Rajika
Bhandari
TOPICS
International Higher Education
International and Foreign Students
Access and Equity Issues in Education
Women and Education
Being a Skilled Immigrant in the U.S.
The Asian American Identity and Experience
International Exchanges between the U.S. and India
Rajika is available as a keynote speaker and to moderate discussions on topics such as international higher education; international and foreign students; access and equity issues in education; women and education; being a skilled immigrant in the U.S.; the Asian American identity and experience; and international exchanges between the U.S. and India.
BOOKING REQUEST
Campus Talks & Keynotes
OHIO WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY. From Arriving to Thriving: Serving the Whole International Student, November 2025
UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO. From Arriving to Surviving to Thriving: Serving the Whole International Student, June 2025
RUTGERS UNIVERSITY. America Calling: How Our Universities Connect the World. Rutgers Global Summer Retreat, August 2024
JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY. International Career Summit, International Career Collective, November 2024
UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS, DARTMOUTH. America Calling: Arriving and Thriving in the U.S. as an International Student, September 2024
UNIVERSITY OF MAINE. From Surviving to Thriving: Ensuring that we serve the whole international student, April 2024
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY (NYU). America Calling: How Our Universities Attract the World's Talent and Why it Matters, International Education Week, November 2023
YALE UNIVERSITY. America Calling: Arriving and Thriving in the U.S. as an International Student and Scholar, October 2023
KEAN UNIVERSITY. Honors Convocation Speaker, May 2023
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN. South Asian Awareness Network (SAAN) Conference, March 2023
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY. Supporting International Students Globally: Where to Go From Here. International Education Week, November 2022
KENYON COLLEGE. Global Engagement Week, October 2022
UNIVERSITY OF DENVER. Internationalization Summit, May 2022
GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY. South Asian Heritage Month, March 2022
SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY. International Education Week, November 2021
GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY. Commencement Speaker, Masters in International Education Program. May 2021
O.P. JINDAL GLOBAL UNIVERSITY. Internationalization and entry of foreign institutions in India. September 2020
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY. COVID-19: The end or revival of international higher education? Center for Studies in Higher Education, May 2020
BOSTON COLLEGE. Symposium on Intelligent Internationalization: The shape of things to come, Center for International Higher Education, November 2018
Organizations & Associations: Keynotes & Talks
GLOBAL UNIVERSITY SYSTEMS. Annual Partner Meeting. Cannes, France, March 2025
COUNCIL OF GRADUATE SCHOOLS (CGS). Annual meeting, Washington DC, December 2023
SHAMES JCC ON THE HUDSON. America Calling: How Our Universities Attract the World's Talent and Why it Matters, Reynard Lecture Series, Tarrytown, NY, January 2023
ONE TO WORLD. Annual Meeting, New York University, NY, October 2022
WASHINGTON INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION CONFERENCE. Washington DC, March 2022
AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL RECRUITMENT COUNCIL (AIRC). Annual Conference, Miami, Florida, December 2021
ASIA SOCIETY. Interview with Kevin Rudd, President of Asia Society, Asian Americans Building America Series, August 2022
U.S.-INDIA EDUCATION FOUNDATION (THE FULBRIGHT COMMISSION). International Education Week, November 2021
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY WOMEN (AAUW). In conversation with Gloria Blackwell, President and CEO, September, 2021
SOCIETY OF INTERCULTURAL TRAINING AND RESEARCH (SEITAR). Book talk, September 2021
PRESIDENTS' ALLIANCE ON HIGHER EDUCATION AND IMMIGRATION. Book launch, September 2021
ENGAGE ASIA, Book launch, Irvington, NY, September 2021
INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR COLLEGE ADMISSIONS COUNSELING (IACAC). Conference, July 2021
ISEP and the GLOBAL LEADERSHIP LEAGUE. Women Leading Transformative Change in Higher Education. June 2021
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF MEDICAL COLLEGES and WEILL CORNELL MEDICINE-QATAR. The role of higher education in promoting diversity in education abroad. December 2020
PRESIDENTS' ALLIANCE ON HIGHER EDUCATION AND IMMIGRATION and MIGRATION POLICY INSTITUTE. First- and second-generation immigrant students in higher education. October 2020
Conferences & Festivals: Invited Talks
P3.EDU ANNUAL CONFERENCE. Recruiting in India and China, Atlanta, GA, November 2025
JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY. Internationalization of Higher Education: U.S.-India Collaborations for Global Competitiveness, Hopkins India Conference, Washington DC, May 2025
NAFSA: ASSOCIATION OF INTERNATIONAL EDUCATORS ANNUAL CONFERENCE. Women leaders in international education. San Diego, CA, May 2025
SXSW EDU & SXSW. America Calling: The impact of global higher education. Austin, TX, March 2025
EURASIA HIGHER EDUCATION (EURIE) SUMMIT. Migrants with Mortar Boards: Serving the Whole International Student. March 2022
TIMES HIGHER EDUCATION STUDENT FESTIVAL. America Calling: Five tips for succeeding in the U.S. as an international student. September 9, 2021
STAR SCHOLARS Network Conference. Moderator and Host, A. Noam Chomsky Global Connections Awards and Closing Ceremony, Special address by Professor Noam Chomsky, December, 2020
GLOBAL TALENT SUMMIT. The Evolving Role of Employers in Dealing with the Needs of Working Parents, organized by Diplomatic Courier and Minerva, September 2020
ASSOCIATION OF INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION ADMINISTRATORS (AIEA) TOWN HALL. How international education can contribute to racial and social justice, June 2020
TIMES OF INDIA. Mission Admission: Options for Indian students seeking international education, May 2020
WISE SUMMIT. Access to quality: how higher education competes for talent, Qatar, November 2019
NATIONAL CHINESE LANGUAGE CONFERENCE. Pathways and Trends for Global Education. Organized by the Asia Society and the College Board, San Diego, May 2019
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE (AAAS) SCIENCE AND POLICY FORUM. International Students and Global STEM Talent: Implications for Science and Innovation, Washington, DC, May 2019
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION (NSF) WORKSHOP. International Center-Level Collaborations to Enhance Research and Workforce Development, Washington DC, April 2019
AMERICAN COUNCIL ON EDUCATION (ACE) ANNUAL MEETING. International students: Institutional strategies in difficult times, Philadelphia, March 2019
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION (NSF) DISTINGUISHED LECTURE SERIES. Global academic mobility and knowledge flows: Megatrends, challenges and opportunities, Washington, DC, December 2018
UNESCO. UNESCO Global Education Monitoring Report Launch, United Nations, New York, November 2018
RESEARCH, EVALUATION AND LEARNING SUMMIT, ADVISORY COMMISSION ON PUBLIC DIPLOMACY., Washington DC, February 2018
IIE WASHINGTON FORUM and the HOUSE INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE CAUCUS. Economic impacts of international exchange: a Capitol Hill briefing on trends in student mobility. Wash. DC, January 2018
Literary Events
ASSOCIATION OF WRITERS AND WRITING PROGRAMS (AWP) ANNUAL CONFERENCE. Writing With an Accent: Immigrant Women's Voices in the U.S., Seattle, WA, March 2023
FALL FOR THE BOOK LITERARY FESTIVAL, GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY, Fairfax, VA, October, 2022
WRITING FROM THE HEART: STORY CIRCLE ANNUAL CONFERENCE Keynote: Finding My Voice (Accent Included!): My Journey as an Immigrant Writer, September 2022
BOSWELL BOOK COMPANY. In conversation with Elly Fishman, author of Refugee High, , Milwaukee, June 13, 2002
OCTAVIA BOOKS. In conversation with Megan Holt, Executive Director of One Book One New Orleans, hosted by New Orleans, February 21, 2022.
DUENDE BOOKS. In conversation with Vinod Busjeet, author of Silent Winds, Dry Seas, Dec. 7 2021
VILLAGE BOOKSTORE AND THE IRVINGTON PUBLIC LIBRARY. Book launch, in conversation with best-selling author, Reyna Grande,Irvington, NY, Sep. 13, 2021
BRONX BOOK FAIR. Keynote, Understanding the "other" The Power of Education. July 31, 2021
WOMEN'S NATIONAL BOOK ASSOCIATION. South Asian Author Panel, San Francisco Chapter, May 21, 2021.
INDO-AMERICAN ARTS COUNCIL (IACC) LITERARY FESTIVAL. Historical fiction: Shared histories, new interpretations. New York, October 2015.
FIRST ANNUAL INDO-AMERICAN ARTS COUNCIL LITERARY FESTIVAL. Led the curation of the festival in partnership with IACC and the South Asia Institute at Columbia University, New York, November 2014.
ROLI BOOKS. New Delhi launch of The Raj on the Move: In conversation with Pushpesh Pant, food critic and historian, CYMYK Bookstore, New Delhi, India, January 2013
INDO-AMERICAN ARTS COUNCIL. NYC book launch of The Raj on the Move, Leila Heller Gallery, New York, December 2012
Shows and Podcast Appearances
The Rational Middle Podcast, November 2022
The Higher Ed Spotlight, November 2022
The Melting Pot, September 2022
Strive: Toward a more just, sustainable future, May 2022
The EdUp Experience, March 2022
KQED Forum, Jan. 2022
Brown People We Know Podcast, Oct. 22, 2021
The Speak Good Podcast, Oct. 17, 2021
The nuWriters Podcast, Sep. 14, 2021
Dropping In with Diane Dewey Podcast, Sep. 3 2021
Desi Books, Aug. 31, 2021
The Learning Future Podcast with Louka Parry, July, 2021
