The University of Alabama offers several different options for studying abroad spanning from a few weeks up to a full school year, but deciding which option fits a student best and making the right choice can be tough.
“Anytime students can go abroad, whether it’s for weeks or months, it’s going to be beneficial,” Holly Hudson, director of Capstone International Academic Programs, said.
The best program will vary from student to student. The University of Alabama offers faculty-led programs, semester exchange programs and UA affiliate and direct enroll programs. Hudson said shorter programs, like UA faculty-led programs in the summer, could be more accessible for some students who are locked into a progressive degree program or whose campus involvement may keep them at the University during the year.
“Shorter programs let [students] go in the summer or winter and get that abroad experience,” Hudson said. “I think there are real benefits to those programs, but I don’t think that it’s reasonable that a student can get a full immersion experience from those short programs.”
A longer abroad experience can give more insight into a culture’s customs and greater language proficiency, but Hudson said she advocates all types of study abroad experiences.
Considering Length of Time
Brianna Wolfe, a sophomore majoring in nursing, found that a semester was the perfect amount of time for her.
“A semester just sort of worked for me,” she said. “I completed my lower division nursing requirements during the fall, and therefore did not have any more to take before applying for fall 2013 promotion. Plus, I felt one summer would not be adequate time to learn all I want to learn, but a year would cut into my plan to graduate in 2015.”
Wolfe believes a semester abroad can be a fulfilling experience for most students.
“If a student has the time and the money to go for a year, then by all means it is the best way to go,” she said. “Adjusting does take a while, especially if you are not very advanced in the native language. However, most students do not have the means to be gone for a whole year, and I feel a semester is sufficient and definitely worth it.”
Some students have found that it can be cheaper and a more enriching experience to study abroad without the help of the University.
Independent Trips
Okha Patel, a senior majoring in international development through New College, did an independent study outside of the UA study abroad program.
“Going by yourself gives you a new perspective and it makes you more open to getting to know new people, and you really get to know yourself better,” Patel said.
Patel has studied abroad three times, two summers and once over Christmas break. One summer, she participated in UA in Bangladesh, a faculty-led program, and her other two experiences were independent. Her experience with the faculty-led program was not what she had hoped.
“We crammed so much work into the time we were there,” she said. “I felt like I could have done what the University did by myself. I really feel like any abroad experience can be done without the University.”
When going abroad though the University, Patel said tuition for the faculty-led programs pays for the instructor, and she believed it was possible to save money by cutting out the University that acts more as a middleman. She believes the best way to study abroad is through making connections with other people who can help.
“Faculty-led study abroad automatically puts you in a group away from meeting other people and having that cultural experience,” Patel said. “The best way to go abroad by yourself is to research the country before going. A lot depends on if the county is developed or not. Students traveling into developing countries may need more connections. If you have connections that helps a lot.”
Patel said international students studying at the University can be a good way to make connections in other countries.
“There are so many students at UA from other countries that it should be easy to get those connections,” she said. “Make a new international friend. When American students go abroad, everyone you meet wants to get to know you. When international students come here is just not the same. If students were more aware of trying to connect I think that would make a difference.”
Patel suggested having a “mix and mingle” outside of UA study abroad, for international students and students looking to go abroad.
Emily Wolfe, a UA graduate currently in graduate school at Appalachian State, studied abroad for a semester in Barcelona, Spain during her junior year. Wolfe went through API, an international study abroad program.
“The people who ran the program were Spanish and so they set you up with a host family or dorm,” she said. “I didn’t go through UA because I didn’t want to go with a group or a professor. A lot of the UA programs, I believe, are summer programs and I don’t think you get as immersed in the culture through those.”
Even though Emily Wolfe didn’t go abroad with the University, she did have an advisor from the study abroad office to help with transferring her credits. Hudson said she encourages students to try to come by the office at some point during the process even if they don’t want to study through the University.
“About 1,200 students go abroad through UA in some way,” she said. “They may go on programs not affiliated with the University; it just means extra work for them, but technically every student should come see us at some point. They don’t necessarily have to be listed in our approximately 300 pre-approved programs.”
Working with UA
Andy Tuck, a senior majoring in linguistics through New College, went on a faculty-led program in China and did a yearlong exchange program in Japan, both through the University. Tuck said although he preferred staying for a longer period of time, he acknowledge that a shorter three-week program could have advantages for many students.
“With the shorter program you go with a bunch of students and it is usually those students, who you take classes with,” he said. “You can’t really get that full immersion experience when you are communicating and living with other Americans. There is no need to learn the language, but on the other hand, that may be less intimidating for some students. These kind of programs can be good for students just looking for a taste of a different culture.”
Tuck said the University helped him with the application process for his semester exchange.
“They helped take care of the official stuff, like getting my certificate of acceptance from the university I was studying with in Japan. They gave me a packet of classes that were meant for foreigners, but none of the staff at UA seemed to have much experience with Japan. I think they helped me as much as they could given the extent they knew about the country.”
Tuck said he felt like direct enrollment with a university in another country would be just as easy, but he believed it was just easier going through the University.
Working with New College
Both Tuck and Patel found it easier to transfer courses going through New College. For Patel, because it was an independent study, she said her course transferred fairly easily. Tuck had some trouble ensuring he would get course credit.
“New College is so much more flexible,” Tuck said. “I am really appreciative of them and what they did to help with getting me credit for my courses.”
Tuck recommended every student study abroad as much as possible.
“That is part of why I came to Alabama, because I knew they had numerous opportunities to study abroad,” he said. “I had a teacher who said, ‘If you study abroad for a semester, you see all the good things about a place. If you study abroad for a year, you see all the good and the bad.’ I think that is important, especially if you are looking to live and work abroad for an extended period of time.”
For students still looking to make summer plans, Hudson said deadlines for some UA faculty-led study abroad applications have been extended until March 15.
