[PDF] A Student Guide to Study Abroad - Middle Georgia State University

PDF document for free

1. PDF document for free

687_4A_Student_Guide_To_Study_Abroad.pdf

AStudentGuidetoStudyAbroad

B y

StacieNevadomskiBerdan

D r .AllanGoodman,IIEPresidentandCEO

SirCyrilTaylorGBE,AIFSFounderandChairman

NewYork

IIEpublicationscanbepurchasedat:www.iiebooks.org

T h eInstituteofInternationalEducation 8 0

9UnitedNationsPlaza,NewYork,NewYork10017

©2013bytheInstituteofInternationalEducation

A l lrightsreserved.Published2013 P r i n t e dintheUnitedStatesofAmerica I S B N - 1 3 :978-0-87206-361-7 L i b r a r yofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData B e r d a n ,StacieNevadomski. Astudent"sguidetostudyabroad/byStacieNevadomskiBerdan,Dr.Allan G o o d m a n ,IIEPresidentandCEO,SirCyrilTaylor,AIFSFounderandChairman. p a g e scm. I n c l u d e sbibliographicalreferencesandindex. I S B

N978-0-87206-361-7(alk.paper)

1 .Foreignstudy--Handbooks,manuals,etc.2.Collegestudents--Travel-- H a n d b o o k s ,manuals,etc.I.Title. L B 2 3 7 6 . B 4 72013
3 7 0 . 1 1 6 " 2 - - d c 2 3 2 0 1 3 0 2 0 7 7 1 T h eviewsexpressedinthesechaptersaresolelythoseoftheauthors. T h e ydonotnecessarilyrepresenttheofficialpositionsofthe I n s t i t u t eofInternationalEducationortheAIFSFoundation. B o o keditors: D a n i e lObst,DeputyVicePresidentforInternationalPartnerships,IIE S h a r o nWitherell,DirectorofPublicAffairs,IIE C o p yEditor:ShepherdLaughlin J a c k e tDesign:HDNStudio,Inc. T e x tDesign:PatScullyDesign

AStudentGuidetoStudyAbroad

AStudentGuidetoStudyAbroad

Acknowledgments

Foreword

C h a p ter1:TheseareGlobalTimes1 C h a p ter2:DeterminingifStudyAbroadisRightforYou27 C h a p ter3:ChoosingaProgram47 C h a p ter4:FiguringOuttheFinancials87 C h a p ter5:PreparingtoStudyAbroad115 C h a p ter6:ImmersingYourselfintheCultureandPersonalGrowth143 C h a p ter7:StayingSafeandHealthyWhileStudyingAbroad183 C h a p ter8:MakingtheMostofYourTimeAbroad209 C h a p ter9:TransitioningBacktoLifeintheStates243 C h a p ter10:UsingStudyAbroadtoShowcaseYourGlobal265 G r o wthandLearning Afterword:AdvocateforGreaterGlobalAwarenessEverywhere297 B iographies299

AStudentGuidetoStudyAbroad

AStudentGuidetoStudyAbroad

Acknowledgments

T h isbookispartoftheGlobalEducationResearchReportsseries,ajointeffortof I I EandtheAIFSFoundationtoexplorethemostpressingandunder-researched issuesaffectinginternationaleducationpolicytoday.Thoughmanybookshavebeen w r ittenonthetopicofstudyabroad,fewprovidein-depthexplanationsofallthe considerationsstudentsmustmakebeforechoosingaprogram.Thisbookgives s tudentsandparentsthetoolstheyneedtounderstandtheimplicationsandben- e fitsofaninternationaleducationalexperience. W ewouldliketobeginbythankingalltheU.S.highereducationinstitutionsand l eaderswhomakestudyabroadapriority,aswellastheU.S.andforeigngovern- ments,privatefoundations,andotherorganizationswhosogenerouslyprovide s cholarshipsandgrantsforAmericanstudentstostudyabroad.Inparticular,the F ulbrightFellowshipandGilmanScholarshipProgramsoftheU.S.Departmentof StateBureauofEducationalandCulturalAffairsandtheBorenScholarshipsand F ellowshipsoftheNationalSecurityEducationProgramhavemadevaluablein- t ernationalexperiencespossibleforthousandsofAmericanstudents-including manyofthosequotedinthisbook. W earegratefultotheIIEcommunicationsandCenterforInternationalPartner- s hipsteams,especiallyDanielObstandSharonWitherell,forguidingthisproject f rominceptiontopublishing,andtotheAIFSFoundation,especiallyBillGertzand M e lanieFrench,fortheirgeneroussupportandadvice. T heIIEstudyabroadexpertswhoworkontheGilman,BorenandFulbrightSchol- arshipandFellowshipprograms,especiallyDanielKramer,ChristopherPowers, S usanSharp,SarahGleisner,MichellePickardandLindsayCalvert,providedex- cellentsubstantivecontextaswellascontactswithstudentswhohavetakenpart i ntheprograms. Wecouldnothavewrittenthisbookwithoutthecontributionsofmanypeoplewho arequotedthroughoutthetext.Thosewhostudiedabroadandofferedtheirthought- fulinsight,reflectionsoftheirexperiences,andwillingnesstosharetheirstories madethebookmuchricherintextureandquality:MorganAbate,CindyBanyai,

AStudentGuidetoStudyAbroad

JackieBarber,TaureanBarnwell,TaylorBinnix,LeslieBriggs,DariggC.Brown,Ken- nethBuff,JessicaChesbro,GregChocheles,BethCubanski,EamonDevine,Maya d e V r ies,NatashaF.C.Diamond,DanielErchick,ArieFarnam,IsabelleFeldhaus,Eric Fischer,ShirahFoy,AshleyGaona,RachelGaraghty,AprilR.Gillens,IvanGonzales, L e a hGoodridge,KimGordon,EliseHannon,BrianHardin,ClaireHarrison,David H a u ry,KristinHooblerMorgan,HopeJohnson,CarolineHicks,RobertHurtekant, GarrettLangdon,NicoleLawson,AnnaLippard,MandieMaxwell,PerseusMcDaniel, J e a netteMiranda,VictoriaMita,NateNault,HeatherNelson,AmyNewman,Marikaa N i x on,CaityO"Shaughnessy,BenjaminPauker,YasaminEbrahimiRahmani,Vio- letaA.Rosales,BryanRozycki,DanielSchlemovitz,CarolineSiska,CrescendoSmalls, C h ristySmith,MeganSmith,JeremiahSwisher,AmarylisVelez-Perez,CodyWhite, PeterD.A.Wood,andBenjamin,Melissa,StephanieandSusannahwhorequest- e dthattheirlastnamesnotbeused. T h ebusinessleadersandacademicsvalidatedthecontentbyprovidingquotesand a n e cdotesthatenhancedthetext:FrankAbate,divisionmanager,JM&AGroup; M a r tyAbbott,executivedirectoroftheAmericanCouncilontheTeachingofFor- e ignLanguages(ACTFL);NicholasBassey,placementmanager,PeaceCorps,and formerdirector,InstituteforInternationalPublicPolicyFellowshipProgram; H a roldBurson,foundingchairman,Burson-Marsteller;NancyCave,coordinator, StudyAbroadProgram,ManhattanCollege;CurtisS.Chin,formerU.S.Ambassa- d o rtotheAsianDevelopmentBankandmanagingdirector,RiverPeakGroup,LLC; S t eveFinikiotis,principal&founderofOsprey;BruceLaBrack,professoremeritus, SchoolofInternationalStudies,UniversityofthePacific;AdamMichaels,princi- p a l,Booz&Co.;SteveMiranda,managingdirector,CornellUniversityCenterfor AdvancedHRStudies;EduardoJ.Padrón,president,MiamiDadeCollege;Donald L.Rubin,professoremeritusofcommunicationstudiesandlanguageandlitera- c yeducationandresearchdirector,GLOSSARI,UniversityofGeorgia;JohnSexton, p resident,NewYorkUniversity;SusanSample,associateprofessor,SchoolofIn- ternationalStudies,UniversityofthePacific;SusanSygall,CEOandco-founder,Mo- b ilityInternationalUSA;RaghuramTadepalli,deanandprofessorofmarketing, M a r thaandSpencerLoveSchoolofBusiness,ElonUniversity;andtheDelaware ValleyRe-EntryConferenceCommittee(JohnDuncan,TerraDotta;AlayneFrymoyer, PhiladelphiaUniversity;JonathanHakim,UniversityofPennsylvania;Marcia Henisz,DrexelUniversity;SaraLynott,TempleUniversity;LezlieMcCabe,

AStudentGuidetoStudyAbroad

TempleUniversity;AhajiSchreffler,DrexelUniversity;DanielleScugoza,Universi- tyofPennsylvania;RachelTarlecky,ArcadiaUniversity;NicholasWagner,DrexelUni- versity;andAmandaZimmerman,ArcadiaUniversity). Andforthosewhoarenotquotedbutprovidedimportantinformation:LynneTarter, d irectorofsolutions,TMC|ABerlitzCompany,forinformationoncultureshock; C e r iseRoth-Vinson,chiefoperatingofficer,MobilityInternationalUSA,forinfor- mationonpersonswithdisabilities. ParticularthankstoMarshallS.Berdan,whosethoughtfulcommentsandsuperb e ditingskillsmadethebookasignificantlybetterread;toShepherdLaughlinfor hiscarefulandhelpfulproofreading;andtoShannonHarrison,BarbaraTaffand M a d e l ineFriedmanatIIEfortheircontributionsindesignandproduction.Thanks a lsotoMorganAbatewhoplayedasignificantroleinresearchingelementsofthe b o o kandprovidingacollegefreshman"sexpectationsofboththecontentandthe w r i t ingstyle.Specialthankstothosewhoreadthemanuscript:HannahCole,Beth Cubanski,BenjaminPaukerandRebeccaWeiner.Theirindividualandcollectivefeed- b a ckmadethebook"sstructure,flowandcontentmuchstronger. ThanksalsotoPatScullyDesignfordesignandlayoutofthebookandtoHDNStu- d io,Inc.forthejacketdesign. F inally,wearedeeplygratefultothehundredsofstudentswhotooktheStudyAbroad Survey,enablingustogatherandshareinformationinrealtimeaboutrecentstudy a b roadexperiences.Thanksalsotothemanyprofessors,collegeadministrators, andstudyabroadadviserswhotookthetimetodiscussthemeritsofthisbookand howbestforustoadvisetoday"sstudentsconsideringstudyingabroad.

