Notes from the Desk: Study abroad scare

On Monday, Feb. 15, all sophomores who applied to study abroad in the spring of next year got an e-mail from Jeff Cason, the dean of International Programs, with the unsettling subject line “IMPORTANT STUDY ABROAD REQUEST.” This e-mail was followed up two days later by one of similar gravity — the gist of both being that there are too many spring applicants and they will likely have to reject some applications. Reading through the first e-mail, I became increasingly worried about my prospects for studying abroad in Valparaíso next spring, and my fear was not ameliorated by Cason’s hope that enough people would volunteer to switch semesters that it would fix the imbalance. (Sure enough, the second e-mail acknowledged that very few students had stepped up.)

This imbalance, which apparently consists of roughly 50 students, is unique to this year’s applicant pool, as in the past, the study abroad office’s policy of “crossing their fingers and hoping for a rough balance” in the number of applicants for fall and spring semesters seems to have worked. While it’s not anyone’s fault that the policy failed this year, and housing concerns are certainly legitimate, it is upsetting that student choice is now being taken out of the equation, and the issue raises questions about the efficacy of the system.

As the e-mail from Cason caused widespread anxiety among sophomores, it would have been helpful if Cason’s office had provided more substantive information regarding the manner in which applications were going to be evaluated for rejection or acceptance. Questions such as which applications will receive preference (will International Studies and/or language majors who are required to study abroad be given priority?) and whether there will be an opportunity to appeal the decision if your application is rejected are viable student concerns. While there is not much that the Office of International Programs can do to solve the problem, they could have been more transparent in explaining their course of action.

The fact is that students who chose fall or spring to study abroad did so for a reason, one that they undoubtedly feel is legitimate, as evinced by the very small number of students who agreed to switch semesters. The decision of when to study abroad is one that I feel is well within the students’ domain, and this encroachment on our freedom of action seems arbitrary and restrictive given that many students have already made plans for fall semester. Furthermore, I feel that there is something to be said for non-academic reasons that students may have for choosing a particular semester. Other factors (summer plans, athletics, etc.) are involved in the decision, and students should have the opportunity to present their case, especially now that they face a prospect of rejection.

Today I received a decision letter accepting my application to study abroad (whew!), but what about those students who get rejected, or who haven’t heard yet? The policy (or lack thereof) on the part of the Office of International Programs to ensure an equal distribution of fall and spring applicants remains an issue that needs to be addressed in future years so that students can regain a decisive say in choosing when they want to study abroad.