Colleges Report an Increase in Study Abroad

I know that 30 or 40 years ago, students studied abroad. But it wasn’t quite as easy or inexpensive as it is today. Although we weren’t exactly packing a trunk and riding in steerage for months, foreign travel was still something of a luxury that few could afford.

All that has changed now, as colleges are making study abroad options accessible to virtually any student with dreams of visiting foreign countries and experiencing new cultures.

In fact, new report by the Institute of International Education (IIE) and the Forum on Education Abroad shows that increasing number of US college students are taking advantage of study abroad options offered on their campuses. IIE’s Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange counted 270,604 US students studying abroad for credit during the academic year 2009-10, an increase of 4 percent over the previous year.

“The survey results are extremely encouraging and reflect the strong commitment for and belief in the value of study abroad,” said Brian Whalen, President and CEO of the Forum on Education Abroad. “U.S. campuses, provider organizations and overseas partner institutions have worked together during these challenging economic times to make education abroad accessible for more students.”

In the 2011 IIE survey, the majority of colleges indicated that they had taken proactive steps to strengthen study abroad participation in the past year. Sixty-one percent added new short-term faculty led programs, and 36 percent offered new “bilateral” exchange programs to enable more students to have overseas experiences.

A number of local colleges and universities were among the schools with the highest undergraduate participation rates for study abroad. American University (56.6%), Georgetown University (50.8%), the College of William & Mary (43.9%), and George Washington (43.6%) were in the top 40 doctorate institutions. Loyola University of Maryland (80.5%) came in 6^th among master’s institutions, and Goucher (97%), the University of Richmond (67.2%), and Washington and Lee University (63.9%) were listed as top 40 baccalaureate institutions.

Without separating by size, the following 25 colleges had the highest percentages of undergraduates going abroad during the 2009-10 academic year:

1. Austin College, TX: 347 students/114.9% of total degrees conferred
2. Hamline University, MN: 467/106.9%
3. Wofford College, SC: 336/105.7%
4. St. Olaf College, MN: 745/104.1%
5. Lee University, TN: 630/99.2%
6. Arcadia University, PA: 491/98.4%
7. Earlham College, IN: 207/97.6%
8. Elon University, NC: 1087/97.2%
9. Goucher College, MD: 321/97%
10. Centre College, KY: 275/93.9%
11. Taylor University, IN: 455/92.5%
12. University of Dallas, TX: 234/91.4%
13. Lewis and Clark, OR: 329/91.1%
14. DePauw University, IN: 432/88%
15. Oberlin College, OH: 559/86.8%
16. Colorado College, CO: 408/83.3%
17. Kalamazoo College, MI: 253/83.2%
18. Loyola University of Maryland: 668/80.5%
19. Luther College, IA: 433/78%
20. Carleton College, MN: 385/77.5%
21. Hanover College, IN: 121/74.2%
22. University of San Diego, CA: 825/71.4%
23. Wartburg College, IA: 259/70.8%
24. Pepperdine University, CA: 591/70.2%
25. University of Denver, CO: 824/69.7%
    

And NYU wins the top award for sending the most students abroad—4,156. Michigan State (2,589) and the University of Southern California (2,500) came in second and third respectively.

For the complete report, visit the Institute of International Education website.