International Schools

“Colleges With the Most Students Who Study Abroad”

by Delece Smith-Barrow via “US News“

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More U.S. college students are packing their bags and heading abroad to complete some of their undergrad degree requirements.

The number of students studying abroad for credit during the 2013-2014 academic year grew 5.2 percent from the previous year, topping 300,000, according to NAFSA: Association of International Educators.

Studying overseas can be a great way to complete college coursework while also learning a new language and experiencing a different culture. At some schools, almost every undergrad studies abroad.

[See the 10 top destinations for U.S. students studying abroad.]

Goucher College in Maryland and Soka University of America in California, for example, require students to spend time overseas. At both of these schools, 100 percent of 2014 graduates studied abroad – the highest percentage among the 321 colleges and universities that submitted data to U.S. News in an annual survey.

Among the 12 schools where the highest percentage of students studied abroad, 10 are National Liberal Arts Colleges. These institutions emphasize undergraduate education and award at least half of their degrees in the liberal arts fields.

“Nontraditional study abroad increasingly draws student interest”

**by Patricia Spears via “The Chronicle“**

Traditionally, most Duke students who choose to study abroad use the Fall or their junior year to study in Spain, the United Kingdom, Italy, France and Australia for the Fall of their junior year.

Although Europe remains Duke’s most popular study-away destination, an increasing number of students are choosing less traditional options.

Traditionally, most Duke students who choose to study abroad—slightly under 50 percent of each class—use the Fall or their junior year to study in Spain, the United Kingdom, Italy, France and Australia for the Fall of their junior year. But now, more students are opting for domestic programs and Spring study-abroad programs.

Approximately 50 percent of students who choose to study abroad choose to do so in the Fall, 40 percent do so in the Summer and 10 percent in the Spring, said Amanda Kelso, executive director of the Global Education Office.

“Students are recognizing that they should study abroad or study away when it makes sense for them to do it, and that it doesn’t always have to be in the fall semester,” Kelso wrote in an email Feb. 12.

Kelso noted that there have been an increasing number of students choosing semester-long domestic programs—which include locations in New York and Los Angeles.

She said students should take the same amount of care they took in choosing their university when deciding where to spend a semester away from Duke.

There are many factors that go into a student’s decision where to study. Jackie Chipkin, a junior, said she chose to spend this fall studying in Argentina because she did not want to be tempted to travel to new countries every weekend as she felt she would have been in Europe.

“I stayed in Argentina for four months, and I think that pushed me to become more immersed in its language, culture and people,” Chipkin said. . . . .