In this article in the Wall Street Journal, we learn about the growing trend of college freshmen studying abroad for their fall semester before they move into dorms on campus for the spring term. There isn’t a huge number of students doing this, but there are more and more colleges offering this option.
One reason is the crunch for space in dorms. By sending a few students abroad first, they free up a few rooms for that fall term (spring tends to bring a few dropouts, which opens up some space for those returning from trips abroad).
But the point in the article that got me slapping my forehead was the reference to the high cost of these programs AND the fear that students might not be ready to handle living abroad for a semester at 18 (even though they are in dorms with other Americans, taking classes in English with other Americans, etc.) because the temptation to drink is just too strong.
Um, excuse me? Have these people spent any time in a freshman dorm in the US lately? It’s not exactly a picture of temperance. So, worrying about going abroad because kids can get their hands on alcohol strikes me as kind of ridiculous.
Oh, I am very familiar with this concept of American kids spending their semester abroad getting trashed–I see it here in Buenos Aires, after all. American students around the world are NOTORIOUS for drinking too much and acting obnoxiously drunk in public. Why? Because we have such a high drinking age. We don’t teach our kids how to drink responsibly and moderately. Only in the US (and okay, Canada) do kids have parties specifically for the purpose of getting trashed, often to the point of passing out–the social aspect is secondary to the drinking. In many other countries, this is seen as incredibly low class.
So, if parents are worried about their kids drinking too much when they go abroad, well, it’s time to teach the kids about drinking. I know, I know–parents aren’t supposed to offer their kids a glass of wine with dinner (unlike most of the rest of the world) but how do we expect them to know their limits and develop reasonable drinking behavior if the first time they “get” to drink they are far from adult supervision and surrounded by others who are inexperienced drinkers? Ultimately, it’s the parents’ responsibility to prepare their kids for the adult world. Step up.
Now, about the prices. One parent is quoted as saying they spent $33,000 for their daughter’s freshman semester abroad. Wow. This is crazy. And it’s exactly why parents shy away from sending their kids abroad.
The problem is that the kids are going on university programs that are heavily padded price-wise. The reality is that kids can go abroad for a FRACTION of that price and still get the credits to transfer. The other issue is the colleges are offering exchanges in the most expensive places–the UK, Italy, etc. Students aren’t going to learn that much about the world if they go to expensive places that are not that different than the US. If you really want your student to get their eyes opened and experience life abroad in a more challenging and inspiring way, consider sending them to Asia or Latin America. You’ll save 75% and your kids will have far more culturally relevant experiences than they will in a dorm full of Americans.
Lots–LOTS–more about this in my book, I promise. If we want more students to study abroad, we’ve got to stop making it ridiculously expensive and we need to open our eyes to our own responsibility for creating “barriers” like the whole fear about drinking.
There is so much to be gained by going abroad. We can’t let these obstacles get in the way.
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January 23, 2008 at 9:24 pm
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