AStudentGuidetoStudyAbroad

AStudentGuidetoStudyAbroad

Foreword

E verystudentwhowantstosucceedintheglobaleconomyshouldstudyabroad. Itisoneofthemostvaluablethingsyoucandoforyourselfandyourcareer.Each o fushaslivedandworkedbothintheUnitedStatesandoverseas,workingex- tensivelywithbothstudentsandemployersinavarietyofbusiness,academicand not-for-profitsettingsinourowncareers. StacieNevadomskiBerdanisaseasonedglobalexecutive,anexpertoninterna- tionalcareers,andanaward-winningauthoronhowtosucceedintheglobalmar- ketplace.SirCyrilTaylorhasbeenaninnovatorinstudyabroadfornearly50years, h a vingfoundedtheAmericanInstituteForForeignStudy(AIFS)in1964,andRich- m o n d ,TheAmericanInternationalUniversityinLondonin1972.Asthepresident a n dCEOoftheInstituteofInternationalEducation,AllanGoodmanisaleaderin c r eatingandexpandinginternationaleducationalexchangeopportunities,andmak- i ngthemmoreaccessibletomorediversestudentpopulations.Hewasprevious- l yaprofessorandtheexecutivedeanoftheSchoolofForeignServiceatGeorge- t ownUniversity,teachingstudentswhoarenowindiplomaticleadershippositions a r oundtheglobe.Together,weandourorganizationshaveadvisedandsupport- e dhundredsofthousandsofstudentsovertheyearstogainaninternationalex- p erience,andwecontinuetoadvocateformorestudentsgoingabroad. W ehaveseenfirsthandthevalueofmakinginternationalapartofone"seduca- tionandoflisteningtootherswhenitcomestoadaptingtolifeinanothercoun- try.Wehaveallfeltcultureshockandalsore-entryproblems,andwehaveseen theimpactofaninternationalexperienceonthosewhohavebeenfortunateenough tohaveone.Butwerealizethatnoteverystudentknowswheretostartandhow tomakeithappen.Soweteameduptoreachstudentslikeyou,whoarestillex- p l oringwhetherandhowtostudyabroad,andwonderingiftheyshoulddoit.The a n s w erisaresounding"yes"-butonlyafteryouhavepreparedyourselftotake fulladvantageoftheopportunity. Wewrotethisbooktogiveeverystudentaccesstothebestinformationavailable o nstudyabroad-thingstoknowbeforeyougo,howtomakethemostofyour

AStudentGuidetoStudyAbroad

timeabroad,whyyoushouldconsiderinternshipsandcareer-relatedexperiences abroad,howtotransitionbacktolifeintheStates,and,asyouembarkonyour c areer,howtousestudyabroadtoshowcaseyourglobalgrowthandlearning. T obringyoucurrent,relevantadvice,wesurveyedapproximately350studentsand askeddozensofeducatorsandbusinessleaderstosharetheirinsights.Inaddition toourownbestadvicefromyearsofworkingininternationaleducationandcom- munications,weaimtoofferyoutimelyandpracticalfeedbackfromthecurrent g e nerationofstudentswhohavemadethemostoftheirtimeabroad.Therefore, w ehaveincludedmorethan200real-lifestoriesfromadiversecollectionofstu- d ents,advisersandprofessionals,aswellas100easy-to-followtipstohelpguide youthroughtheprocess. T h ewiderangeofprogramscurrentlyavailablemakesstudyabroadmoreflexi- b l e ,affordableandaccessiblethaneverbefore.Whilenoteveryonecango abroadforafullyearinatotallanguageimmersionsetting,wehopeyouwillagree a f terreadingthisbookthatthereisastudyabroadoptionforeveryone.Weurge youtomakeinternationalapartofyoureducation.

StacieNevadomskiBerdan

Dr.AllanE.Goodman

SirCyrilTaylorGBE

AStudentGuidetoStudyAbroad

TheseareGlobalTimes

A syouhavenodoubtnoticed,globalizationiseverywhereandtheprofessional w orldthatawaitsyouupongraduationisbecomingincreasinglyinterconnect- e d .Inaddition,technologycontinuestoadvancebyleapsandbounds.Notsur- p risinglythen,employersincreasinglyseekworkerswhohavebothcross-cultural competenceandcutting-edgetechnicalskills,21stcenturyskillsthat,unfortu- n a t ely,arestillnotanintegralpartoftheK-12U.S.educationsystem.What"sworse, y oumaynothavehadtheopportunitytoacquireorpracticetheseskillsincol- l ege.Sowhat"sastudenttodotopreparefortheglobalmarketplace?Oneofthe b e s twaysistostudyabroad. S t udyingabroadexpandsyourpersonalhorizonswhileopeningupaworldofper- s onalandprofessionalopportunities.Studentswhoaretrueglobalthinkersmay a lreadybeplanningtostudyabroad.Forthosewhoarejustgettingcuriousabout thebigworldoutthere,studyingandinterningabroadarewellworthexploring. Oneofthemostimportantlifeskillsyou"llgainfromstudyingabroadiscross-cul- t u r alaptitude,theabilitytoappreciatedifferentculturesandsolveproblemswhile o peratinginanenvironmentdifferentfromwhatyou"reusedto.Youwillfindthat cross-culturalcompetencymattersasmuchinthecommunitieswhereweliveas intheofficesinwhichwework.Globalizationmeansthatwhereverwelive,weare likelytoshareourschools,communities,neighborhoods,clubsandfaithswithpeo- p lefromincreasinglydiversebackgrounds.

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter11

C

H A P T ER1

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter12

Studyabroadalsoenablesyoutofurtheryourlanguageskills,especiallyifyouopt fortrueimmersion-whereeverythingisdoneinthetargetlanguage-andstudy o rdoaninternshipabroadforasignificantlengthoftime.Studiesshowthatat l eastonesemesterisrequiredtoadvancesignificantly,andexponentialprogress canbemadeinoneyear(Davidson,2010).Thebenefitsoftrulymasteringasec- o n dlanguageareself-evident.Notonlycanyoucommunicatemorecloselywith speakersofthatlanguage,youcanalsobetterunderstandthatculture,sincelan- g uageandcultureareinvariablyintertwined.Conversinginanotherlanguagecan helpyouconnectwithlocalsontheirlevel,andyoumayevenfindyourselfthink- i ngordreamingintheirlanguage.Evenifyoudon"tspeakanotherlanguageflu- e ntly,justbeingaroundotherswhodowillopenyourmind. S t udiesalsoshowthatlearningaforeignlanguagemakesyousmarterandimproves y o urproficiencyinyourmothertongue.Neurosciencecontinuestorevealhowlan- g u a g elearningshapesmemories,perceptions,andbasicthoughtpatterns(NEA R e search,2007).ThequotetraditionallyattributedtoCharlemagnesumsitupbest: "Tohaveasecondlanguageistohaveasecondsoul." Whateveryouthinkpersonallyaboutthedesirabilityofglobalization,everyoneagrees t h atitisheretostay,andallofus-especiallyyouasstudents-willdowelltoac- ceptandembraceit.Employerscertainlyalreadyhave.Asadriverofcareersuc- cess,globalexperienceisdestinedtocontinuemovingfrom"nice"to"must-have" i ntoday"smarketplace.Manywouldsaythatitistherealready.

GlobalCompetitionforJobsand

N ecessaryPreparation Ahalfcenturyago,Americanbusinessesweretheundisputedkingsofthein- t ernationalbusinesshill,apositionthattheyhad"inherited"largelyasacon- s equenceofhavingwonWorldWarII.Today,however,therecanbenodenying t hattheyfacefiercecompetitionfromanincreasingnumberofglobalrivals. O nemajorreportmakesclearthenow-criticalneedforagloballysophisticat- e dworkforce:"GlobalizationisdrivingthedemandforaU.S.workforcethatpos- sessesknowledgeofothercountriesandculturesandiscompetentinlanguages o therthanEnglish...MostofthegrowthpotentialforU.S.businessesliesinover- s easmarkets[while]ourownmarketsarefacinggreatercompetitionfrom foreign-ownedfirms,manyofwhichmanufactureproductsonU.S.soil"(Kibler &Philipose).TheU.S.DepartmentofStateandtheDepartmentofDefensehave p romotedanddevelopedprogramstoencouragelanguagelearningandinter- n ationalstudy.TheU.S.DepartmentofEducationrecentlyissuedapolicyonSuc- c e edingGloballyThroughInternationalEducationandEngagement,andnoted t hatthedepartment"wantstoensurethatmoreAmericanstudentshavethe s k illstocompeteinaglobalworkplace,andnotjustbuildup'deep,deepexpertise" amongasmallgroupofgraduatesinforeignlanguagesorcultures"(U.S.De- p a rtmentofEducation,2012).Todate,however,suchcallstobetterpreparethe risinggenerationofAmericanworkershavenotbeenfollowedupbymuchac- t i o norK-12curriculumchanges. B utchangesarecoming.PricewaterhouseCooperspredictsthatby2050,theE7 ( China,India,Brazil,Russia,Indonesia,MexicoandTurkey)willbemorethan50per- c entlargerthantheG7countries(theUnitedStates,UnitedKingdom,France,Ger- many,Italy,CanadaandJapan)whenmeasuredbyGDPatmarketexchangerates. TheNationalIntelligenceCouncil"s"GlobalTrendsReport"projectsthatChinawill s urpasstheUnitedStatesastheworld"slargesteconomyby2030(NationalIn- telligenceCouncil,2012),butotherreportsshowChinadoingsoadecadeearlier b y2020.ThemediaisalreadywidelyreportingonAmericangraduatesheading toIndiaandChinatofindwork;youmayevenknowsomeonewhohasdoneso orplantodosoyourself.Unfortunately,thosejobsmaysoonevaporatesinceboth t hosecountriesareinvestingheavilyintheireducationalsystemswhiletheUnit- e dStatesremainsmiredinpoliticaldebatesaboutours.Thisisfrighteningwhen youconsiderthatyourcompetitionhasgrownfromjustAmericanstudentsto studentsfromBeijingorBangalore(Bikson&Law,1994;CommitteeforEconomic Development,2006;Molony&Sowter,2011).Today"sconstantsseemtoinclude b othever-closerglobalintegrationandever-acceleratingchange.Butaretoday"s g raduatespreparedtohandlethechallengesthatglobalizationposes?Doyoufeel p reparedtocompeteonaglobalscale? R ightnow,thecompetitionappearstobegettingtougherforAmericangraduates a snotenoughofthempossesstheskillsandaptitudesrequiredbyglobalorgan- i zations.Suchdeficienciescouldhamperyourabilitytofindajobwhenyou graduate.OneexecutivequotedinaRandInstitutestudycalledAmericanstudents " strongtechnically"butcross-culturally"shortchanged"and"linguisticallydeprived."

