Northwest Christian University has joined the Institute of International Education’s Generation Study Abroad initiative to help more college and university students gain international experience through study abroad programs.
“Through our new partnership with Generation Study Abroad, Northwest Christian University plans to double its study abroad opportunities for students during the school year and summer,” said Dennis Lindsay, D.Theol., Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dean of Faculty and Professor, Biblical Studies. “Study abroad is one more pathway that NCU offers to enhance the Christian liberal arts experience for students to gain a deeper understanding of the world through cultural and educational immersion that can only occur outside campus and our communities.”
As of January 2017, Generation Study Abroad partners to date include over 400 colleges and universities of all sizes and types across the country and around the world, as well as 19 governments, 50 education associations, more than 100 international partners, and 100 study abroad, K-12, and social network organizations who have committed to specific goals to increase the number of U.S. students studying abroad. Commitments include actions to diversity the population of students who participate in study abroad and provide additional financial resources to make this possible.
IIE launched Generation Study Abroad in the belief that the number and proportion of today’s students who graduate with an educational experience abroad is far too low. Currently, fewer than 10 percent of all U.S. college students study abroad at some point in their academic career, according to the Open Doors Report on International and Educational Exchange published by IIE with support from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Generation Study Abroad aims to grow participation in study abroad so that the annual total reported will reach 600,000 by the end of the decade.
“Globalization has changed the way the world works, and employers are increasingly looking for workers who have international skills and expertise,” says Dr. Allan Goodman, President of IIE. “Studying abroad must be viewed as an essential component of a college degree and critical to preparing future leaders.”