According to a National Geographic global literacy survey, 87 percent of U.S. students between the ages of 18 and 24 cannot locate Iraq on a world map. Eighty-three percent cannot find Afghanistan and 58 percent cannot locate Japan.
Taking the survey into account, along with the belief that the U.S. educational system is responsible for ensuring that U.S. citizens are globally literate, the Senate designated 2006 as the year of study abroad.
“Now more than ever, America needs citizens who can understand and communicate with people all over the world,” said Sen. Richard Durbin from Illinois in a speech to the Senate. “The future of our nation depends on our ability to prepare the next generation of leaders for an increasingly complex global society.”
Durbin, who helped introduce the bill, said nearly 600,000 international students from more than 200 countries study in the U.S. each year, while less than one percent of U.S. students studies abroad. He also said that relationships developed from studying abroad are vital for a secure and prosperous future for the world.
“The future challenges that face all nations will require an unprecedented degree of understanding and cooperation among countries and their leaders,” Durbin said. “The experiences and lifelong friendships that result from studying abroad can help foster mutual understanding between the future leaders of the world.”
The resolution, passed Nov. 10, seeks to promote exposure to global knowledge and cultural understanding in addition to an education that the Senate believes prepares U.S. citizens to live, work and compete in the global economy.
“I think it’s great because it’s bringing attention to something that’s a great opportunity for students, and they’re hoping to increase the numbers nationwide,” Jennifer Ashcraft, a study abroad adviser, said.
Seth Crossno, a senior in marketing and a study abroad intern, studied in Vienna, Austria in 2004 for his spring semester and traveled to a lot of other countries in Europe – one of his favorite places being Dubrovnik, Croatia.
“After traveling to the major tourist cities such as Paris, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Venice and others, it was nice to spend a week in an amazing city that wasn’t full of tourists,” he said. “It’s a great place to vacation and is sort of under the radar of most tourists right now.”
Crossno said the security at the U.S. airports was more extensive than normal, and there were a few demonstrations in some of the cities. Most of the time the demonstrations were against the war, particularly the U.S. involvement in it, he said.
“I was notified by the Study Abroad Office in the pre-departure orientation that there may be displays of anti-American sentiment in the countries that I was going to travel in,” Crossno said. “We were advised to avoid such demonstrations, but there really wasn’t any danger in being present at the ones that I witnessed.”
Ashcraft said the program follows the U.S. State Department, meaning if the department issues a travel warning for a certain country then students aren’t sent there. The fall 2005 numbers show United Kingdom as the most popular destination with Peru close behind.
Long term, however, shows the most popular destinations are the United Kingdom and Australia, followed by France, Japan and Ecuador.
The highest number of study abroad participants was 564 in 2003, and the lowest number was in 1997 with 289.
“In 2004-05, we sent over 650 students abroad,” Ashcraft said. “The majority went on short term programs, such as our spring break and summer faculty-led programs. Over 150 students went on long-term programs, including semester and year abroad programs.”
One of the biggest myths about study abroad, Ashcraft said, is that students think they won’t be able to graduate on time or afford to study abroad.
“It’s not as economically difficult as a lot of people think it is,” she said. “We really try to help students make it work. We want to make it acceptable for everybody, and we’d like more students to come see us and ask us about it.”
Crossno believes that study abroad should be a requirement for graduation.
“It’s an incredibly valuable experience for personal and professional reasons,” he said. “With the amount of scholarships that the different departments award and the ability to pay N.C. State tuition at many host Universities around the world there’s really no reason not to.”
In addition to the traditional study abroad programs, there are winter, spring and fall break programs open to students 18 years of age with a 2.0 GPA. The spring break program is still available for West Africa. Applications are due by Jan. 30.
In persuading the Senate to pass the resolution, Durbin said that studying abroad can help students develop foreign language proficiency, improve decision-making skills, increase maturity and self-confidence and heighten a student’s cultural sensitivity.
“Studying abroad is also an effective way to promote the development of a peaceful global community, increase international trade and create goodwill towards the United States,” Durbin said. “An education that includes study abroad not only opens doors to careers, it opens minds and worlds of possibility.”
