College remains model for study abroad

Author: Michelle Constant

Middlebury is not among a list of 15 high-profile colleges and universities being investigated by the New York Attorney General's Office for their study abroad programs. According to The New York Times, schools including Harvard, Brown, Columbia, Fordham, Manhattanville, American and Northwestern may be sacrificing the academic caliber of their students' study abroad experiences for less-expensive programs that offer kickback benefits to the schools.

Jeff Cason, the College's dean of International Programs, reported that Middlebury's renowned study abroad programs have never been investigated. The College operates 30 sites in 12 countries and sends 60 percent of its junior class abroad each year. Additionally, the College sent students to 91 different programs and universities in the last academic year.

"I think that steering students to particular programs based on financial incentives given by providers is simply a bad idea and usually unethical," wrote Cason in an e-mail. "That said, I'm not sure how widespread the practice is."

Last summer, The New York Times printed an article that described how some program providers offer college rebates, free or subsidized travel and other benefits. The schools being investigated may have affiliation agreements with study abroad providers. The goal of the New York Attorney General's office is to develop a code of conduct to govern the programs and the ties between colleges and study abroad providers. Schools in question are being asked to report who is responsible for approving study abroad contracts, how they select specific programs and whether they are offered incentives to choose these programs.

In response to the original investigation last summer, the College placed a statement on the Study Abroad Web site explaining its policies.

"We decided that it would be best to be transparent about what we do," wrote Cason. "As we provide no financial incentives to other institutions that send students on our programs, we have nothing to hide, so we decided to clearly state our own policies and practices. Our programs compete with other programs on their merits."

The College accepts over 150 students from other institutions at its schools abroad. According to Cason, the College does not provide financial benefits to other institutions for sending their students to its study abroad programs, and sets "rigorous standards for admission, which involve a higher level of language competence than many programs."

The College also does not receive any "volume discounts" for sending large numbers of students to specific study abroad programs, Cason noted. The College does recommend that students directly enroll to programs when possible, bypassing big providers, which can save students money.

The College's statement this summer, which still holds true, according to Cason, claims that it "takes very seriously the need to send students only to high-quality programs that satisfy individual students' academic needs."

According to Cason, rather than suggesting study abroad programs to students based on incentives and loans, the College has always recommended that students choose the best option for their particular academic interests.

"The criteria that we use when approving or denying an application for study abroad on a non-Middlebury program relate to academic quality and the experience that students have had on programs and at universities in previous years," wrote Cason.

When considering applications for programs that students from the College have not previously attended, the Office of International Programs and Off-Campus Study researches and presents information about these new programs in order to assist the committee in making a decision.

The overall cost of a program may lead students to personally choose one program over another. Cason wrote that often more expensive programs do not necessarily offer higher quality academics. The Programs Abroad Committee considers only academic quality, regardless of cost, of all study abroad programs when making decisions on applications.

According to Cason, the College has no financial interest in suggesting that students choose its own programs as opposed to those of other institutions. The College does not charge its own comprehensive fee rates to students studying abroad at any institution.