University making progress on study abroad goals

The university’s study abroad program achieved its highest ranking ever this year in a national report that shows it continues to lag behind some of its peers despite recent improvement.

The Institute of International Education, a non-profit organization focused on higher education global learning, ranked the university’s program 25th. The institute based its rankings on the percentage of university students who spent time abroad.

Three of the university’s five peer institutions — University of Illinois, University of California - Los Angeles and University of Michigan — finished ahead of the university, while University of North Carolina finished 27th and the University of California - Berkeley did not place. As administrators have increased the emphasis on international studies in its 10-year Strategic Plan, they hailed the university’s improvement.

Michael Ulrich, the university’s director for international education services, said his department has recently received more attention from colleges that had never considered granting credit for courses taken abroad and from students looking for alternatives to the traditional European destinations.

“We have programs in countries that have never been offered before, and we have more programs in underrepresented majors, like education and engineering,” he said. “Faculty from these departments have been coming to us and saying that they want to internationalize their curriculum and offerings, and we’ve been helping them do that.”

And while most university departments are experiencing layoffs and budget cuts, the Department of International Education Services has been expanding.

“We don’t get funding directly from the university, the fees that students pay cover our operations, marketing and advertising,” Ulrich said.

Lisa Alton, the coordinator for marketing and outreach in the university’s international programs office, said she was particularly impressed that the profile of the university’s study abroad offerings have risen in the midst of a global recession.

“Reporters have been calling us for the last year asking how the economy is affecting our numbers, but we’re not seeing our numbers go down,” Alton said. “I think that students know that studying abroad is such an important part of their education that they’re making it happen.”

Alton said that many students are able to fund their trips abroad with the same scholarships and financial aid that they use to pay tuition.

Senior government and politics major Kyle Bagin noted that when he was planning a semester in London last spring, he found that registering for classes abroad was just as simple as navigating Testudo and registering for classes in College Park.

“The study abroad adviser I had was very helpful, and all the credits I took transferred really easily,” he said. “Going to Europe exposed me to a range of classes I would never be able to take here and a completely different lifestyle.”

The university also prides itself in minority involvement in study abroad programs, working closely with the Office of Multi-Ethnic Student Education and the Nyumburu Cultural Center to ensure that their materials reach a wide range of students.

“Nationally, minorities participate in study abroad at a much lower rate than white students, so this is a national issue, not just a Maryland issue,” Alton said. “But over the past two years, we have made it a priority to ensure that everyone has access to information about study abroad programs.”

Although the university’s study abroad office has continued to grow, Ulrich said it won’t achieve the profile of its peers until it becomes a part of the university’s culture.

“It comes down to the idea that the university needs to see study abroad as part of its fabric, ” Ulrich said. “Ultimately, if students take the initiative and deepen their college experience by going abroad, then the numbers will increase.”

hemmati at umdbk dot com