Student Guide to Studying, Volunteering, and Working Overseas

From The Editor

It came as a disappointment that the Lincoln Study Abroad Fellowship Program did not receive the federal funding it sought in 2006. This funding would have enabled it to achieve its goal of dramatically increasing and diversifying the number of U.S. undergraduate students studying abroad each year. To its credit, however, the program received tremendous support from Congress and from many of you — students, college alumni, and international education professionals who recognize our need for global preparedness.

Americans increasingly and overwhelmingly support educational opportunities that advance world knowledge and cultural sensitivity. According to a national survey commissioned by NAFSA: Association of International Educators in 2005, Americans in numbers ranging from 77 to more than 90 percent believe that it is important for their children to learn other languages, study abroad, attend a college where they can interact with international students, learn about other countries and cultures, and generally be prepared for a global age.

Although the program was not funded last year, 28 senators co-sponsored the Abraham Lincoln Study Abroad Act of 2006 prior to the November elections. This show of support gives the legislation strong momentum heading into this year, when NAFSA will bring it before the Congress again. The commission and the legislation both seek to have one million American students studying abroad within a decade. The legislation would authorize support for institutional reforms to encourage study abroad, as well as funds for fellowships administered by the Department of State and by individual institutions.

This legislation marks another major stepping stone in the history of study abroad, one that, despite its relatively short history, is rich and complex, as I learned from reading A History of Study Abroad: Beginnings to 1965. This recently published book — the first-ever history of study abroad — written by study abroad expert William Hoffa, sheds light on the formative forces of this phenomenon that we take for granted today as an accepted part of higher education. I had the pleasure of discussing A History of Study Abroad with Dr. Hoffa in early February 2007.

It was fitting that Transitions Abroad interviewed Dr. Hoffa, as he was the magazine’s first international education editor. He worked with Transitions Abroad founder Dr. Clay A. Hubbs to develop the magazine’s Education Abroad section as a reliable and useful source of information and advice on educational opportunities abroad for students and those working in the field of education abroad. This section expanded and morphed into Transitions Abroad’s Student Guide.

And, just as the Student Guide is carrying on many of the hallmarks of Transitions Abroad’s former Education Abroad section, we are continuing its annual Student Writing Contest as well. This year’s winners, Lauren Anne Underhill and Lauren Elliot, traveled outside the United States for their first time when studying abroad. We chose their essays for first and second place respectively, because both express the life-changing and transformative nature of study abroad as an experience that not only enriches students’ education, but also contributes significantly to their personal development.

If you are a currently enrolled college or university student who has studied, worked, or volunteered abroad, we invite you to submit your article for the Student Writing Contest.

— Sherry Schwarz

Transitions Abroad Magazine

Publisher and Editor
Sherry Schwarz
Founding Editor and Publisher
Dr. Clay A. Hubbs
Web Content Editor
Gregory Hubbs
Design
Nashima Gokani
Advertising Manager
Kate McGrail
Office Manager
Patricia Bolognani
Editorial Assistant
Jennifer Crystal

Contributing Editors
Susan Griffith (Work Abroad)
Karl Haigler and Rae Nelson (Gap Year)
Jean-Marc Hachey (International Careers)
Zahara Heckscher (Volunteering Abroad)
William Nolting (International Education & Work)
Michele Scheib (Disability Travel)

On The Cover
In this photograph, taken last summer in Niger, Allegra Moore Williams jokes with a young boy by the Niger River.

Photographer Brian Russell worked with Allegra as part of an international research team (African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analysis) tracking the tropical storms that often become fatal hurricanes like “Katrina” in an attempt to better understand them. Read Allegra’s article “Peace Seeds.”

Mission Statement
Transitions Abroad is the only publication dedicated to work, study, living, and immersion travel abroad. Its purpose is the dissemination of practical information leading to a greater understanding of other cultures through direct participation in the daily life of the host community