Art history and architecture in Rome, French in Lyon, International Finance in London, jet setting around the world on a cruise ship. Academic advisors will enthusiastically spout the endless advantages of study abroad, labeling the experience as “priceless.” Yet with today’s financial state, the fine line between “priceless” and “too pricey” sometimes pushes away potential study abroad students from a life-changing, global perspective enhancing opportunity. Compounding the fiscal problems are bureaucratic transfers of credit technicalities, graduation requirements, and varying departmental support.
The first thing that a student learns from a general information session is the difference between the University’s direct credit programs and outside, transfer credit programs. The former will breezily transfer grades, while the latter often is often an uphill battle. Beyond even the mere transfer of credit issue is the price. How invaluable is this experience? Is a semester cruise around the world worth twenty thousand dollars? Is a six week, six credit summer program affordable at nine thousand dollars? While the University offers many direct exchange programs, it is primarily the summer programs that achieve direct-credit status. The lure of summer programs results from the flexible season and the direct credit opportunity. 48% of students doing study abroad opt for the summer session, versus Fall, Spring or January terms, in a 2007 survey compiled by the University’s International Studies Office. The summer season also is the most expensive time to study abroad, clashing with the peak tourism season. The short length and smaller enrollment of the programs also increase expenses, resulting in prices roughly equivalent to what a student could pay for a semester at an outside institution.
Perhaps even more difficult than the affordability issue is the transfer of credit process. The International Studies Office strive to create a perfect system in the “Transfer of credit equivalency database,” that approves equivalent credit for study abroad classes. However, the differing academic systems of the world prevent many students from registering for courses until they are at their new study abroad university, and the ‘perfect’ system fails.
For example, Sarah Music, a third-year student who is studying in Lund, Sweden, stated in an e-mail, “I have no idea whether the courses I am taking this year will be approved for credit or not!” Students who choose to study in unusual locations or with outside programs should not be unjustly punished and stressed for their adventurous decisions.
Marina Markot, Associate Director for Study Abroad, acknowledged that, “It’s a nice database of courses, and is a good reference point, but it is not a perfect system.” Other credit woes result from the difficulty in fulfilling area requirements abroad, which aside from the foreign language requirement cannot generally be fulfilled abroad. An international student could earn credit for a University area requirement for a course taken prior to matriculation at the University. Meanwhile, a University student could not go abroad to the international student’s aforementioned school and receive equivalent credit. Confused? It gets worse.
For example, for students in the College, of the 120 degree credits you earn to graduate, no fewer than 102 must be from inside the College. If you choose to study abroad at an “outside institution,” or institution that does not have a direct credit agreement with the University, these courses will not count towards these 102 credits, unless you get classes departmentally approved for major or minor credit.
Though the logistics, planning and effort that goes into study abroad may perhaps be good practice for dealing with bungling red taped bureaucracy, it seems that the paperwork-induced migraine should be alleviated to encourage more study abroad participation. In the 2007 and 2008 statistics report compiled by the University, 10.7 percent of all undergraduates and 6.4 percent of graduate students participated in education abroad. This number is continually increasing, but other schools outshine the University. At Dickinson College, a school renowned for it’s study abroad program, approximately 58 percent of the class had studied abroad by graduation.
Other inequities exist within the various schools at the University. The Architecture and the Commerce schools lead in percentage of study abroad enrollment, with 22 and 18 percent respectively, while the College ranks third with a respectable 11 percent. Taking the latter three spots are the School of Education, Nursing and Engineering, with 6, 5 and 4 percent. These schools follow a specialized, technical curriculum track, perhaps discouraging students by creating doubts of getting behind. Yet future is in globalization. Nursing, healthcare and education are sought world wide, particularly in third world countries and areas of poverty and need. Many of the top engineering firms and companies are based in Europe or Asia. Study abroad education should be embraced by all schools at the University, not suspect as a “lesser” academic experience.
Study abroad is often one of the best experiences of a student’s life, bridging the gap between world, life and classroom learning. While it is worth all of the monetary, transfer-of-credit problems, study abroad needs to be revamped if it wants to increase student participation.
Kendra Kirk is a Viewpoint Writer for The Cavalier Daily.
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