The poor economy is expected to halt enrollment growth in the university’s study abroad programs.
Officials in the study abroad office predict the number of students who attend summer and fall programs this year will be equal to last year’s numbers, despite program enrollment averaging a 13 percent annual growth rate over the last five years. While encouraging international study and research is a long-term goal of the university, low enrollment has caused the office to postpone some trips and cancel others altogether.
Of the 30 programs planned for this summer, 10 were canceled and three postponed because too few students enrolled, according to the study abroad website. The university also extended the deadline until April 1 for students applying to study in London, Berlin, Rome and Nice this fall. Tuition for the Maryland-in-Berlin program was reduced by $1,000.
The study abroad office will not have final application numbers for 2009 summer and fall programs until the first week of May, said Mike Ulrich, the associate director of international education services in the Study Abroad Office. Saul Sosnowski, the director of the Office of International Programs, added that the office will be able to more clearly determine the economy’s impact on enrollment when those numbers become available.
“How the economy impacts study abroad is something all of us are looking at,” Sosnowski said. “I expect it will continue to grow, but it may not continue to grow as it has been.”
The university shipped 1,669 students overseas last year, an increase of about 23 percent compared to 2006 school year. The strategic plan, which outlines university objectives for the next decade, calls for an increase in study abroad participation from 1,300 students in 2007 to at least 2,500 in 2012 and 4,000 in 2017.
“The drive for us right now is to push ahead on the whole issue,” said Sosnowski. “We are very much on target.”
Other universities and study abroad providers are reporting similar trends, according to a study by Chris Musick, director of international academic services at the University of Mary Washington.
One-third of the universities he surveyed reported a decrease in fall applications. Half of the respondents reported summer study abroad program application numbers were equal to or greater than those from the previous year, but 34 percent said applications were down by 10 percent or more.
Claire Smith, a freshman anthropology major, said she found a summer course in Jamaica that she wants to attend next summer. While she would prefer to enroll in a semester- or year-long program, Smith said the summer course is a cheaper, more feasible option.
“It’s such an important thing that I don’t mind spending the money,” Smith said. “Hopefully I can get a scholarship or something.”
Freshman government and politics major Jenn Startzel, who pays most of her own tuition, said she will likely delay her study abroad plans until her junior year, giving her time to save money.
“I’m going to plan ahead for it,” Startzel said. “Students [who want to go abroad] should plan ahead for it because it’s that valuable of an experience.”
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