As alumni, faculty, and students celebrated the 50th anniversary of ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ’s London Study Group, the (IIE) released its 2009-2010 Open Doors data. Again, ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ appeared near the top of two lists for the number of students studying abroad.
¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ ranked in the number of students who participated in semester-long programs (360 students). And the university ranked in the total number of students who studied abroad overall, including extended study trips (435 students).
The Institute of International Education, an independent nonprofit resource on international higher education exchange activity into and out of the U.S., also found that study abroad activity by U.S. college students was on the rise in 2010-2011 for the second year, after leveling off during the economic uncertainty that began in 2007.
At ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ, are growing. Last spring, ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ faculty adopted a new approved programs/portable aid policy that begins with the Class of 2016. This means that students will be able to carry over their financial aid when studying abroad on a ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ-approved program that better meets their academic interests than one of ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ’s own faculty-led study groups.
An interim portable aid initiative — in effect for the 2012-13 and 2013-14 academic years — is now in place to encourage students to choose approved non-¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ programs in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and other non-traditional study abroad destinations, such as the Balkans or former Soviet States.