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter13

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter14

Anothersaid"ifIwantedtorecruitpeoplewhoarebothtechnicallyskilledand c ulturallyaware,Iwouldn"tevenwastemytimelookingonAmericancollegecam- p u ses"(citedinCommitteeforEconomicDevelopment,2006). T h eabilitytoworkacrossculturesisnolongeranice-to-haveskillsetforeliteex- e cutives;everyyearitbecomesmoreessentialtofindinganyjobatall.Amachine o peratorataplantinTopekathatexportswidgetstoMumbaineedstoknowhow tointeracteffectivelywhenIndiancustomersvisit.Anurse"saideataHoustonhos- p i t althatservesalargeHispaniccommunityhastocommunicatewithfamilymem- bersinwaysthatencourageratherthandiscouragepatientcompliancewithdoc- tor"sorders.AfarmerinwesternPennsylvaniacanopenuppotentiallyrichnew r e venuestreamsbyunderstandingexactlywhatqualitiesinAmericanginsengwill a p pealtotheKoreanmarket.Theexamplesgoonandon. ArecentForbesInsightsurveyfoundthatmorethanone-thirdoftheexecutives s urveyedplantohiremoreforeignnationalsinthecomingyearsforexecutive p ositionsintheUnitedStates(ForbesInsights,2011).AMcKinseyGlobalInstitute (MGI)studyfoundthatworldwide,40percentofjobgrowthinadvancedmarket economiesliketheUnitedStatesinthecomingdecadesislikelytogotoforeignna- t ionals.AndwhilesomeAmericansarefindingjobsabroad,thosewithoutglobal s k illsandexperiencewillfindtheyhavefewerandfeweropportunities.Onesur- v eyofmorethan10,000HRandrecruitingpersonnelworldwidefoundthatmost i nsistthatjobcandidateshaveinternationalstudyexperience,especiallyattheex- e cutivelevel.TheMGIstudyfoundthatmorethan20millionAmericanswithout p o s tsecondaryeducationorspecializedtrainingmayfindnojobsatallintheyears t ocome(Madgavkaretal,2012). I nternationalskillsarenotonlyneededinbusinesssettings.Aboveall,learning anotherlanguageandcultureremindsAmericansthatwearenotalone.Weshare theworldanditsproblems,andwecannotsolvethemallonourown.Globalprob- lemsrequiretheglobalexchangeofknowledgetoforgesolutionsthroughin- t ernationaldialogueandcollaboration.Studyabroadenablestoday"sstudents- futureleadersfromallbackgroundsandinallsectors-togainaccessto internationalexperiencesthatwillhelppreparethemtobeglobalcitizens.Learn- inghowtointeractwithpeoplefromothercountriesandcultureswillbeessen- t ialforthosewhowishtoaddressahostofurgenttopicsandissues-from c limatechangeandrenewableenergytoterrorismandinterfaithdialogue-that

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter15

a reessentialtoadvancingpeaceandprosperityforall.Whetheryouwishtowork inbusiness,government,academiaorinthenot-for-profitsector,theskillsyougain willhelpyoutobemoreeffectiveandsuccessful. A sa35-year-old,Ibelievethatmygenerationisthelastonetobeableto useglobalexperienceasadifferentiator.Globalizationhasnowbecomea r e quirementtocompeteandsucceed. -AdamL.Michaels,principal,BoozandCompany. S a vvyStudentsKnowTheyNeedMore Bynow,thealarmbellsmayhavebeguntogooffinyourmind.Yourabilityto w orkgloballyandcross-culturallymaymakethedifferencebetweenasatisfying c a reerofprogressivesuccesses,andastruggletosucceed.Thankfully,though, s tudiesshowthatyoungerAmericanslikeyouarealreadyembracingtheneces- s i t yofglobalawareness.AccordingtoaSeptember2012studyof18-to 2 4 -year-oldAmericanhighschoolgraduates,commissionedbytheeducation nonprofitWorldSavvywithsupportfromtheInternationalBaccalaureateOrgan- i zation,youngpeoplewanttolearnmoreaboutglobaltopics: •

80percentofthosesurveyedbelievethatjobsarebecomingincreasingly

i nternationalinnature. •

60percentsaytheywouldbebetteremployeesiftheyhadabetterunder-

s t andingofdifferentworldcultures. • 8

6percentagreethatasolidfoundationinworldhistoryandeventsis

crucialincomingupwithsolutionstotheproblemsoftheworldtoday. • N e arly90percentbelievethatdevelopmentsabroadcanhavesignificant i m plicationsontheU.S.economy. •

79percentsaythatitisimportantintoday"sworldtobecomfortableinter-

a c tingwithpeopleofdifferentculturalbackgrounds,apercentageessentially e qualtotheperceivedimportanceofwritingskills(78percent),technicalskills (76percent)andmathskills(77percent).

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter16

R espondentsnoted,however,thatglobalissuesarenotroutinelydiscussedinschool: • Whilethevastmajorityofrespondentsseetheimportanceofgloballiteracy,

48percentactivelydisagreewiththestatementthattheir6th-12thgrade

e ducationprovidedinstructionthathelpedthemunderstandtherootsofthose g lobalissuesthataffecttheirlivestoday. • 6

3percentindicatedthattheydidnotdiscussworldeventsintheirhigh

schoolclasses. • Onlyalittlemorethanhalf(54percent)thinkthattheirhighschoolteach- ersincorporatedaglobalperspectiveintotheircurricula. S e v eralmajorU.S.governmentprogramshelpstudentsgaininternationalex- perience:theBenjaminA.GilmanInternationalScholarshipProgramandthe FulbrightU.S.StudentProgramsponsoredbytheU.S.DepartmentofState BureauofEducationalandCulturalAffairs,andtheBorenScholarshipsand FellowshipssponsoredbytheNationalSecurityEducationProgram.Formore ontheGilman,FulbrightandBorenprograms,seeChapter4. D e velopingaGlobalMindset Soperhapsyouhaven"tbeentaughteverythingyouneedtoknowyet.Thegood newsisthatyoustillhavetimetohelpyourself.Regardlessofwhereyouarecur- rentlyonthecontinuumofglobalawareness,studyabroadcanhelpyoudevelop thatall-importantglobalmindset.Askacademics,businessprofessionalsorgov- e r n mentofficialstodescribe"globalmindset"andmostwillofferasimilardefi- nition:theabilitytoworksuccessfullyacrosscultures(thoughnotnecessarilyin anothercountry).Expertsdisagree,however,astowhatmakesonepersonbetter p reparedthananotherandwhetherornotaglobalmindsetcanactuallybetaught. H avingaglobalmindsetrequiresnotonlypossessingthetechnicalskillsneces- s a ryforoperatingsuccessfullyinaninternationalenvironment,butalsotheper- s onalskillsnecessaryforapplyingtheseeffectively. Atthemostbasiclevel,havingaglobalmindsetmeanshavingtheskillsthatare proventoworkcross-culturally.Althoughthesetraitsappeartobeinherentinsome p e o ple,theyalsocanbelearned.Soifyou"reseriousaboutgoingglobal,startprac- t icingtheseskillsinpersonalandprofessionalsituationsnow.You"llfindthatwhile theseskillswillinevitablyprovetobecriticaltosuccessabroad,theycanalsohelp y ousucceedhereathome.Intheglobalmarketplace,technicalskillsarenecessary b u tnotsufficient.Asa21stcenturyglobalworker-inadditiontoyourtechnical o rindustryskills-youwillneedculturalsensitivity,theabilitytointerpretsitua- t i o n s ,informationandfactswhilebeinganempatheticanddiplomaticteamplay- er,andapassionatecuriositythatletsyouenjoytheculturaldiversityyoulivewith- i ntobringoutthebestinyouandyourcolleagues.Suchskillsmayprovetobean i mportantwaytodifferentiateyourselfprofessionally.Andstudyabroadisonevery i mportantcomponentofthispreparation. InPanama,Ilearnedalotaboutcoralreefecosystems.ButIalsolearnedthat manyimportantscientificresearchfindingsneverreachabroadaudience.Yet, i n teractingwithPanamaniansattheSmithsonianTropicalResearchInstitute"s G aletaMarineLaboratoryandwiththecommunitythroughitsactive programofmarineeducationforcedmetofindconcreteconnectionsbetween t hepublicandmyacademicresearch.TheFulbrightProgramencouragesits p articipantstoengageincross-culturalexchangeanddirectinvolvementwith l ocalcommunities.Thisfocustaughtmehowtobridgethegapbetweenlocal P anamaniansandacademicssothattheircommunitiescouldbenefitfrom t hevaluablescientificresearchgeneratedintheircountry. -MayadeVries,UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley.AwardedaFulbright t oPanama.

