The length of study abroad trips does not affect the degree to which students become globally engaged later in life, according to a study presented at the Forum on Education Abroad, held Feb. 18 to 20 in Portland, Ore. Most students studying abroad will become more globally engaged, researchers said, but the amount of time spent in a foreign country does not deepen or lessen the impact such trips can have.
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities researchers examined factors like civic engagement and philanthropy to determine whether students were more “globally engaged” after studying abroad, Minnesota Prof. Michael Paige said. Paige defined global engagement as a combination of five variables: civic engagement, philanthropy, knowledge production, social entrepreneurship and what Paige called voluntary simplicity — “a lifestyle that is mindful of our environment” by cutting back on potentially harmful activities like excessive automobile use.
Through the distribution of more than 6,000 surveys to former study abroad students, researchers were able to gauge how involved those students later became in global affairs, Paige said.
“The study looked at students as far back as 50 years ago,” Paige said, noting that he started the study to see what former study abroad students had accomplished after taking trips.
Paige said the survey revealed it is not the length of time spent abroad, but rather the specific experiences — be it language, research or immersion in a foreign school — that make a difference.
“People who study abroad become globally engaged no matter the length of the stay,” he said. “What we have found out is that the type of program you are in appears to be important to global engagement, particularly if you have experienced two or more kinds of these study abroad programs.”
Paige noted that students participating in study abroad programs incorporating two or more kinds of learning are the most likely to volunteer in social justice activities. A trip during which a student participates in research and a travel seminar will have a deeper impact than a trip that just focuses on research, he added, regardless of how long the student stays abroad.
Marina Markot, University associate director of study abroad, said she was not surprised by the study’s findings, citing many students’ increased international volunteering and political activism after studying abroad.
Third-year College student Erin Paguio, who recently took a January Term course in Florence, Italy, said the study’s findings seem appropriate. Although her time abroad was much shorter than the time spent by students travelling during the fall or spring semesters, she said the experience resonated with her just as much. The limited amount of time spent in Florence forced her to appreciate each site she visited, Paguio said.
“You knew it was the one day you would have to look at it, which gives you more appreciation,” she said.
Although one’s engagement in global affairs may not depend on the length of the trip, both Paige and Markot agreed that longer stays are more effective in promoting what Paige called “better intercultural skills.”
“Longer trips allow you to develop more friendships, which are really important in being culturally aware,” said third-year College student Eugene Resnick, who spent a semester in Copenhagen, Denmark and a January Term in Ghana.
But, “if someone hasn’t been abroad, any length of trip is going to have an impact,” Resnick said.
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