While her classmates were at the wintry University of Massachusetts Dartmouth campus awaiting spring’s arrival, Amy Nickerson, a third-year biology major, was earning college credits in the mountainous countryside of Costa Rica, 5,900 feet above sea level.
Nickerson is spending the spring semester in Monteverde, focusing on tropical ecology and conservation. And compared with the thousands of students whose study abroad plans were cut short or canceled altogether during the COVID-19 pandemic, her problems seem trivial.
“My Spanish is not great,” she said. “But it is enough to pay the taxi driver and get help if I need it.”
Other than a minor language barrier, Nickerson is making the most of her experience.
“It has been unlike anything I could imagine. My program takes me to several biological reserves and Panama for spring break,” she said. “I have been able to see the entire country and traveled close to, if not over, a thousand miles. I have seen the most mesmerizing wildlife that I will never forget.”
One of the lesser-known impacts of the pandemic was the halt it put to a familiar rite of passage for many college and university students – spending a semester abroad to gain not only college credits but knowledge of foreign cultures and languages.
Study abroad programs, run either directly through higher education institutions or through partnerships with third-party organizations, sit at the cross section of education and overseas travel, two societal elements affected by lockdowns.
The health crisis stalled what had been continued growth for two decades.
Roughly 154,000 American students participated in study abroad programs during the 2000-2001 academic year, a number that more than doubled to 347,000 during the 2018-2019 academic year, according to the Institute of International Education.
Then when the pandemic hit, the number of students studying abroad sank 91% to 14,549 students.
Program directors now predict a significant recovery and hope to eclipse pre-pandemic numbers, as images of debating the French Revolution in Paris or exploring a Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan, reemerge in students’ minds.
The benefits are well established. In an Institute of International Education survey exploring the long-term effects of studying abroad on the lives of students, 95% of respondents found it a catalyst for increased maturity; 96% reported increased self-confidence; and 95% said it had a lasting impact on their worldview.
Christian F. Wilwohl, dean of global education at Providence College, says students were forced to return early from study abroad in March 2020, followed by a complete suspension of the study abroad program that lasted more than a year.
But interest in the program has rebounded and even increased this academic year, Wilwohl says. PC recently reinstituted faculty-led programs in France, Mexico and the United Kingdom, surpassing pre-pandemic numbers.
“The availability of COVID-19 vaccines and working with third-party organizations that provide extensive support to study abroad students were significant factors in this decision-making,” he said.
Rose Romano, a Providence College senior, has mixed feelings about her spring 2022 semester in France. She had wanted to go the previous fall, “but it wasn’t feasible,” she said.
A psychology major, Romano went to Paris while it was still under heavy pandemic restrictions. Many residents were still working remotely, leaving many streets barren.
“If you were caught without a mask, there was a hefty fine,” she said. “You had to download an app and scan a QR code anytime you entered a building. It was weird. The metros were empty. It was a strange time to be in Paris.”
But Romano feels lucky when thinking of classmates who had planned their study abroad semesters in 2021 and lost out.
“They were robbed,” she said.
Romano is glad she was able to go.
“I would have loved to experience it pre-COVID,” she said. “But I’m looking back with gratitude. Overall, it was an awesome experience.”
For colleges and universities today, events outside the realm of public health may slow down the study abroad comeback. Salve Regina University reached pre-pandemic participation levels in its study abroad programs last year, but Erin Fitzgerald, director of Salve’s Center for Global Education and Fellowships, says the rebound was likely a response to pent-up demand within the senior class, which was not allowed to study abroad the previous year.
This year, programs “are running slightly below pre-pandemic study abroad numbers,” Fitzgerald said. “We believe this is due to inflation and financial pressures on students and their families. “
The university is now projecting to be back to 2021 levels by next year, Fitzgerald says. Applications for fall 2023 and spring 2024 are already tracking ahead of the current year.
For those who decided to study out of the U.S. for a semester, Nickerson says they won’t regret it. Her research project is focused on interactions between tropical birds and trees.
“I think that all students should not hesitate to study abroad. It has been amazing meeting new friends that I will be able to see again in the United States,” she said. “Not only did I appreciate a different country, but I am also able to appreciate my home of Massachusetts so much more.”
