02-02-2025 Edu - Flipbook - Page 5
The Baltimore Sun | Sunday, February 2, 2025 5
More than
just a trip
abroad
Study abroad
programs pair
travel with
experiential learning
By Linda L. Esterson, Contributing Writer
W
hen she enrolled at the
Community College of Baltimore
County (CCBC), Attia Robinson
hadn’t considered a study abroad
experience, thinking it was too
expensive. She expected she would travel out of
the country long after she completed her education, when she was older.
On a walk across campus, she passed the
staff of the global education department. They
engaged in conversation and before long, she
found herself applying for a grant for funding
for a summer trip to Australia.
“I have always wanted to do wildlife biology,
and I’ve always been interested in marsupials,”
Robinson says. “I just always wanted to go to
Australia and see the marsupials, and I jumped
at the chance.”
Robinson was part of a month-long study
abroad trip in 2023 that was based on a campus
in the rain forest. She participated in lectures
about the history, anatomy and conservation of
marsupials, visited habitats, crater lakes, volcanos and flatlands, and searched for native live in
those areas at night. The students also participated in community service, clearing vegetation
from lakes and planting native trees.
The trip gave Robinson experience in tracking animals with cameras and noninvasive capture techniques and collecting and analyzing
data. She’s now applying what she learned to
study turtles as a student at Towson University,
majoring in biology with a concentration in
evolution, ecology and conservation, and is considering a 10-week STEM study abroad program
in Puerto Rico this summer.
“I’m more confident now, and I feel like I
learned a lot,” she says. “I got the chance to do
things I would have never done if I were here.”
Robinson’s trip to Australia was one of many
offered through partner programs connected
with CCBC, one of the first community colleges
to adopt study abroad programming in 2000.
Back then, it was provided more as an ad hoc
program, with faculty members leading individual trips, according to Rebekah de Wit, Ph.D.,
CCBC’s director of global education.
Today, CCBC offers two study abroad paths
for students. There are still faculty-led, shortterm programs that run six to 10 days, and are
particularly ideal for students who have not
traveled previously or have time limitations. Up
to 25 students participate in each program, and
they travel together.
“Usually, 20% of our students on these programs are getting a passport for the first time
or taking their first opportunity to travel by
plane,” de Wit explains. “These programs are
wonderful for introducing students to travel or
for helping students get abroad who don’t have a
lot of time due to family commitments or work
commitments.”
There are hundreds of programs offered
in partnership with universities, study abroad
companies and nonprofit organizations. There
are options longer in duration and others that
run for one or two weeks that may be more budget friendly. This spring, CCBC will lead trips to
Belize and Berlin, and next year, one to Greece.
Some students complete their associate
degree and then transfer to a university to complete their bachelor’s degree. Some choose to
spend their two final two years in Europe, completing their education through partnerships
with universities like Swansea in the United
Kingdom.
“That’s really an economical way for students
to really go deep with the study abroad experience,” de Wit explains. “A lot of times, especially
in Europe, there’s a high degree of workplace
integration with the degrees. Students who opt
to finish their degrees overseas, especially in
Europe, have that work experience that they're
graduating with, which is a huge leg up in terms
of experience building, resume building, and
ultimately connecting with employers.”
CCBC global education staff advises students of the program options and also informs
them of the many scholarships available to
them. Robinson applied for and secured a
Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship,
which provided $5,000 in assistance through the
U.S. State Department.
“One of the biggest things that study abroad
has done is to solidify students’ choice of major
or choice of career path,” de Wit explains.
Study abroad is just one component of the
global offerings available at CCBC. Coursework
has been “globalized,” with lectures from international scholars and transformative experiences. Virtual study abroad programs created during the COVID-19 pandemic enable students to
engage with guest lecturers and collaborate with
CCBC student Attia Robinson was able to secure grant funding to study abroad in Australia.
peers in other countries.
At the University of Maryland Eastern
Shore, participation in study abroad programs is
exploding. Last year, the university experienced
a 133% increase, exceeding an increase of 100%
over the last decade.
The increase can be attributed in part to the
build out of a faculty-led program through the
university’s office of global opportunities, with
the creation of official handbooks, policies and
relationships with financial and financial aid
offices and registry offices as well as overseas
partners to create more opportunities, according to Phillip Broussard, the office’s director.
At the same time, a commitment from university leadership has led to internal scholarships for students to make the experiences more
affordable. Many participants are first generation and underrepresented students, who generally did not seek out study abroad programs.
Gains for students are multifaceted, including an expanded perspective, international competency, independence and a willingness to go
outside of their comfort zone, Broussard notes.
“One of the great things about study abroad
is it gives students different perspectives, not
just on their own lives, but on the world at large,”
he says. “It gives it students opportunity to see
how different cultures, different people think,
behave and act…. It can be a really wide eyeopening experience for students, particularly
More than a trip abroad,
continued on page 7
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