In all great stories, from ancient fairy tales to contemporary movies, the Hero’s journey [i] consists of leaving home, encountering the Other (which leads to a personal crisis), and the return home. The common thread throughout these narratives is the necessity of self-examination brought about through encounters with others different than themselves. A much-overlooked dimension of…
Category: Student Advising
Penn State’s Embedded Education Abroad Faculty Toolkit
Developing global citizenship through short-term study abroad is little like trying to juice a grape (if you don’t have the right tools). It’s also naive and presumptuous to think we can turn students into global citizens, like Jesus turned water into wine, by merely sending them off to another country. It presumes that all students who study…
Accreditation and Study Abroad: What You Need to Know
As more American students pursue nontraditional avenues of education — online and distance learning and study abroad opportunities — accreditation is a big issue. Students want to make sure they’re not wasting time and money pursuing a degree that will be worthless in the job market or study abroad courses that will not be recognized by their home…
Study Abroad Insurance Options
Precaution is better than cure. ~Edward Coke Before studying abroad, you should make certain that you and your students have adequate health and emergency insurance that will cover you internationally. In some cases, it may be provided by your home institution, and in other cases, it may be included with your fees to a third-party provider. Still in other circumstances, it…
How Can We Help Study Abroad Students Better Prepare For Experiences Evoking Strong Emotions?
by Aisling Meade, Programme Manager, EIL Intercultural Learning Every year we coordinate a field trip to Belfast for American students in a study abroad program. We arrange for them to meet with various politicians, community workers, and organizations to provide a basic overview of the current situation in Northern Ireland and its culture. We often arrange for…
The God Business (a study abroad story)
by Wendy Williamson, Director of Study Abroad, Eastern Illinois University One of the reasons why I like working in the field of study abroad is that study abroad changes lives! It changes minds, but it also changes hearts, as people learn more about themselves and better understand each other. Sure, there are some students who…




