Call for Papers - CIES 2026

Study Abroad and International Students (SAIS) SIG

Call for Papers – CIES 2026

As CIES 2026 approaches, this has been a tumultuous era for international mobility. Only a half-decade ago did the COVID-19 pandemic ravage the sector, bringing a halt to programs and exchanges throughout the world. While the global movement of students and scholars has mostly recovered, some scars have remained. Not all international education initiatives that thrived pre-pandemic have returned, either due to neglect or defunding.

After decades of growth and dominance, there has also been a bubbling pushback against internationalization in education with a rise of insularity, xenophobia, and nationalism. International students have become targets in these shifting political winds, getting scapegoated for local housing shortages, employment challenges, or other domestic issues. Faced with more government surveillance and immigration legal hurdles, the sentiments of global mobility to traditional intake countries have become more unwelcoming to international mobility.

But as traditional host locales retreat, new powers have stepped up to fill the vacuum left behind. There are now considerable opportunities for study abroad and exchanges in places that had previously only been considered as sending countries. International students and programs are now thriving in these up-and-coming regions, nations, or institutions, establishing them as new international education destinations.

Recognizing the tumult in established host countries and the rise of new destinations, the Study Abroad and International Students (SAIS) SIG calls on proposals that consider these perspectives along with the broader CIES theme of “Re-examining Education and Peace in a Divided World.” We welcome empirical studies, theoretical papers, or other applied research that looks at aspects of international students or study abroad from K-12 to higher education in this era, the past, or a projected future.

Note: Proposals are due August 26, 2025, at 11:59 pm ET through the CIES All Academic site. The conference will be held from March 28 to April 1, 2026 in San Francisco, CA, USA. See the CIES official website for more details.