For the estimated 300,000 American students abroad this year, staying nice and comfy within a “study-abroad bubble” might no longer be an option.
Professors and coordinators are working to get students traveling abroad to become immersed in the culture through innovative programming and more free time to explore on their own, and Ohio University is no exception.
Programs are incorporating mandatory local internships and activities similar to scavenger hunts, such as one where Nebraska students were given $5 and instructions to find their way back home on their first day in China.
Such ideas were formed to get students to venture out of the “American bubbles” that can make the streets of London and Barcelona feel like an extension of campus.
In December, 18 OU students will fly to Zambia for three-and-a-half weeks, costing $4,070. Dr. Yusuf Kalyango, program director and director of OU’s Institute of International Journalism, has spent months building an itinerary that gets students out of the classroom and involved in the African culture.
“We’re planning to get them working with local media, do nonprofit work with communities, interview citizens in villages,” Kalyango said. “Also, we’re going to travel around the country and look at the major industry of mining in Zambia and take students to spend three days looking at and learning about mining and the effects it has on Zambians.”
Kalyango said students also will have time outside the program to explore on their own.
Alisha Estabrook, a junior studying journalism, is one of the 18 students participating in the trip. Estabrook said she is looking forward to stepping outside the study-abroad bubble and learning about the Zambian culture.
“In the Zambia program, we not only take classes, but we also do volunteer work and have internship opportunities,” Estabrook said. “We get to go to clubs and travel, but a lot of it is that we, in small groups or by ourselves, get to go work with small organizations in the area.”
It is easier for students to stick together and not venture out into the culture on their own when they’re studying abroad, said Catherine Marshall, director of the Office of Education Abroad.
“I think students who stay with the group still have a really good experience but are missing depth,” Marshall said. “Staying in your norm is the easiest thing to do, but easy isn’t always the best route. That’s how we grow, by challenging ourselves.”
Kalyango added that bursting that comfort bubble can offer students perspective they might not find otherwise.
“Just broadening your understanding of the world puts into perspective what you have and what you don’t have; it helps you appreciate,” Kalyango said. “At the same time, without understanding the world, you can’t understand your place in the world. It’s important to travel and learn from others.”
jf392708@ohiou.edu
