A freshly painted building situated next to Baker University Center has one goal: to entice more students to consider studying abroad, and officials say the plan is working.
Ohio University’s Office of Education Abroad has noticed increased interest in study-abroad programs from students since its relocation.
The office moved from Lindley Hall to 15 Park Place last spring after the university received a $2 million donation from Robert and Margaret Walter in 2008.
At this time last year, 271 students had visited the office to ask about study-abroad opportunities. This year, 417 students have already begun exploring this option as of yesterday, said Lori Lammert, assistant director of the Office of Education Abroad.
The number of students who have walked into the center so far this quarter has exceeded the total number of walk-ins during all of Fall Quarter last year, Lammert said.
“There has always been an interest in studying abroad, but I believe the new location has made our programs more accessible,” Lammert said. “We have seen a particular increase in first-year students who want to travel the world.”
One of those students is Devon Lewison, a freshman studying journalism who wants to travel to Spain to enhance her Spanish-language skills.
“The building outside of Baker University Center definitely makes the program feel super accessible,” Lewison said. “It’s almost as if the university is inviting me to study abroad every day.”
Students now have a constant reminder to stop in and receive information every time they walk past Baker Center, Lammert said.
She added that another element the office believes has increased student interest in OU’s study-abroad programs is the recent partnership between the Office of Education Abroad and the International Education Programs.
This partnership has added new programs and countries to OU’s study-abroad options. This new union could also lead to additional scholarships and more individualized programs, said Catherine Marshall, director of the Office of Education Abroad, in a university news release last month.
OEA and IEP host “Study Abroad 101” sessions every Tuesday from 5-6 p.m. in the Walter International Education Center.
Kelsey Smith, a junior studying accounting, traveled abroad last year and studied at the University of Newcastle in Australia. She said that she found information about the program on the Office of Education Abroad website and isn’t sure of the effect the office’s move will have.
“I think both locations are very central on campus,” Smith said in an email. “So I don’t think that the move would necessarily make it easier for students to have access to the study-abroad program. … I presume they have more space in 15 Park Place than they did in Lindley so that would help them offer more opportunities because the staff can expand.”
After seeing a flier about studying abroad in Backdrop Magazine, Maddie Gaither, a junior studying journalism, chose to study in London, England last spring.
“I was basically in the dark about the Education Abroad opportunities before I saw it,” Gaither said.
She added that she is happy with her decision to study in England and believes the office’s more prominent location will attract more students to OU’s study-abroad programs.
“It was a surreal experience that I will never forget,” Gaither said.