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter17

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter18

GlobalTimesRequireGlobalStudy

Inordertoprepareyoutomeetthedemandsoftheincreasinglyglobalmarket- p l a ceupongraduation,studyingabroadshouldbeanessentialcomponentofmany u n dergraduatedegrees-andmandatoryforMBAs.Today"sstudentsneedasmuch i nternationalexposureastheycanget,butwhatcanstudentsdowhentheyare firststartingout?Itcanbedifficulttoconvinceemployersofyourabilitytothink g loballyifyoudon"thaveinternationalexperience. Studyingabroadisasmartwaytoestablishyourinternationalcredentials,andmore andmoreAmericanstudentsarespendingaportionoftheircollegeyearsabroad. T h eInstituteofInternationalEducation"sOpenDoorsReportonInternationalEd- u cationalExchange,whichisproducedinpartnershipwiththeU.S.Department o fState"sBureauofEducationalandCulturalAffairs,reportsthatU.S.studyabroad hasmorethantripledinthepasttwodecades. B utthenumberisstillfartoolow.Americanstudentsstudyingabroadstillrepresent asmallproportionoftotalenrollmentinU.S.highereducation.About14percent o fAmericanstudentsreceivingbachelor"sdegreeshavestudiedabroadatsome p ointduringtheirundergraduateprograms,andmorecommunitycollegesareof- f eringstudyabroadoptionsaswell.Still,onlyaboutonepercentofU.S.students a restudyingabroadduringasingleacademicyear-lessthan300,000outofthe m orethannearly20millionAmericanstudentsenrolledinU.S.highereducation. T h eupside,atleastfornow,isthatifyoustudyabroadyouarepartofthespecial groupthatcanoffersomedegreeofinternationalexperienceupongraduation.This canhelpyoustandoutwhenlookingforajob. Despiteanincreaseintheoverallnumberofstudentstakingpartinstudyabroad, t heproportionofAfrican-American,Hispanic,andNativeAmericanstudentsinthe s t udyabroadpopulationhasremainedvirtuallythesameoverthepastdecade.About 7

8percentofstudyabroadstudentsarewhite,accordingtothelatestOpenDoors

r eport,althoughwhitesrepresent62percentofenrollmentinhighereducation. A s i anAmericansrepresent8percentofstudyabroadstudents,whichiscloseto theiractualproportionofallcollegestudents.However,African-Americanstudents c o m p rise14percentofthecollegepopulation,butonly5percentofstudyabroad s t udents.Hispanicstudentsmakeup13percentofallthoseenrolledinU.S.high- ereducation,butonly7percentofthosewhostudyabroad. Whenitcomestotravelingoverseas,manystudentsfocusonthereasonsnotto g o .Accordingtocollegeadministrators,concernaboutaffordabilitytopsthelist o freasonsstudentsdecidenottostudyabroad.Butadditionalbarriersincludefear o fracism,worriesaboutdelayedgraduation,andfewrolemodels-eitherfami- l yorfaculty-whohavetraveledabroad.Mostadministratorsagreethatincreasing r a cialandethnicdiversityinstudyabroadwillrequireanefforttopersuadestu- d entsthatgoingabroadisbothpossibleandnecessary.

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter19

G L O B A

LMINDSETINVENTORY(GMI)

MuchoftheongoingresearchonglobalmindsetisbeingledbyThunderbird SchoolofGlobalManagementinGlendale,Arizona.Itsrigorous,scientificstudy o fthedriversofexpatsuccesshasshownthataglobalmindsetcrossespro- f essionsandcountries.Initsreport,ConceptualizingandMeasuringGlobal M i ndset ® :DevelopmentoftheGlobalMindsetInventory(Hough&Bullough,

2011),theThunderbirdGlobalMindsetInstitute"steamidentifiesthethree

c o mponentsofaglobalmindset: • I ntellectualcapital:Definedasknowledgeofglobalindustryandcom- petitorsandmeasuredbyknowledgeofglobalbusinesssavvy,cognitive c o m p lexity,andcosmopolitanoutlook.Doyouhaveboththeknowledge o fglobalindustriesandtheabilitytounderstandcomplexglobalissues togetthejobdone? • S ocialcapital:Involvesbuildingtrustingrelationshipsandismeasured b yinterculturalempathy,interpersonalimpact,anddiplomacy.Doyou h a vetheabilitytoworkwellwithcolleagueswhoaredifferentfromyou inordertoinspireproductivity? • Psychologicalcapital:Reflectsandismeasuredbyone"spassionfordiversity, q uestforadventure,andself-assurance.Deepdown,areyoucuriousabout t h eworldenoughtoexploreandrespectothercultures,andtointeract a n dcollaboratewiththem?

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter110

Since2001,congresshashelpedaddressthedisparitywiththefederallyfunded G i l m a nInternationalScholarshipProgram,whichprovidesstudyabroadfundsfor l ow-incomePellGrantrecipients.Amonglastyear"sGilmanscholars,54percent r eportedethnicitiesotherthanwhite/non-Hispanic,comparedto21percentofthe nationalstudyabroadpopulationasreportedinOpenDoors.African-Americanstu- dentsandHispanicstudentswererepresentedamongGilmanscholarsinproportions thatweremuchmorereflectiveoftheirrepresentationinthetotalU.S.higher e ducationpopulation. IbegantheprocesstoapplyfortheGilmanScholarshipbecauseIreallyneeded t hefinancialsupportfortravelexpensesandlivingabroad.AsIlearnedmore a boutit,Ilikedtheprograminparticularbecauseitforcedmetomake decisionsthatintegratedmygoalswithmycountryandprogramofchoice. T hisultimatelygavemoremeaningtomystudyabroadexperienceinterms o fmyownpersonal,academic,andprofessionaldevelopment.Asaresult,my s tudyabroadsemesterwasnotonlyanamazingcross-culturalexperience, butalsoastrongbasisformychosencareerpathinglobalhealth. -IsabelleFeldhaus,UniversityofSouthernCalifornia.Studiedabroadasa G ilmanScholarinSouthAfrica. D uringmyyearsadvisingminoritystudentsaboutstudyingabroad,Ishareda perspectivethatappliesnomatterwhatastudent"sethnicorsocioeconomicback- groundmaybe.Inasocietythatistechnologicallyinterdependentandinter- c onnected,theabilitytoconnectwithpeoplewhoaredifferent(andthinkdif- f erently)fromyou,andlearnfromtheinteraction,isacriticalskillforwhichtoday"s e m ployersarelooking.Whenapersonmakesthedecisiontoremoveherselffrom hercomfortzone,fromallsheholdsdear,andchartshercourseinnewterri- t ories,thepersonalandinterculturalgrowthgainedtranslatesintotangible, s olidskills.Fromaselfishlypracticalperspective,havingameaningfulstudyabroad e x perienceonyourrésuméisatremendousasset.Minoritystudentsmustin- c l udestudyabroadintheircollegeplanstoensurethattheyhavejustasmuch acompetitiveadvantageduringtheirfuturecareersearchesasanyoneelse. -NicholasBassey,placementmanager,PeaceCorps;formerdirector, I n stituteforInternationalPublicPolicyFellowshipProgram.

StudentswithDisabilitiesFocusonAbilitiesAbroad

M anycollegesdonottracktheabilitystatusoftheireducationabroadparticipants. B utamongthosethatdo,4.1percentofstudyabroadstudentshaddisabilitiesin 2

010/11.Itcanbedone!Whilemanypeoplewithdisabilitiesarebecomingin-

creasinglyawareofthebenefitsofinternationalexchange,therearesofewrole modelsthatmanypeoplewithdisabilitiesbelievethatinternationaltravelisnot p ossibleforthem.Goingabroadgivespeoplewithdisabilitiestheopportunityto d evelopimportantprofessionalskills,aswellasotherskillsequallyimportantto findingacareer,suchasproblem-solving,resiliencyandconfidence.Internation- a lexchangeexperiencecancounternegativestereotypesaboutwhatpeoplewith disabilitiescanandcan"tdo,focusingemployersonabilitiesinsteadofdisabilities. I nternationaltravelseemsmuchmoreaccessibletomenow;virtuallyallof theapprehensionIhadabouttravelingassomeonewithadisability e vaporatedandIfeelverystronglyaboutencouragingotherslikemetodoit. M ostoftheresistanceIencounteredcamefrompeoplewhosawmydisability asanimpossiblebarriertotravelinadevelopingcountry,whereasIjustsaw i tasachallenge. -RachelGaraghty,whohasmusculardystrophyandusesapower w h eelchair,UniversityofMinnesota.Studiedabroadasagraduatestudent i nTanzania. T h e rearesomeexcellentresourcesavailable.MobilityInternationalUSA(MIUSA) a ndtheNationalClearinghouseonDisabilityandExchange(NCDE),sponsoredby theU.S.DepartmentofState,providetechnicaladviceandexpertiseoninterna- tionalexchangetopeoplewithdisabilitiesandcanprovideinformationonawide r a n g eofissuesrelatedtodisability,rangingfromaccessibilityandfundingtoad- v o c acyandarrangingfordisabilityaccommodations.Studentswithdisabilitiesface a llofthesameissuesnotedaboveandthensome.

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter111

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter112

WhatandWhereCanYouStudy?

