Study Abroad program can set students apart

Sept. 23, 2004
By Anna Anderson
Staff Writer

Opportunities abound for students who want to spend a semester far, far away from St. Ambrose.  Last week, representatives from several study abroad programs gathered in the University Center to offer students the possibility to spend a few weeks, a semester or a full year just about anywhere in the world.

The St. Ambrose Center for International Education hosted the fair. Representatives were there from study abroad programs such as Loyola University’s Rome Center and a new program with Curtin University of Technology in Perth, Australia.

Jon Stauff, the Director of International Education, was on hand to answer questions and explain about opportunities sponsored by St. Ambrose.  These programs include opportunities to study in Ireland, Germany and Ecuador.  A new program with Oxford University also allows highly qualified students an opportunity to study at Oxford.

“Students who study abroad learn so much about themselves and the world during their overseas experience,” Stauff said.  “It changes people.”

However, less than 10 percent of college students study abroad, Sarah Turnbull, Coordinator for International Education at Central College in Pella, Iowa, said.

She said that studying abroad helps to make students more marketable.

“Employers tend to think that people with study abroad experience are more apt to think outside the box,” Turnbull said.

Turnbull handed out information to SAU students on how they could get involved with Central College programs.

She said that her study abroad experience was what got her hired at her first job.

“It was something different on my resume, something that made me stand out,” Turnbull said.

Stauff said that students who study in other countries enhance their credentials and gain a wide variety of experiences.

Due to various scholarship opportunities, it is a lot cheaper for students to travel now rather than later in life.

“During school is one of the most cost effective times to travel,” Turnbull said.

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