Tuesday, December 8, 2009

How do we Diversify the U.S. Study Abroad Student Profile?

This IHEC Blog post is simply a question with a data chart I compiled some time ago to provide basic demographic data on the U.S. population, U.S. higher education enrollments and U.S. student participation in education abroad for comparative purposes. About the only point I wish to make is that the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship is for students who are Pell Grant eligible.


What do the data tell you? What can we do to change the face of U.S. study abroad?

Sorry that the data chart is a bit small but I'm having difficulty making it larger and easier to read. If you would to view and download a larger and easier to read you can find it on my SCRIBD page here.

11 comments:

  1. Hi David,

    Great post. I remembered seeing a short article on the NAFSA website which brings some of these stats up another two years. And the diversity challenge has grown, not receeded. Though Caucasian students make up even less of total enrollment, they are still 81.5% of the study abroad enrollment.

    Hope this link works. If not its nafsa.orf, then public policy, then study abroad, then scroll down and click the 'demographics of study abroad link'

    http://www.nafsa.org/public_policy.sec/study_abroad_2/demographics_of_study/

    ReplyDelete
  2. @Jeff ~ Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment and the link/navigation. Much appreciated! David

    ReplyDelete
  3. I always wanted to do study abroad as an undergrad, but didn't because it was too expensive. I wound up joining the Peace Corps 1 year after graduation because it was an all expenses paid way to go to another country and leave there saying I really learned something about the place. Now I encourage other young black students to travel. However, I realize that we don't have much support from our own community to travel. I have heard some say that blacks have it so difficult in the US, why would I want to go someplace else and deal with something worse? Some of that is just plain old ignorance about what lies outside the US. But it is also a real fear of leaving what is comfortable. There is also the fear of loss of wages. Study abroad during school is expensive. But once a student graduates, you have to pay back your school loans and start to pay for living on your own. So for many that rules out opportunities to travel even after college.

    ReplyDelete
  4. @Mrs. Agouda ~ Many thanks for taking the time to comment on this post. You have touched upon many of the the things I have heard from the students I work with as well as what I have read in the research literature.

    While the numbers of students (of all races and ethnicity) studying abroad increase each year the percentages have remained virtually unchanged.

    Many thanks again for your comment. It's very much appreciated! David

    ReplyDelete
  5. Out of the entire state of Indiana, I was only one of 5 blacks who went overseas as exchange students back in 1981. That number has increased substantially, but not nearly enough.

    black community (B/C) I would never have gone across town, let along across the oceans. There's a whole world outside your neighborhoods black people. Amazed that this is still an issue. Thankfully, networks like Black Women in Europe is bringing about awareness that we have the world available to to us and that we should definitely broaden our horizons. Great post!

    ReplyDelete
  6. @Lorraine ~ Many thanks for taking the time to read and comment on this post. I appreciate your thoughts and comment. I never heard about the network Black Women in Europe and will check it out. Thanks again! David

    ReplyDelete
  7. Lorraine made me think of the book, "Go Girl!: The Black Woman's Book of Travel and Adventure" by Elaine Lee. I read this during the year before leaving for the Peace Corps because I had gotten so much negativity from my family and friends that I desperately wanted some information that would keep me looking forward to my time abroad. From time to time I also read other blogs written by other black women regarding their travels in other countries. The experience of traveling as a black woman is something we don't get to hear from often so I purposely read those just to find something I can relate to. And perhaps this is what other people of color need in order to become more interested in going abroad -- learning from the experiences of other people of color...

    ReplyDelete
  8. It is necessary to be a part of abroad Masters program and I can say that it has been a trend over here for study abroad. MBA specially from UK and MS from USA. They provide quality degree too...

    cartucho r4i

    ReplyDelete
  9. We reported on this in March on BlackExpat.com:
    http://blackexpat.com/new/2009/03/06/us-black-students-underrepresented-in-study-abroad/

    I studied abroad and recommend it to every black student I meet. Living abroad is the best education you'll ever get.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Very nice.......I'm sure it will help many people.....

    study abroad hand book

    ReplyDelete
  11. Very nice.......I'm sure it will help many people.....

    study abroad hand book

    ReplyDelete