Overthepastfewyears,therehasbeenatremendousexpansioninthenumber a ndvarietyofprogramsthatareavailable.Nowthereismostlikelyaprogramthat i srightforeverystudent.Historically,moststudyabroadprogramsembracedthe humanities.Butmorecollegesarenowofferingorevenrequiringaninternation- a lstintforstudentsofsocialscience,business,fineorappliedarts,andengineering. Allsubjectscanbetaughtthroughagloballens,andstudentsineveryfieldwill b enefitfromaglobalperspective. F i eldsofstudyofU.S.studyabroadstudents,2000/01and2010/11 F i eldofstudy2000/012010/11 S ocialsciences20.322.9

Business&management18.120.5

H u manities14.511.3 F i neorappliedarts8.58.2 P h ysicalorlifesciences7.17.9 F oreignlanguages8.25.6 H e althprofessions3.25.3 E d u cation4.44.2 E ngineering2.73.5 M athorcomputerscience2.01.8

Agriculture1.61.3

U n d e clared4.52.7

Other4.94.8

T otal154,168273,996

Source:OpenDoors2012

Destinationsforstudyabroadalsocontinuetoexpandandadapttochangesinthe g lobalmarketplace.Webelievestudyabroadprogramswillcontinuetochangeas theglobaleconomicandpoliticallandscapecontinuestoevolve. O v erthepastdecadethenumberofU.S.studentsstudyingabroadhasincreased by78percent,growingfromcloseto155,000studentsin2000/01tonearly275,000 i n2010/11.Europeancountrieshaveremainedthepredominantstudydestina- t ionsforU.S.students,buttherehavebeensomenotableshiftstowardnon-Eu- ropeandestinations.Adecadeago,63percentofU.S.studyabroadstudentsse- l e ctedEuropeandestinations,butmostrecentlythatproportiondroppedto55 percent.WhiletheabsolutenumberofstudentsstudyinginthetopEuropeancoun- t r ieshascontinuedtogrow,theproportionofU.S.studentsselectingthosedes- tinationshasdecreased.Forexample,theproportionofU.S.studentsgoingtostudy i ntheUKhasfallenfrom20percentofallstudyabroadstudentsin2000/01to 1

2percentin2010/11.

C onversely,theproportionofU.S.studyabroadstudentsselectingAsiandestina- tionshasgrown,fromonly6percentofU.S.studyabroadstudentsadecadeago to12percentinthemostrecentOpenDoorsreport.China,thefifthmostpopu- l ardestinationoverallandtheleadingAsiandestination,showedaparticularlydra- maticincrease,hostingalmostfivetimesasmanyU.S.studyabroadstudentsin 2

010/11(14,596students)thanitdidin2000/01(2,492students).Indiahasalso

becomeapopulardestinationforU.S.studyabroadstudents,rankingasthe11th mostpopularhostdestinationin2010/11.Incontrasttothegradualgrowthof s tudentsgoingtoChina,thenumberofU.S.studyabroadstudentsinIndiahasin- creased62percentinjustafewyears,growingfrom2,690studentsin2008/09 to4,345in2010/11. T h erehasbeenmodestgrowthinthenumberofU.S.studyabroadstudentsgo- i ngtoAfrica,aswellasadiversificationofstudyabroaddestinationsinLatinAmer- i ca.In2000/01,just3percent(4,471students)ofU.S.studyabroadstudentsstud- iedinAfrica,comparedto5percent(13,974students)in2010/11.Theproportion o fU.S.studyabroadstudentsinLatinAmericahasremainedrelativelysteadyover thepastdecade,butstudentshavegonetomorediversedestinationswithinthe region.In2000/01,CostaRicaandMexicoweretheonlyLatinAmericancountries a mongthetopstudyabroaddestinations,butby2010/11,ArgentinaandBrazil hadalsoenteredthetop15studyabroaddestinationsforU.S.students.

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter113

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter114

Thesechangesareverygoodforallstudentsconsideringstudyabroadtodayand i nthecomingyearsbecausestudentswillbebetterpreparedtoaddresssharedglob- a lissues.Ifyou"relookingforanopportunitytotransitionfromstudyabroadinto ajob,youwouldbewelladvisedtoconsiderstudyinginarisingglobaleconomywith s trongGDPgrowth.Nongovernmentalorganizations,entrepreneurs,andforeign investmentdollarsareallflockingtoemergingmarketsforavarietyofreasonsin- cludingtheirgrowingconsumermarketpotential,naturalresources,development a n dinfrastructure,ecotourismdevelopment,technologyadvancementanden- vironmentalissues.Experiencegainedabroadinoneofthesedestinationsasan undergraduatewilldefinitelygiveyouanadvantagelateronasajob-seeker. W hyStudyAbroad? Y o u " veprobablyheardreturningstudyabroadstudentsraveabouttheirexperi- e n c esandofferadvice:"Itchangedmylife!""Itwasthebestexperienceever!""Don"t justthinkaboutit,doit!"Thesearethethreemostcommonopen-endedresponses w ereceivedaspartofourresearchwithapproximately350respondentswhohad r ecentlystudiedabroad,andwhoseresponseswewillcontinuetoreferencethrough- o u tthisbook.Thevastmajorityofstudentssurveyedofferedone,twoorallthree o fthesestatementsintheirresponses.Moststudentssaythattheirexperience a b roadwasoneofthemostsignificantaspectsoftheirhighereducation. P u s hingyourselftogetoutofyourcomfortzoneandexperienceanotherculture a n deducationsysteminpersoniswhatmakesstudyingabroadsuchameaningful a ndenlighteningevent.Youshouldn"tconsiderittobeatangentialorseparatepart o fyourcollegeeducation,butinsteadanintegralpartofit.Andthisincludesstudy- i n gcontentthatwillofferyouabroaderperspective,includingtakinganinternational marketingclassinParis,studyingchemicalengineeringinMumbai,orresearch- i n gpublicpolicyinCairo.Internationalexperiencessuchasthesecanenhanceyour l ifeacademically,socially,culturally,personallyandprofessionally.Keepinmind, though,that"thebestexperienceofyourlife"isnotguaranteedtobeallfunand g a mes.Someofthebestgrowthexperiencescomefrommistakesandlessons l earned.Thatdoesn"tdiminishthevalueoftheexperience-itenhancesit.Justdon"t expectstudyabroadtobeeasy.

MaketheMostofYourEducation

W i ththerightpreparation,theclassesyoutakewhilestudyingabroadwillcount a scredittowardyourdegree.Moreover,youwillgenerallyhaveampleopportu- nitytotakeclassesthatarenotofferedatyourhomecampus.Plus,whileyouare a b road,you"lldiscoverlearninginanewway,asthehighereducationsystemsof othercountriesdiffergreatlyfromthoseoftheUnitedStates.Thismeansthatyou"ll e xperienceadifferentapproachtoteaching,learning,assignmentsandhomework. W orkingthroughthesedifferenceswillprepareyoutoworkwithcolleagues,su- p ervisorsandclientswhocomefromdifferentbackgrounds.Ifyoustudyabroad, you"llhavetheaddedbenefitofa"minor"ininternationalexperienceaspartof youracademicachievements. A fterstudyingabroad,moststudentsneverviewtheireducationinthesameway a g a in.Theexperienceissopowerful,itofteninfluencessubsequenteducational endeavors,includingthedecisiontopursuehigherdegrees.Studyabroadstudents r e turnhomewithareinvigoratedinterestinacademicpursuitsandarenewedpas- sionforlifelonglearning.Moreover,studyingabroadforcesyoutotakeabreakfrom t raditionalcampuslifeandequipsyouwithreal-life,hands-onskillsthatnoclass- r o omcanmatch. Studiesshowthebestwaytogainproficiencyinasecondlanguageistohaveno c h o icebuttouseit(thewaybabieslearn).Takingclassesinasecondlanguage,not inEnglish,providesanindispensablebenefitforstudentswhowishtomasterthat particularlanguage.That"swhymanyforeignlanguagemajorsarerequiredtostudy i nacountrywherethatlanguageisspoken.Becomingproficientinalanguageis o n eofthetopreasonsstudentshavestudiedabroadfordecades. I ntoday"sincreasinglycompetitiveworldandworkplace,theskillsand k nowledgegainedfromstudyingabroadcanbecriticalstepsforwardinthe racetogetthatfirstjoborpromotion.Studyingabroad,whetherinBeijingor Rio,cansetyouapartandmoreimportantlyhelpsetyouonthepathto s uccess.Ifyouwonderwhetherstudyingabroadisitworthit,putasideyour w orries.Therightprogram-andnotallareequal-candeliverthe"3C"s": competitiveadvantage,careergrowth,andcross-culturalsuccess. -CurtisS.Chin,formerU.S.ambassadortotheAsianDevelopmentBankand m a n agingdirector,RiverPeakGroup,LLC.

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter115

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter116

IthoughtIwouldlearnArabic,conductsomeresearch,andlearnmoreabout t heMoroccanlifestyle,butithasbeensomuchmore.Iachievedmyoriginal l anguagegoals,publishedapieceonMoroccoinaforeignpolicymagazine, a ndsoughtoutalltheopportunitiestoimmersemyselfintheMoroccan c ultureandwayoflife.Perhapsmorethananything,Imademeaningful p e rsonalandprofessionalrelationshipswithpeopleinNorthAfricathatIwill t akewithmefortherestofmylife. -EricFischer,UniversityofSanFrancisco.StudiedabroadasaBorenFellow i nMorocco.

