I probably have a lot of regrets from my colleges days, if I really think about it. But, I can say that my biggest academic regret is that I never participated in any study abroad type of experience. In my defence, i was in school 15 years ago, and I do not really remember ever hearing specifics about the opportunity....but I certainly could have asked, if I had thought about it.
According to the the article Back On Track in inside Higher Ed, participation in study abroad experiences has increase every year (with a light dip in 2009-2010) for decades. So, maybe that was why do not remember being exposed to the options...maybe there were not many. Why is it my biggest regret? Aside from a brief jaunt to Mexico (the touristy part) and an even more brief stop in the Bahamas (part of a childhood Disney cruise), I have never travelled outside of the US. My list of all the places I would like to go continues to grow- but I wonder how i will ever get to see it all. And it is not just about "seeing it", I would like to :live it". To be really immersed into another culture....that is what I want.
Okay, enough about what I would have done differently.....the article addresses both study abroad of American students and international students at US institutions of higher education. A lot of stats were thrown around the article about who is coming to the US, who is going abroad, where are all these students going, etc. So, i will regurgitate some of those for you in case you do not get around to reading this article.
While the number of American students participating in a study abroad experience is on a steady growth, only 1% of the students population actually participates. This is really interesting to me. At my institution, it was reported that 12% of our student population takes advantage of some type of experience. I am not sure if this fact is a selling point to prospective students, but we in Admissions sure use it as highlight to differentiate our school among other Colorado schools. Although, I must admit, I have no idea what other Colorado schools report as there percentage of participation in study abroad. UNC's statistic does sound impressive, but then i read this article and learned that some schools are sending 90%+ of the undergraduate population abroad. Of course, most of these schools are small Private liberal arts institutions. Interestingly, University of Denver has the third largest participation rate - behind university of San Diego and Pepperdine. While these schools have the highest participation (some mathematical equation of number of student traveling and number of students in graduation call, as detailed in the article), New York university, Michigan State and university of Southern California are the schools that send the most students abroad. While new York and California make sense to me- I was surprised to see Michigan on that list. Anyone know why so many students from Michigan??? Seriously, I don't have an answer, so i was hoping one of you might have some insight!
Not surprising, given the demographic of student enrolling in college, it is white women who are most likely to participate. That makes me wonder, why is it that men are not as likely to leave? And, do we as Student Affairs professional have a responsibility to better educate men and students from an under-represented population about the benefits of an international experience?
The article also reports that while social science majors have been the students historically participating in study abroad, there is an increase in business, agriculture, and engineering majors in the last few years. Mexico and japan are two countries where US students used to go, but both are on the decline in recent years. England, Italy, and Spain continue to top the charts, but more students are starting to make their way into Africa, Asian countries, and Middle Eastern areas as well.
I find that the article neglects to report on the WHY. Why are certain counties experiencing increases or decreases in American visitations? Why are some schools more likely to send students than others? Why is there a sudden boom in majors outside of humanities and social sciences? Why should people participate?
The article does attribute the sudden dip in 2009-2010 participation to the recession. And then alludes to the rising numbers now that the recession is over. Did I miss the end of the recession? Last I checked, most people still thought we were in it! Another blog for another time :)
While I cannot comment on the increase from Michigan, I found the other questions allowed a response from what I see in my work.
ReplyDeleteI cannot provide numbers to this response I would have to say I think some increases and decreases in visitation can be due to the program the student is in here in the US. For example, we discuss with our student study abroad options but the study abroad office also puts out a booklet that tells students, to some extent, where they can go. For our major students are somewhat limited - the booklet only lists three to four countries that are compatible with our major. Of course, we have students go outside of these options but we then discuss that it may extend their program from 4 years to 4.5 years if not more. Some of this is due to the transferring of courses back into our major.
Regarding the boom outside of the humanities and social sciences, I would argue it might partly be due to the idea of globalization and the idea of being a graduate. Having an abroad immersion experience could assist students in getting a broader or rather a global experience to bring to their field.
