An example of outbound student mobility in which learners, enrolled in HE programs, spend part of their degree program in formal credit-bearing learning programs, study exchanges, or work placements in countries of which they are not nationals. Within the US educational system, study abroad is predominantly a short-term experience, with the large majority lasting for less than eight weeks.
Published in Chapter:
Repositioning Study Abroad as a Rite of Passage: Impact, Implications, and Implementation
David Starr-Glass (University of New York in Prague, Czech Republic)
Copyright: © 2016
|Pages: 26
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-0169-5.ch004
Abstract
Study abroad can be an exhilarating and transformative experience literally moving students to a place where globalization, internationalization, and cultural awareness are direct experiences, not simply classroom abstractions. Study abroad provides multiple social and learning benefits for students, but in addition it also adds to the vibrancy of their colleges. However, despite these benefits, study abroad still remains a missed opportunity for most US student and their institutions. This chapter advocates that study abroad should be recognized and celebrated as an important rite of passage in undergraduate life. Thus reconceptualized, students might place renewed value on the study abroad experience and colleges might be able to promote such initiatives more effectively. The chapter explores the dynamics of rites of passage, the urgent need for significant rites of passage in undergraduate life, and how study abroad experiences can be strategically repositioned to benefit both students and their colleges.