ExpandYourCross-CulturalHorizons

W h enyoustudyabroad,youwillbebroughtintoclose,everydaycontactnotonly w ithAmericanclassmatesonyourprogram,butalsowithclassmatesfromoth- e rcountries,andwithhundredsofstudentsfromyourhostcountry.Someofthe p ersonalfriendshipsyouwillmakewilllastforyears.Theymightevenbethebe- g inningofaglobalnetworkthateventuallyleadstojobprospects.Livingandstudy- i ngoverseasinevitablyfostersasenseofteamwork,asthegroupyouliveorstudy w ithbecomescloserasyoucollectivelyexperiencethechallengesofamulticul- t uralsituation.Ontheotherendofthespectrum,youwillalsolearntodependmore uponyourself.Whenpushcomestoshove,youwillhavetobetheoneproactive- l yaskingquestionsandsolicitinghelp. T h eculturalbenefitsofstudyingabroadareobvious.Spendingtimeinaforeign countrycan"thelpbutopenyoureyestothewiderworld,especiallytodifferent waysofgoingabouteverydayhumanactivities.You"llhaveamuchmoreexpan- sivedefinitionof"different."Youmaylearnthatpeoplepraydifferentlyandtodif- ferentgodsandondifferentdays.You"llmeetpeoplewhoshakehands,boworkiss e a chotheronthecheektosayhello.You"llfindthatbathroomscanbedifferent, thatconceptsof"beingontime"canvarywidely,andthatthefoodssomepeo- p leeatcanseemreallystrange.Youwilllearnthattherearegrainsoftruthinsome s tereotypes,butalsothatmanyareinaccurateandpotentiallyharmful. You"llprobablylaughatothers"perceptionsofAmericansandfeelcompelledtocom- m unicate"thetruth"aboutyourownculture.Asaresult,youwillprobablybecome bothmorereflectiveaboutU.S.cultureandwhatthatculturehasinstilledinyou, a n dincreasinglyappreciativeofwhatothercultureshavetooffer.Paradoxically, you"llalsolearnthatpeoplearoundtheworldaremorealikethandifferent.This o pennesstodifferentapproachesshouldmakeyouabetterproblem-solverand teamplayer.Formoreonthistopic,checkoutChapter6. T heabilitytounderstandandrelatetopeopleinothercountriestheworldover i sbasedupontwothings:competencyintheirlanguageandaknowledgeof- andsensitivityto-theirculture.Ofthetwo,Ibelievethelatteristhemore i m portant.Foreignersareusuallyforgivenwhentheyfailtobefluentin t helanguage,buttheyareconsideredignorantorinsensitivewhentheyare u nawareorscornfuloftheculture.Thefactthathundredsofthousandsof A mericanstudentsnowspendasignificantportionoftheircollegeorpost- g raduateyearsstudyingabroadisahearteningdevelopmentinthedirection ofabetterunderstandingandrapportamongthemanydiversepopulations s panningtheglobe.There"snobetterwaytolearnthecustomsandmoresof acountrythanbylivingthereforanextendedperiodoftimeandimmersing y ourselfindailylife. -HaroldBurson,foundingchairman,Burson-Marsteller. M ystudyabroadexperiencehelpedmetobetterunderstandmybiasesand v i ewsaboutvariousaspectsofhealthanditsrelatedriskfactors.Thelens t h roughwhichIviewedindividualandpopulationhealthwascoloredbythe social,political,andeconomicclimateofmyAmericansurroundings.Myviews a bouthealthweresometimesdrasticallydifferentfromtherealitiesofpeople l ivinginSouthAfrica.IquicklyrealizedthatIhadtoallowtheirexperiencesand e nvironmentdefinewhathealthmeanttothemsothatIcouldbetter u n d e rstandhowtoapproachtheexistingdisparitiesinaculturallyappropriate, u nbiasedway.Thiswayofthinkingisimportantinmycareerandtheresearch Iaminvolvedinbecauseittranscendspopulations,geographies,andcultural norms.Publichealthresearchrequiresunderstandingdifferent"waysof k nowing"whenitcomestoengagingcommunities,assessingsituations, d evelopingstrategies,andevaluatingresults. -DariggC.Brown,PennsylvaniaStateUniversity.StudiedabroadasBoren F ellowinSouthAfrica.

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter117

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter118

ExperiencePersonalGrowthandDevelopment

B yimmersingyourselfinanewcultureandexperiencingnewwaysofthinking, y ouwillinevitablyundergopersonalgrowth.Moststudentsreturnhomenotonly w ithexpandedideasaboutotherpeopleandcultures,butalsowithnewperspectives o nthemselves.Youmayfindyourselfquestioningyourlifelongpersonalbeliefsand v alues,whichmayleadyoutoeitherstrengthenorabandonthem.Youwillalso d evelopmoreself-awarenessandself-confidenceasyourisetothechallengeof m asteringawholerangeofnewsituations.Navigatingthesubwaysysteminanew citymaynotseemlikeabigdeal-butwaituntilyouhavetodoitusingforeign c urrency,interpretingroutemapsandschedulesthatarenotinEnglish,and,quite p o ssibly,havingtoaskforhelpfromstrangers.Bythetimeyou"vesuccessfullyar- r ivedatyourdestination,you"llfeelasthoughyou"veconqueredamountain!Ex- p erienceslikethesenotonlymakeyoufeelgoodaboutyourself,theyalsoresult i nanimprovedsenseofmaturityandindependence.Thiscan-doconfidenceiscrit- i caltofuturesuccess,bothinlifeandespeciallyintheworkplace. T ravel,alwaysanenrichingexperience,expandsthemind.Butinternationaltrav- e lcanoftenbedifficultandexpensivetoorganizefromhome.Forfinancialoroth- e rreasons,noteverystudyabroadstudentseizestheopportunityforextratrav- elwhileoverseas.Butsuchtravelismucheasierandcheaperifyouarealreadyliving i nanothercountry.Whilestudyingabroad,youshouldhavemanyopportunities totakeinterestingexcursions,whetherforafewdaysintheimmediateareaorfor l ongervisitsthatmaybeaplanerideaway.Theadventuresyou"llgoonandthe l ifeexperiencesthatyou"llhavewillenhanceyourstudiesandaddanewdimen- s iontoyourtimeontheground. T hebeautyofstudyingabroadisgainingabroaderunderstandingofother cultures.Havingaccesstootherpeopleandbuildingrelationshipswiththose p eopleontheirhometurfenablesonetothinkmorecreativelyandflexibly- n ecessaryskillsintoday"scompetitiveworkenvironment.Ifastudentcan bringthatunderstandingandknowledgebacktotheU.S.,thesky"sthelimit! -FrankAbate,divisionmanager,JM&AGroup. Myexperiencesabroadhaveforcedmetogiveupanypretenseofcontrolover e x t ernalforces.Asaresult,I"mflexible,easy-going,carrylowexpectationsbut h ighambitions,andcan"twaitforthenextunexpectedadventure.Icarrya k nowledgethatlife"snotfairandisn"talwaysconvenient,butafirmconviction t hatIcanlearnfromeveryexperience,andthatnojourneyiswasted. -ShirahFoy,BelmontUniversity.StudiedabroadinRussia,Ukraine,Finland, G u a t emala.CompletinggraduatestudiesatAaltoUniversity,Finland. E nhanceYourCareerOpportunities Studyabroadisoneofthebestways-andisoftentheonlyway-forastudent toacquiremarketableinternationalqualificationsandcross-culturalcompeten- cy,twoofthemostcriticalskillsforworkerstoday,priortograduation.Butthere ismoretostudyingabroadthanjustpickingupandleavingthecountry.Youneed t oplancarefullyandselectboththetypeofprogramanddestinationthatisright f oryou.Weencourageyoutomakethemostoftheopportunitybyselectingthe countrywhereyoucanbestimproveyourlanguageskills,oranontraditionallo- cationinanemergingmarket. I n c r easingly,employersseekworkerswhocanspeakanotherlanguage(ortwo)and w h ounderstandothercultures.Forstudentswhoarecontemplatingcareersinin- ternationalbusiness,foreignrelationsanddiplomacy,studyingabroadisalmost i mperative.Butforallfuturejobseekers,certainsoftskills-especiallycommu- nication,analyticalabilities,teamworkandflexibility-arehighlyprized,andstudy- i ngabroadisanexcellentwaytodevelopthem. Wealsourgeyoutothinkaboutglobalissuesthatyouarepassionateaboutorar- e aswhereyoucanmakeadifference,anddosomeresearchonwhatcountriesand cultureswouldbestprepareyouforworkinthefieldsthatinterestyou. Withtherateofglobalizationincreasingonadailybasis,today"sleadersare p erpetuallybombardedbyadizzyingnumberofeconomic,organizational a n dmarketchallenges.Thoseindividualswhotakethestepstoexpose

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter119

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter120

t hemselvesearlyintheircareerstothedifferentwayscountriesandsocieties thinkaboutthesechallengeshaveagreaterabilitytounderstandglobal c ontext.Assuch,theywillhaveasignificantcompetitiveadvantageoverthose whochoosethemoretraditionaldomesticpath. -SteveMiranda,managingdirector,CornellUniversityCenterforAdvanced H

RStudies.

