Stacie Berdan - A Student Guide to Study Abroad

IIE publications can be purchased at: www.iiebooks.org

The Institute of International Education

809 United Nations Plaza, New York, New York 10017

2013 by the Institute of International Education

All rights reserved. Published 2013

Printed in the United States of America

ISBN-13: 978-0-87206-361-7

ISBN: 9780872063624

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Berdan, Stacie Nevadomski.

A student's guide to study abroad / by Stacie Nevadomski Berdan, Dr. Allan

Goodman, IIE President and CEO, Sir Cyril Taylor, AIFS Founder and Chairman.

pages cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-87206-361-7 (alk. paper)

1. Foreign study--Handbooks, manuals, etc. 2. College students--Travel-

Handbooks, manuals, etc. I.Title.

LB2376.B47 2013

370.116'2--dc23

2013020771

The views expressed in these chapters are solely those of the authors.

They do not necessarily represent the official positions of the

Institute of International Education or the AIFS Foundation.

Book editors:

Daniel Obst, Deputy Vice President for International Partnerships, IIE

Sharon Witherell, Director of Public Affairs, IIE

Copy Editor: Shepherd Laughlin

Jacket Design: HDN Studio, Inc.

Text Design: Pat Scully Design

This book is part of the Global Education Research Reports series, a joint effort of IIE and the AIFS Foundation to explore the most pressing and under-researched issues affecting international education policy today. Though many books have been written on the topic of study abroad, few provide in-depth explanations of all the considerations students must make before choosing a program. This book gives students and parents the tools they need to understand the implications and benefits of an international educational experience.

We would like to begin by thanking all the U.S. higher education institutions and leaders who make study abroad a priority, as well as the U.S. and foreign governments, private foundations, and other organizations who so generously provide scholarships and grants for American students to study abroad. In particular, the Fulbright Fellowship and Gilman Scholarship Programs of the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the Boren Scholarships and Fellowships of the National Security Education Program have made valuable international experiences possible for thousands of American studentsincluding many of those quoted in this book.

We are grateful to the IIE communications and Center for International Partnerships teams, especially Daniel Obst and Sharon Witherell, for guiding this project from inception to publishing, and to the AIFS Foundation, especially Bill Gertz and Melanie French, for their generous support and advice.

The IIE study abroad experts who work on the Gilman, Boren and Fulbright Scholarship and Fellowship programs, especially Daniel Kramer, Christopher Powers, Susan Sharp, Sarah Gleisner, Michelle Pickard and Lindsay Calvert, provided excellent substantive context as well as contacts with students who have taken part in the programs.

We could not have written this book without the contributions of many people who are quoted throughout the text. Those who studied abroad and offered their thoughtful insight, reflections of their experiences, and willingness to share their stories made the book much richer in texture and quality: Morgan Abate, Cindy Banyai, Jackie Barber, Taurean Barnwell, Taylor Binnix, Leslie Briggs, Darigg C. Brown, Kenneth Buff, Jessica Chesbro, Greg Chocheles, Beth Cubanski, Eamon Devine, Maya deVries, Natasha F.C. Diamond, Daniel Erchick, Arie Farnam, Isabelle Feldhaus, Eric Fischer, Shirah Foy, Ashley Gaona, Rachel Garaghty, April R. Gillens, Ivan Gonzales, Leah Goodridge, Kim Gordon, Elise Hannon, Brian Hardin, Claire Harrison, David Haury, Kristin Hoobler Morgan, Hope Johnson, Caroline Hicks, Robert Hurtekant, Garrett Langdon, Nicole Lawson, Anna Lippard, Mandie Maxwell, Perseus McDaniel, Jeanette Miranda, Victoria Mita, Nate Nault, Heather Nelson, Amy Newman, Marikaa Nixon, Caity OShaughnessy, Benjamin Pauker, Yasamin Ebrahimi Rahmani, Violeta A. Rosales, Bryan Rozycki, Daniel Schlemovitz, Caroline Siska, Crescendo Smalls, Christy Smith, Megan Smith, Jeremiah Swisher, Amarylis Velez-Perez, Cody White, Peter D.A. Wood, and Benjamin, Melissa, Stephanie and Susannah who requested that their last names not be used.

The business leaders and academics validated the content by providing quotes and anecdotes that enhanced the text: Frank Abate, division manager, JM&A Group; Marty Abbott, executive director of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL); Nicholas Bassey, placement manager, Peace Corps, and former director, Institute for International Public Policy Fellowship Program; Harold Burson, founding chairman, Burson-Marsteller; Nancy Cave, coordinator, Study Abroad Program, Manhattan College; Curtis S. Chin, former U.S. Ambassador to the Asian Development Bank and managing director, RiverPeak Group, LLC; Steve Finikiotis, principal & founder of Osprey; Bruce La Brack, professor emeritus, School of International Studies, University of the Pacific; Adam Michaels, principal, Booz & Co.; Steve Miranda, managing director, Cornell University Center for Advanced HR Studies; Eduardo J. Padrn, president, Miami Dade College; Donald L. Rubin, professor emeritus of communication studies and language and literacy education and research director, GLOSSARI, University of Georgia; John Sexton, president, New York University; Susan Sample, associate professor, School of International Studies, University of the Pacific; Susan Sygall, CEO and co-founder, Mobility International USA; Raghuram Tadepalli, dean and professor of marketing, Martha and Spencer Love School of Business, Elon University; and the Delaware Valley Re-Entry Conference Committee (John Duncan, Terra Dotta; Alayne Frymoyer, Philadelphia University; Jonathan Hakim, University of Pennsylvania; Marcia Henisz, Drexel University; Sara Lynott, Temple University; Lezlie McCabe, Temple University; Ahaji Schreffler, Drexel University; Danielle Scugoza, University of Pennsylvania; Rachel Tarlecky, Arcadia University; Nicholas Wagner, Drexel University; and Amanda Zimmerman, Arcadia University).

And for those who are not quoted but provided important information: LynneTarter, director of solutions, TMC | A Berlitz Company, for information on culture shock; Cerise Roth-Vinson, chief operating officer, Mobility International USA, for information on persons with disabilities.

Particular thanks to Marshall S. Berdan, whose thoughtful comments and superb editing skills made the book a significantly better read; to Shepherd Laughlin for his careful and helpful proofreading; and to Shannon Harrison, Barbara Taff and Madeline Friedman at IIE for their contributions in design and production. Thanks also to Morgan Abate who played a significant role in researching elements of the book and providing a college freshmans expectations of both the content and the writing style. Special thanks to those who read the manuscript: Hannah Cole, Beth Cubanski, Benjamin Pauker and Rebecca Weiner. Their individual and collective feedback made the books structure, flow and content much stronger.

Thanks also to Pat Scully Design for design and layout of the book and to HDN Studio, Inc. for the jacket design.

Finally, we are deeply grateful to the hundreds of students who took the Study Abroad Survey, enabling us to gather and share information in real time about recent study abroad experiences. Thanks also to the many professors, college administrators, and study abroad advisers who took the time to discuss the merits of this book and how best for us to advise todays students considering studying abroad.