UC Study Abroad More than Doubles;
Impact of Sept. 11 Uncertain

Study abroad at the University of Cincinnati has more than doubled in the past five years, outpacing national increases, according to a new report by the university's Institute for Global Studies and Affairs (IGSA). During the same time period that UC education abroad rose by 146 percent, study abroad increased 61 percent nationally.

Whether the growth will continue in the coming year as a result of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks remains a question mark, although there has not been a decline so far, according to UC's IGSA.

The IGSA report shows that the number of UC students studying abroad grew from 260 in the 1995-96 academic year to 640 for 1999-2000. The majority of those students are from the business/management and fine/applied arts disciplines.

Figures released Nov. 13 by the Institute of International Education in its annual Open Doors report show that international study increased 61 percent in the last five years.

A crucial factor in the coming year for education overseas will be "Thanksgiving dinner-table conversations," according to Susan Bacon, IGSA associate director. IGSA Director Riall Nolan is laying groundwork for possible future international programs in China and is unavailable for comment at this time. At a recent conference of international education experts in Washington, D.C., which Bacon and Nolan attended, the consensus was that the holiday gathering will undoubtedly be a time when parents and students will take stock of the international scene and determine whether study abroad will be a good idea for the coming year.

"So far at UC, nearly all the faculty and students who are planning to study abroad are still going abroad," said Bacon. For example, a Dec. 8-15 trip will study the past and present culture in the Yucatan region of Mexico. It drew more student interest than it could accommodate. Forty students applied, and 28 students have been selected to go, according to Robert South, professor in the geography department, which is sponsoring the trip. Similarly a study trip focusing on Mexican festivals from Dec. 9-18, led by professor Kirsten Nigro and destined for Cuernavaca, Mexico, is near capacity with 10 students scheduled to travel. According to Nigro, only one student said she couldn't travel because her mother didn't want her going abroad at this time.

While Bacon said there might be a short-term decline in travel abroad as a result of Sept. 11, previous events have shown that in the long term the attacks may actually increase interest in global education. Students have historically been more interested in going to places that are difficult to get to or closed off, such as Poland and Eastern Europe before the collapse of the Soviet bloc.

"If anything, Sept. 11 may in fact lead many to conclude that what we need to do is learn more about the world outside the United States, not less," Bacon said. "Whatever else led to the Sept. 11 attacks, it was definitely not too much study abroad."

The IGSA report also shows:

• The most common destination for UC international study for the five-year period was Western Europe (48 percent), while North America is second (20 percent). The institute is working to improve the numbers who travel to Africa and Asia, which represented 1 percent and 5 percent, respectively, of the UC student travel.

  Examples of these destinations range from Crete, where an interdisciplinary team of UC students and faculty have been working since 1999 to solve problems related to mass tourism and the environment, to more than a dozen businesses in Europe visited by Honors-PLUS juniors in business. One other example is Lucca, Italy, where College-Conservatory of Music students and faculty perform in and produce an opera theater and music festival each summer.

• International linkages, or formal exchange agreements now stand at 80, with 53 existing prior to 1998 and 14 added in 1998-99, six in 1999-2000 and seven in 2000-01. Although the number may not be escalating at a high rate, the university is taking steps to make sure that these agreements will be more than "paper" and sustainable in the long term. One new linkage with Italy involves the College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning, while Chinese and Japanese agreements will benefit students and faculty in the College of Business Administration and DAAP.

Much of the growth has occurred in the years following President Joseph A. Steger's call for a Globalization Initiative. Since 1998, UC has funneled more than $1.05 million into international programs.

In a cover letter accompanying the report, Nolan thanks UC faculty for their development of "innovative, high-quality courses, study abroad initiatives and other international activities."

"As this report shows, the University of Cincinnati's international efforts have grown considerably in size and in scope in the past several years. We can all be proud of the achievement of the faculty in this respect," Nolan wrote. He added: "The events of Sept. 11 have simply underscored the need we have all recognized for some time, of being internationally connected, internationally competent and internationally concerned."