41 NACTA Journal • March 2015 Abstract The purpose of this study was to explore the com- petencies and experiences valued by prospective employers in the agriculture and natural resources (ANR) industry to understand if study abroad expe- riences increase employability. All recruiters agreed interpersonal communication and leadership skills are necessary to be effective in their organizations and a majority of the recruiters had an interest in hiring employees with previous study abroad experience despite somewhat ambivalent views on the importance of cultural and global competencies for employees. Facilitators of study abroad programs in ANR should emphasize the skills sought by recruiters and overtly create opportunities for students to develop these skills. Introduction/Theoretical Framework The international expansion of businesses in the 21st century has underscored the need for talented and trained college graduates prepared to work in a global economy; agricultural companies are no different (Bybee and Fuchs, 2006; Dunavant and Heiss, 2005; McDowell et al., 2008). Flattening of the world (Friedman, 2006) through increases in trade agree- ments and rapid advances in technology has expanded many agricultural companies into international organi- zations with hubs in many nations. Examples include Syngenta, Archer Daniels Midland and John Deere. As agricultural companies increase their global positions, they “have begun to recognize the importance of recruit- ing personnel with knowledge and understanding of cultural issues, as well as the capacity to manage rela- tionships and a culturally diverse workforce” (Crossman and Clarke, 2009, p. 599). Employers often do not put much value in study abroad programs despite wanting students to have inter- national experiences (Crawford et al., 2011). Crawford et al., (2011) found employers, students, faculty and alumni rank international experiences the lowest of all experiences that students are exposed to during their academic careers. According to Matherly (2004), managers think study abroad programs are flled mostly with “students [who] lived with other Americans, took courses from U.S. professors and socialized mostly among themselves” (Herren, 2006; Matherly, 2004, p. 9). However, Gardner et al., (2009) found many of these managers “had no frst-hand experience with these programs because study abroad was not available to them during their undergraduate days or they were not aware these programs existed” (p. 19). Study abroad programs provide students with the opportunity to learn about another culture while continuing their education through a variety of activities and experiences. Nearly 280,000 students in the United States participated in a study abroad program in 2011 (Redden, 2012). Students today understand the importance of diversifying their educational portfolio to ensure better candidacy for employment (JWT Education, 2003), and employers are looking for “graduates [who] are capable of contributing to ‘economic competitiveness in a global context’” (Cranmer, 2006, p. 170). However, students need assistance “unpacking” these international experiences (Crawford et al., 2011). The responsibility is on students to effectively articu- late how their study abroad participation enhanced their employability given that managers may be misinformed or negatively prejudiced against study abroad experi- ence. Despite evidence indicating managers have poor opinions of study abroad experience, Matherly (2004) indicated companies have an interest in students with “meaningful ‘real world experience’ with another culture” and who can “speak about [their] experience in terms of the transferable skills that he or she developed while abroad and how they can be applied to the workplace” (p. 9). The conficting research highlights the need to better understand how students with study abroad expe- rience can frame their experiences in messages that are understood and valued by prospective employers. The study reported in the following sections was intended to address this need. Does Study Abroad Increase Employability? A. Harder 1 , A. Andenoro 2 , T.G. Roberts 3 , N. Stedman 4 , M. Newberry III 5 , S.J. Parker 6 , M.T. Rodriguez 7 University of Florida Gainesville, FL 1-7 Department of Agricultural Education & Communication, PO Box 112060, Gainesville, FL 32611-2060. Ph: 352-392-0502. 1 amharder@uf.edu, 2 andenoro@uf.edu, 3 groberts@uf.edu, 4 nstedman@uf.edu, 5 miltonius3@uf.edu, 6 s.janine.parker@uf.edu, 7 mary.rodriguez@uf.edu _._ ......... _.01 ......... connect I develop I achieve