Some of the most popular study abroad programs include those sponsored by a student's home institution, by another U.S. college or university, or by a consortium of U.S. colleges or universities. These programs are designed to allow students to study in a foreign environment while remaining within a U.S. academic framework. Credit transfer is arranged by the sponsoring and programs typically align with traditional U.S. academic calendars. The U.S. sponsor institution will typically assist with housing arrangements, and may arrange cultural activities and excursions for participating students. Study center are known as "island programs" because create separate classes and spaces for U.S. and foreign students.
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Tuesday 14 June 2011
Funding study abroad
Costs for a study abroad program include, but are not limited to tuition and fees, room and board, medical insurance, passport and visa fees and transportation costs. While U.S. universities vary in terms of policies related to financing study abroad, financial aid for U.S. students who wish to study abroad may include a combination of scholarships, grants from the home university, government student loans, and private student loans.
Funding study abroad
Costs for a study abroad program include, but are not limited to tuition and fees, room and board, medical insurance, passport and visa fees and transportation costs. While U.S. universities vary in terms of policies related to financing study abroad, financial aid for U.S. students who wish to study abroad may include a combination of scholarships, grants from the home university, government student loans, and private student loans.
Criticism
In mid-2007, New York's attorney general opened an inquiry into the relationships between universities and providers of study abroad. According to the lawyer, Benjamin Lawsky, deputy counselor in the office of Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo, the inquiry was to focus on whether cash incentives and other perks that study abroad providers give universities influence their decisions about where students may study. Critics contend that the practices, rarely disclosed and largely unknown, limit study abroad options and drive up the price that is ultimately passed onto students. The investigation follows disclosures in The New York Times that providers of study abroad are offering colleges rebates, free and subsidized travel, unpaid seats on advisory boards, help with back-office services and marketing stipends. In some cases, perks are tied to the number of students universities send to a given provider’s program. When asked, Lawsky said that the inquiry grew out of his office's inquiries into similar practices in the student loan industry.
Four basic program models
Four basic models have been identified to refer to a study abroad program's structure. They consist of (a) Island, (b) Integrated, (c) Hybrid, and (d) Field-study programs.
- Island - Students participating in island programs study alongside other American students in a study center. Island programs are typically sponsored U.S. universities and/or third-party providers, who develop a curriculum specifically with American students in mind.
- Integrated Students who participate on an integrated program enroll directly in courses alongside local students at a host university. Program sponsors may provide additional services such as assistance with course registration and language tutoring.
Duration
Study abroad programs are available to students throughout the year. However, the majority enroll in Semester or Summer programs (37.3% and 35.8%). Even though the total number of outbound U.S. students grew by over 100,000 from 2000/01 to 2008/09, the percentages of students studying abroad during a given term remained largely stable. However, the long-term trends of steadily relatively fewer students signing up for Academic Year programs in favor of growing enrollments in programs less than 8 weeks during the Academic Year. Duration of U.S. Study Abroad (% of Total), 1999/00 - 2008/09.
Types of programs
Despite the slight decline in U.S. students studying abroad for credit in 2008-2009, study abroad is likely to continue to grow. The number of outgoing U.S. students pursuing overseas study has increased over fivefold since the late 1980s, from less than 50,000 students to more than 260,000 in 2008-09. Behind the numbers, though, has been the proliferation in the type study abroad programs. According to Lilli Engel of the American University Center of Provence, there are fundamental differences in the academic and cultural experience offered by study abroad programs today that suggest the need to create a level-based classification system for program types. In an influential Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad article, she compares "a one-month summer term, requiring little or no host language proficiency, with subject-matter classes in English, collective housing and American roommates" with "a full-year program for students of advanced linguistic proficiency housed individually in a host family and directly enrolled in local university courses or engaged in a professional internship or service-learning project."
Trends
Despite flat overall study abroad numbers, there were notable increases in the numbers of U.S. students going to some of the less traditional destinations for study abroad in 2008/09. Double digit increases to host countries among the top 25 destinations include Argentina, Chile,Denmark, the Netherlands, Peru, South Africa and South Korea. Double-digit decreases among the top 25 host countries include Mexico (which experienced H1N1 virus outbreak that year), Austria and India.
History
The University of Delaware is typically credited with creating the first study abroad program designed for U.S. undergraduate students in the 1920s. Professor Raymond W. Kirkbride, a French professor and World War I veteran, won support from university president Walter S.
Study abroad in the United States
Studying abroad is the act of a student pursuing educational opportunities in a country other than one's own. This can include primary, secondary and post-secondary students. In the United States, 260,327 students studied abroad for academic credit in 2008-2009, which represented a modest decline of 0.8% from the previous year's record high of 262,214, according to the most recent "Open Doors Report on International Education Exchange" report. The number of students studying abroad still represents only about 1% of all students enrolled at institutions of higher education in the United States.
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