Towards long-term international collaboration in computer science education

Student success in a globally distributed organization requires effective communication skills to deal with the barriers that are inherent in such settings. This paper proposes to provide students the opportunity to be involved in collaborative “real-world” projects. International collaboration in computer science education can provide both technical and cultural benefits for all parties involved. This paper represents a work-in-progress report on the first stages of preparation to start an active long-term collaboration in computer science education between Eastern Michigan University (USA) and the University of Anbar (Iraq). We present an informal timeline for developing such collaborations and enumerate potential projects. In addition, anticipated difficulties are articulated.