D uringaninterviewforwhatisnowmycurrentjob,myinterviewer r e ferencedandwasintriguedbymytimeabroadandspecificallymy l a nguageskills.Ican"tsaythatiswhyIgotthejob,butIdoknowthatit madeapositiveimpression. -ClaireHarrison,UniversityofMinnesotaTwinCities.StudiedabroadinItaly. Y o uwillneedtotakesomestepstobesureyouaregettingthemostoutofyour i nternationalexperience.First,besuretoconnecttheskillsandtheoverallexpe- r ienceyougainduringstudyabroadtoyouron-campuslearning-bothpriorto d e p a r tureanduponreentry.Second,makesurethesenewlylearnedskillsorchar- acteristicscanbeappliedintheworkforce.Andwhenyougetback,highlightthem clearlyonyourrésumé,withcompellingexamplesprovidedduringthecourseof ajobinterview,toshowthatyouknowhowtomakeitrelevanttoapotential e m p l o yerandapplyitwhileworkingonacross-culturalvirtualteaminthefuture. T h ird,bepreparedtoappreciateandcommunicateyourexperienceinawaythat yourprospectiveemployerwillappreciate.Don"tsimplyleaveittoemployersto maketheconnections.Youmustillustrateyourexperienceandexplainwhat M anyprofessionalsreportedthatthedemandsoftheir w o rkplaceshaverequiredthemtolearnnewskills a ndnewlanguagesandadapttocomplexissues. Q U I CKTIP transferableskillsyou"velearnedandhowyoucanadaptthemtotheworkplace. F o rdetailedinformationonleveragingstudyabroadinyourfuturepursuits,check o u tChapter10fortipsandexamplefromothers. A pproachingits50 - yearanniversaryin2014,AIFSsurveyedalumniwhoparticipated i nstudyabroadprogramsbetween1990and2010andwhoarenowintheir20s tolate30s,tofindouthowalumniregardtheimpactoftheirstudentabroadex- p e r i e nceontheirlives.Specificfocuswaspaidtotheareasofculturalunderstanding a n dworldview,professionalandcareerdevelopment,andpersonalgrowthand v alues(AIFS,2013).Eightypercentofthenearly1,600respondentsindicatedthat s tudyabroadcontributedtotheirabilitytoadaptindiverseworkplaceenvironments. W h a tValueDoesStudyAbroadOfferEmployers? W h a tdocompaniesvaluemostfromastudyabroadexperience?Basedoncon- versationswe"vehadwithemployersatmanylargemultinationalcompaniesand g lobalorganizations,theonequalitytheyvaluemostistheinherentcuriositycom- montostudentswhohavechosentostudyabroad.Suchpeoplearepresumedto b ealreadyonthetracktobecominggloballymindedandgloballycompetentem- p loyees.Thevastmajorityofprofessionalsweinterviewedagreedthatiftwoap- p licantshaveessentiallyequalrésumés,theywouldhiretheonewhohadstud- i edabroad.Thefollowingattributeswerecited: • C r oss-culturalawareness,whichiscriticaltodiverseglobalteams. • A b ilitytobringglobalthinkingskillstobearoncomplexissues. •

Languageskillsneededinamultilingualworld.

•

Predispositiontoandexperiencewithglobalmobility.

B u twhereasstudyabroadingeneralmighthavebeensufficientevenadecadeago, t h elocationwhereyoustudiedisnowincreasinglyimportantinhelpingyoustand o u t.EschewingthetypicalWesternEuropeancountriesinfavorofChina,Brazil, R u s sia,SouthAfricaorIndiasignalsanenhancedawarenessofagrowingglobal e conomy,andoftenhelpsstudentsforgeadirectlinkwiththeveryplaceswhere manycompaniesareexpanding.Moreover,thesenontraditionaldestinationsof- t enoffermorechallengingsituationsforastudentaccustomedtoU.S.culture,thus i ntensifyingthelearningcurve.

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter121

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter122

Inanycase,would-beemployeesshouldn"texpectcompaniestojusttickthebox o finternationalexperienceandmoveon.Overseasexperiencetypicallyprecipitates awholelineofquestioningduringtheinterviewprocess.Organizationswillwant toknowwhatyoudidandlearnedandhowyoucanbringthatinternationalex- periencetobearonthejob.Wastheexperiencearigorousonewithafullacademic l oad-orwasitprimarilyjustaworkingvacation?IfyourthreemonthsinRome, f orexample,wasmostlyspentsippingcappuccinoandtoolingaroundonaVes- p a ,thentheexperienceofferslittletointerestaprospectiveemployer.Wereany o fyourclassesinthelocallanguage?Wasaninternshippartoftheterm?Ifastu- d entstudiedandtookclassesinSpanishinMadrid,ArabicinCairo,orJapanesein O s aka,whilealsolearningtonavigatethecultureasevidencedbyapart-timejob, tutoringatalocalschool,orservingasadocentatalocalmuseumorhistoricsite, e mployerswillbesignificantlyimpressed. Inordertoreapthefullbenefitsofstudyingabroad,youmustimmerseyourself inthelocalculture.Takingstand-aloneclassesinEnglishtaughtbyAmericanpro- f essorswithoutastrongculturalcomponentisnolongerenough.Universitiesand collegesarecatchingontotheneedtointegratetheglobalexperienceintotheir a cademiccurricula,andthosechangesareservingtheirstudentswellintheirca- reers.Infact,studentswhoenjoyarichcross-culturalexperienceoftenendupat thetopofacompany"sfiercelycompetitivelistforfutureinternationaltransfers. R i gorousoverseasstintshaveproventocatapultmanyacareer.Youcanreadmany ofthesestoriesinStacieBerdan"saward-winningbook,GetAheadByGoingAbroad. S t u dyAbroadStudentsareBetterPreparedfortheWorkplace I n2000,researchersbegananambitiousefforttodocumenttheacademicoutcomes ofstudyabroadacrossthe35institutionsintheUniversitySystemofGeorgia.The d a taincluded283,000studentsat425studyabroadprogramsofalltypes(ex- change/immersion,faculty-led,short-term,etc.)atresearchuniversities,com- p rehensives,andbothtwo-yearandfour-yearschools.Tenyearslater,theyfound t hatstudentswhostudiedabroadhadimprovedacademicperformanceuponre- t u rningtotheirhomecampus,highergraduationrates,andimprovedknowledge o fculturalpracticesandcontextcomparedtostudentsincontrolgroups.Theyalso f o u ndthatstudyingabroadhelps,ratherthanhinders,theacademicperformance o fat-riskstudents. Someofthemoreinterestingfindingsshowedasignificantincreaseinfunction- a lknowledgeamongstudyabroadstudentswhencomparedtothecontrolgroup. Someoftheindicatorsusedtodeterminethisfindinginclude: • K n owshowtocompareandcontrastculture. • K n owsnormsandtaboos. • K n owshowtogivecoherentdirections. • K n owshowtotalkwayoutoftoughsituation. • K n owsdifferentwaystoexpressideas. • K n owswhat"sfunny. • K n owshowtotakeatrainorabustoreachadestination. • K n owshowtopacifyanangryperson. T hisinformationisinterestingbecausethesearelifeskills.Notnecessarilylanguage fluencyachievementsorgeographyknowledge,butfunctionalskillsthataredif- ficulttoteachinaclassroomandbestlearnedthroughexperience.Theseareim- p ortantskillsforbuildingcross-culturalinteraction.Infact,knowledgeofcultur- a lcontextalsoimprovedsignificantlyoverthecontrolgroup: • K n owshowdifferentsettingsaffectone"sownstyleofinteracting. • Understandssignificanceoflanguageandculturedifferences. • K n owshowculturalsettingsaffectone"sownreactionstoandinteractions w ithothers. A lloftheseskillswillenhanceyourabilitytobeabetterworker,whetheryou a reworkingintheUnitedStatesorabroad.Moreandmorehiringmanagershave b e g untomaketheconnectionbetweenstudyabroadandtheenhancedskills t heyneed. R esearchalsoshowsthatgraduationratesforstudentswhostudiedabroadare s ignificantlyhigherthanthoseoftheirstay-at-homepeers: • F our-yeargraduationratesofstudyabroadstudentsare17.8percenthigher. • Five-yeargraduationratesofstudyabroadstudentsare10.6percenthigher.

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter123

TODAY"SSTUDYABROADPROGRAMS

Studyabroadprogramscanvarywidely,soitpaystodoyourresearch.Some h a v erigidcurriculumrequirements;othersaresoflexiblethatevenfreshmen, j ustbeginningtheircollegeexperience,canparticipate.Somearemorelike g lorifiedvacations,witheverylogisticaldetailtakencareof,whileotherstake s elf-sufficiencytoextremesbyrequiringparticipantstofindtheirownac- c ommodationsafterarrival-anintimidatingenoughprospectevenforsea- s onedtravelers.Someareacademicallyrich,othersmediocre.Thecostandqual- i t yofprogramscanbeextremelyuneven.Therefore,prospectiveparticipants mustbediscerningbuyers,seekingoutthoseprogramsbestdesignedtohelp themmeettheirownspecificacademicgoals M a n ycollegesoffershortstintsabroad,whichmaylasttwoorthreeweeks, a spartofaclass.Thesecanbeagoodwaytogetafirstinternationalexpe- r ience,andtheyprovideimportantoptionsforstudentswhocouldnototh- e rwisegoabroadduetoworkorfamilycommitments.However,althougha s horttimeabroadisbetterthannotimeabroad,webelievethatstudyabroad shouldbelongerwheneverpossibleinordertomaximizeyourlearning.Ittakes awhiletogetthefeelforthingsonthegroundinanewplace.Often,bythe timeyoufeelcomfortableandarereadytobetrulyproductive,itisalready timetoleave.Weurgeyoudoyourbesttogoabroadaslongaspossible- a n dasmanytimesaspossible. Inthechaptersthatfollow,wewillbepresentingawealthofinformationabout e a chstepofthestudyabroadprocess,beginningwithhowtodetermineif s tudyabroadisrightforyou(Chapter2),andendingwithsomeadviceonhow t oleverageyourinternationalexperiencetofurtheryourcareer(Chapter10).

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter124

• S ix-yeargraduationratesofstudyabroadstudentsare6.4percenthigher. M o r e over,theeffectsholdconsistentlyacrosssub-groupsofgender,income,race, a n dSATscores.TheoutcomesofthisresearcharepublishedinDocumentingthe A cademicImpactofStudyAbroad:FinalReportoftheGLOSSARIProject,a2010 reportbyRichardC.SuttonandDonaldL.Rubin.

