) between Faculty of Economic and Administrative Sciences and Faculty of Engineering; a relationship was found between the independent variable Maternal Education Level and the dependent variable Career Planning (F=4,228;p< 0,009) in the means of Language Proficiencies, Personal Development and Career Planning scores. When looked into Maternal Education Level Groups in Post Hoc Multiple Comparisons test table, this relationship differs in favor of primary education between primary education and high school education. After gender based comparisons of students who participate in Erasmus Exchange Programme, a meaningful relationship was identified in favor of women in terms of personal development sub-dimension (p<0,10), however a meaningful relationship was not identified in terms of language proficieny and career planning according to gender factor. % 59 of the students participated in the study were male, % 70 of them were sophisters (2nd and 3rd grade), % 44,3 of them preferred Poland to go , family income of % 41 of them was between 751-1500 TL, maternal education levels of % 54,1 were primary school graduates, the students, who went, saw 3,37 countries in average and % 88,5 (54 students) of the students went abroad for the first time thanks to the Erasmus Student Exchange Programme. Key Words: Exchange, Erasmus, Career Planning, Personal Development, OKU