I think the opportunity to study abroad is an amazing option but it is not the cheapest and with all that is concerning with student debt I wonder how much of an impact this has on our students. In addition, for numbers to go up in a recession my assumption would be this experience may be tacked on to student loans.
Having been abroad myself, I cannot imagine not having the experience. The experience broadens my perspective and I think allows to me to approach my work differently.
With more women in college than men, the likeliness of women studying abroad seems to make sense. Except for the areas of study………..business, ag, and engineering.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised about the small population of how many have participated in a study abroad program. I would say in talking with the people around me, many have. This could be because I work in a university setting, not sure. Even if not for a year abroad, a term, a week long alternative spring break, etc.
Nationally though only a small percentage of Americans even own a passport ~more than 10%. What does this say about people even wanting to travel abroad? In all fairness, the Euro is tough to match with the dollar. It is not cheap to buy things once abroad even if you are paying your country rates for tuition.
In thinking about your regret of not studying abroad-you can always travel or do something. Go on a short term cooking/language course, volunteer after retirement for the Peace Corps, serve as an advisor for a student lead trip during spring break abroad, so many options.
Michele,
ReplyDeleteI am not sure about the Michigan thing, but as a Minnesotan, I can hypothesize that they may just want to get out of there. (I, myself love gloomy, dreary weather, but most of my people want to get out to warmer places.) :)
Seriously though. I too had the great regret of not studying abroad in college. I traveled with the Wind Ensemble to Europe for two weeks, but I had wished I had done a semester in London or New Zealand or wherever.
After my Master's Program and after a handful of years working in Student Affairs, I applied as a professional staff member on Semester at Sea. I ended up sailing in Fall 2002 and Spring 2004 and it was still a life changing experience.
So, I tell you that it is not too late! Go to semesteratsea.org and look under "employment opportunities"...it changed my life and erased my regret from undergrad. Career wise, it was also an excellent professional development experience. Plus, you know, I sailed around the world a couple of times. Pretty awesome.
Think about it!
As I have been traveling and exploring many colleges with my daughter over the past years, one area that all colleges are promoting is their study abroad programs. Each university has discussed some of the options at length and are promoting to all students not matter their area of study. I believe that these are amazing opportunities and I do hope that many students can take advantage of the program.
ReplyDeleteWe have had our children involved with high school over seas travel for the past three years. They have traveled to Paris, London and toured Italy. These experiences have been priceless! And the cost was actually very reasonable.
KU even offered the student to put together their own overseas opportunity for themselves if there were areas that they wanted to travel and explore but there wasn't a program set for that area.
Any and all students that have studied abroad recommend it and say it was one of the best things they have ever done. I hope they continue to keep it affordable and keep the opportunities coming!!
It's interesting post Michael.
ReplyDeleteThe most effective way for an individual to adopt a global perspective is to travel internationally, spend time in countries and with people native to those countries, and reflect on that experience.However, not everyone has the resources to conduct such travel, so the following suggestions begin with those that can be accomplished by individuals on their own campus . These include seeking non American perspectives, building relationships with international students and professors,developing relationships with international cyber-partners, using professional associations, and conducting research. That require cooperation with others on campus or greater investment of time and resources, including learning a foreign language and studying abroad.
I too, regret not studying abroad in and a graduate experience. I did have the opportunity to study abroad and high school which I did take a full advantage of, living in Germany for a few months. As a 16 year old, however, I feel like this experience was much different than it could have been if I had studied abroad as a college student. I also had the opportunity to grow up abroad in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, so I feel that this is also changed my world view.
ReplyDeleteHowever, when I did go to the study of our office at my undergraduate institution, I was not met with friendly faces nor helpful administrators. Instead I was directed at a wall brochures and told good luck finding what you want. I had so many questions, but no one in the study abroad office was able to answer any of them. It made me wonder what my student fees are paying for, and why bother even having an office. It really put a damper on my desire to study abroad. Had they been more helpful, I believe that I would have made it abroad.