References

AmericanInstituteForForeignStudy.(2013).AIFSstudyabroadoutcomes:Aviewfromouralumni 1 9

90-2010.Retrievedfromhttp://www.aifsabroad.com/advisors/pdf/

A I

FS_Study_Abroad_Outcomes.pdf

B i kson,T.K.&andLaw,S.A.(1994).Globalpreparednessandhumanresources:Collegeandcorporation p erspectives.SantaMonica,CA:RandCorporation. Bhandari,R.(2012).Opendoors2012:Reportoninternationaleducationalexchange.NewYork: I n s tituteofInternationalEducation. C ommitteeforEconomicDevelopment.(2006).Educationforgloballeadership:Theimportanceof i nternationalstudiesandforeignlanguageeducationforU.S.economicandnationalsecurity.

Washington,DC:CommitteeforEconomicDevelopment.

D a vidson,D.E.(2010).Studyabroad:When,howlong,andwithwhatresults?Newdatafromthe R ussianfront.ForeignLanguageAnnals,43(1),6-26. D obbs,R.,Madgavkar,A.,Barton,D.,Labaye,E.,Manyika,J.,Roxburgh,C.,Lund,S.&Madhav,S. ( 2 0

12,June).Theworldatwork:Jobs,pay,andskillsfor3.5billionpeople.Retrievedfrom

h ttp://www.mckinsey.com/insights/employment_and_growth/the_world_at_work F orbesInsights.(2011,September).Languagestudy:Reducingtheimpactoflanguagebarriers. Retrievedfromhttp://www.forbes.com/forbesinsights/language_study_reg J avidan,M.,Hough,L.&Bullough,A.(2011).ConceptualizingandMeasuringGlobalMindset ® : D e velopmentoftheGlobalMindsetInventory.Retrievedfromhttp://www.thunderbird.edu/ w w wfiles/pdf/knowledge_network/ctrs_excellence/global_mindset_leadership_institute/ g m i-tech-report.pdf J e rald,C.D.(2009,July).Defininga21stcenturyeducation.Alexandria,VA:TheCenterfor P ublicEducation. K ibler,A.&Philipose,S.Whatdoesresearchshowaboutthebenefitsoflanguagelearning?Retrieved f romhttp://www.actfl.org/advocacy/discover-languages/what-the-research-shows?pageid=4524 Molony,J.,Sowter,B.&Potts,D.(2011).QSglobalemployersurveyreport2011:Howemployersvalue a ninternationalstudyexperience.Retrievedfromhttp://content.qs.com/qs/ q s - global-employer-survey-2011.pdf NEAResearch.(2007).Regardingworldlanguageeducation.Retrievedfrom h ttp://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/PDF/Curriculum/Curriculum_Root_Web_Folder/

BenefitsofSecondLanguage.pdf.

NationalIntelligenceCouncil.(2012).Globaltrends2030:Alternativeworlds.Retrievedfrom h ttp://www.dni.gov/index.php/about/organization/global-trends-2030 S utton,R.C.&Rubin,D.L.(2010,June).Documentingtheacademicimpactofstudyabroad:Final r eportoftheGLOSSARIproject.Retrievedfromhttp://glossari.uga.edu/datasets/pdfs/FINAL.pdf U.S.DepartmentofEducation.(2012,November).Succeedinggloballythroughinternationaleducation a ndengagement.Retrievedfromhttp://www2.ed.gov/about/inits/ed/internationaled/ i nternational-strategy-2012-16.pdf W o rldSavvy.(2012).Worldsavvy:Globalcompetencyresearchresults.Retrievedfrom h ttp://worldsavvy.org/assets/documents/uploads/Final_WS_Market_Research_Study_Aug_2012.pdf

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter125

Top10ReasonstoStudyAbroad

1 .Learnaboutyourselfandbecomemore s e lf-aware. 2 .Boostyourself-confidenceandindependence. 3 .Learnanotherlanguage. 4 .Learnaboutyourowncountry. 5 .Expandyourworldview. 6 .Strengthenadaptability,communications a ndteam-buildingskills. 7 .Enhanceyourcareeropportunities. 8 .Experienceanotherculturefirsthandandenhance y o u rcross-culturalcompetency. 9 .Makenewfriendsfromaroundtheworld. 1 0 .Travel.

TheseareGlobalTimes|Chapter126

DeterminingifStudyAbroadis

RightforYou

Formostcollegestudentsintheirfirstandsecondyears,theallureofstudyingabroad canbeintoxicating.Thatisbecausestudentstendtoinitiallyfocusonthe "abroad"part,awordthatconjuresupanynumberofromanticpersonalimpres- s ions-often,infact,littlemorethanfantasies-basedonmovies,travelbooks, andfirsthandreportsfromfriendsandrelativeswhohavevacationedabroad.Eclipsed b ytheglamourandintrigueofitallisthe"study"part. B utmakenomistakeaboutit:studyingabroadisaseriousundertaking.Itwillchal- l engeyouonapersonallevel.Itwillhaveanimpactonyouracademiccareer.And i twillcostmoney.Decidingwhethertogoabroad,therefore,isamomentousde- c ision,andnotonethatshouldbemadequicklyorwithoutathoroughassessment o falltheprosandcons.Inorderforyoutomaketherightdecision,youwillneed totakeadeep,practicallookatthepersonal,academicandfinancialchallenges o fstudyabroad. Studyabroadchallengesyouonapersonallevel.InChapter1wetouchedupon thepersonalgrowthanddevelopmentthatinevitablyoccursasaresultofstudy- i ngabroad:increasedself-awareness,independence,self-confidence,team-and r e lationship-buildingskills,adaptability,andanoverallsenseofaccomplishment. B uthowexactlydoesthishappen?Studyingabroadismorethanjustgettingto yourclassontime,makingyourselfunderstoodinthelocallanguage,andeating

DeterminingifStudyAbroadisRightforYou|Chapter227

C

H A P T ER2

DeterminingifStudyAbroadisRightforYou|Chapter228

differentfoodsatthecafeteria.Youmustlearnhowtodomanynewthingswhile alsorelearningsomethingsthathavebecomesecondnature.Studyabroadinvolves asubtlebutimportantchangeinyourexpectationsofyourselfandothers.More i mportantly,youwillhavetocopewithalossofidentityandfamiliarityandget a longwithoutsomeofthelongstandingtouchstonesthatprovideencouragement, meaninganddirection.Youwilldefinitelygrowpersonally,buttheexperiencewill t estyou.It"simportanttodeterminebeforehandthatyouareuptothechallenge. S tudents,eventhosewhohavetraveledabroadfortourismorbusiness,benefit greatlyfromstudyingabroad.Beingabletoseeandexperienceaforeignculture inthecompanyofone"speersisnotonlyeducationalbutcanalsobeaneye- o p eningexperience.Thesights,smells,sounds,language,mannerismsand b ehaviorsthatareexperiencedopenupone"smindandmakethestudents realizehowmuchmorethereistolearnfromgoingabroad. -RaghuramTadepalli,deanandprofessorofmarketing,MarthaandSpencer L oveSchoolofBusiness,ElonUniversity. Experiencinganothercountry/culturewasthemainreasonIdecidedtostudy a broad.IwantedtobecomeproficientinanotherlanguagesobadlythatI madeitmymajor,butIwasalsointerestedinSpanishcultureandtraveling. A tfirstglance,mystudyabroadexperiencedidn"tseemtomeetmyexpec- t a t i onsatall,mostlybecauseIthoughtadjustingtotheculturewouldbe e asierthanitwas,anditturnedoutthatlivinginCostaRicadidn"tsuitme a tall.However,onceIchangedmyexpectations,IrealizedthatIhadgotten e xactlywhatIwaslookingfor,because,happyornot,Iwasexperiencing anothercountryanditsculture,andthepersonalgrowthIgainedfrom l earningtolikewhereIwaslivingwaswhatmadetheexperienceworthitin t h eend. -BethCubanski,AmericanUniversity.StudiedabroadinCostaRica. Studyingabroadwillhaveanimpactonyouracademiccareer.Themainreason thatyouareincollegeistoearnadegree,onethatwillhopefullyprepareyoufor asatisfyingandrewardingcareerpath.Howwillstudyingabroadaffectthatob- jective?Forsomestudents,itcangreatlycontributetoreachingit;forothers,itmay havelittletodowithacademicgoals,orevenpresentsomeobstacles.Butmake nomistake,studyabroadisjustthat:takingclassesatanoverseasorforeignuni- v e rsity.Theexperienceshouldn"tbeviewedasanextendedvacationoralightweight a cademicterm.Youshouldnotonlycomereadytoputjustasmucheffortintoyour s t u d i e sasyoudoonyourhomecampus,butalsobepreparedtoputinevenmore, e speciallyifyouaregoingtobestudyinginanotherlanguage. B utallthisworkwon"tgounrewarded.Moststudentsenjoytheirclasses,andsay thattheexperienceignitedtheirinterestinacademicpursuitsingeneral.Many returnhomewitharenewedacademicpurposeandthedesiretodoevenbetter intheircoursework.Ifdoneintelligently,studyingabroadwillenhanceyourover- allundergraduateexperience.Buttobesureitdoes,youwillneedtomapouthow i tcontributestoyouroverallcourseofstudybeforeyouleave. Todothisrequirestwothings:1)findingoutwhetheryouruniversityorcollege r equiresyoutocompleteanycoursesbeforeyoustudyabroad,and2)makingsure y ouwillhaveenoughtimeafterreturningtocampustocompleteallofyourgrad- uationrequirementsonschedule.Thismeansnotwaitinguntilthetermbefore youarethinkingaboutgoingoverseastofindoutthefacts-startinvestigating inyourfreshmanyear.Failuretodothiscouldresultinunpleasantconsequences. Youcoul

Hindi Documents PDF, PPT , Doc

[PDF] aboard hindi meaning

1. Foreign Language

2. Hindi

3. Hindi

[PDF] aboard hindi means

[PDF] aboard hindi translate

[PDF] above hindi arth

[PDF] above hindi m

[PDF] above hindi me

[PDF] above hindi meaning

[PDF] above hindi name

[PDF] above hindi se

[PDF] above hindi translation

12345 Next 200000 acticles