Study Abroad Boondoggles

<p>Don’t forget, many colleges get to send a professor on many Maymester trips – at the parent’s expense. I am not complaining about supervisions – but don’t forget that if the profs want the trip, they have to convince or require kids to go. I think it is a waste of money.</p>

<p>Oldest daughter went on three trips; one to Italy (awe-inspiring), Katrina (lived in the basement of a church), and Florida (slept in a sleeping bag in the middle of a swamp). All courses had reading, papers, and tests. The Italy trip was conducted by a priest, Katrina by a sociologist, and Florida by a biologist. </p>

<p>These life experiences helped to make her a more rounded person. I hope my other two children get to have these types of experiences.</p>

<p>I also think that the photos may not be very representative of the tone of the trip as a whole. When I look at my son’s photos from a music program he attended in the summer, there aren’t that many music-related photos. But I know they spent most of their time making music.</p>

<p>DS did full semester of study abroad. When he posted his FB pics, there were only a few of his SCHOOL and studies there. Come on! How many kids would post pics of themselves in libraries, rehearsing for concert performances, sitting in classes, etc. They POST pics of their vacations…and when you’re in Europe doing a study abroad, there is time for some fun and interesting vacations. That is what the kids would be posting.</p>

<p>I find it interesting that so many people have access to their kids’ Facebook pages. I never have. Same with IM and other social media. We communicate the old fashion ways.</p>

<p>I haven’t asked my son to be my Facebook friend, and he hasn’t brought it up, so I leave it alone. However, he has “friended” one of our adult family friends, so we hear about it when something interesting goes up on his Facebook page. I don’t think he’s made the connection yet. :D</p>

<p>My son is about halfway through a two-month study-abroad session in Qingdao, China, as part of Ole Miss’s Chinese Language Flagship program. It’s no boondoggle; they work their butts off during the day, and the free evenings and weekends are immersive as well, since few people in that area speak English well. (I was told that this is why they don’t study in a city more familiar to Westerners such as Beijing or Shanghai.) They live in a college dorm for a few weeks and then with a local family for a few weeks.</p>

<p>My understanding is that the Language Flagship programs around the US all have similarly rigorous study-abroad sessions.</p>

<p><<of course=“” i=“” realize=“” that=“” women=“” may=“” wear=“” burkas=“” and=“” hijab=“” in=“” this=“” country.=“” however,=“” it=“” will=“” not=“” raise=“” any=“” eyebrows=“” if=“” a=“” woman=“” does=“” not.=“”>></of></p>

<p>And it may not raise eyebrows there, either. You don’t mention the country, but skimpy bikinis (and even topless bathing) are very common in the beach resorts in Egypt.</p>

<p>My son only lets me be a facebook friend while he’s abroad posting pictures. He’s in Jordan right now so I have access. So far I’ve seen pictures of Roman antiquities, flowers, and hazy deserts. I think he’s also learning to speak Arabic.</p>

<p>I would wager that part of virtually any study abroad program is information about the customs and culture.
But they are also tourists not just students. Isnt the point of taking pictures to show how much fun you are having, not just how sophisticated & worldly you are?
;)</p>

<p>^^^
emeraldkity4 - I agree. Any good program involves a mix of educational, cultural, historical, and social components.</p>

<p>We went to an open house of the local private, very expensive university. There was a study abroad panel that consisted of pretty young girls talking of how much fun they had in Greece, learning the language and going shopping and interacting with the locals. No mention of any studies involved. The parents, who were looking at paying 50K/year for this college, were not impressed.</p>

<p>We asked about professors, supervision, and were told that they students were given an emergency number to call if they had any problems. Otherwise, they were on their own, and seemed pretty happy to have it that way.</p>

<p>“and were told that they students were given an emergency number to call if they had any problems.”</p>

<p>This reminds me that before my kid went to the place where the boondoggle occurred, I asked around and was able to get 3 personal contacts at the US Embassy in the country, and I used them, along with the US State Dept. The schools were minimal help.</p>

<p>I think what the various comments on this thread show is that not all programs are the same. Parents/students need to do their homework and decide if it’s really a worthwhile experience. But have realistic expectations. It can’t be all-work-and-no-play…or no one would do it!</p>

<p>For my older son, his school offers an optional summer in Rome (staying in an old convent right off the Piazza Navonna) - but he will earn 12 hours of credit and complete his minor in Architectural studies. That, to us, is well worth it. (oh - and I plan to visit Rome that summer, too!)</p>

<p>However, while my son will be busy with classes and field trips and projects - I also EXPECT him to have some fun. Now, he’s been to Rome so it’s won’t be completely new, but I would be hesitant to send him anywhere for 2 months if it didn’t include some fun/down-time.</p>

<p>DD spent 5 months in Chile, taking most classes at the catholic university for grades/credit, and taking one language class through the study abroad program. She lived in a homestay situation with a family. This is a whole different situation than a few weeks for a summer program. I would not have funded that!
DD also did a Language flagship program (funded by government) in Armenia.</p>

<p>Funded by the US government? Was the language Armenian? (Maybe it should be obvious, but I don’t know which languages have Flagship programs.)</p>

<p>Son spent junior year abroad in Morocco, a few weeks’ homestay at the beginning. Took cultural, poli sci, and language classes in English first semester, then added some econ classes at a local university second semester. Also did internships (set up through the program; he got credit for them). Really advanced both French and Arabic language skills during the year. It ended up being cheaper than staying at his university,and he got a full years’ worth of credit. I don’t think it was a boondoggle. (But all his FB photos show are scenery, camels, other students, etc).</p>

<p>I studied abroad in London last semester. It was an easier program than at my regular college, and therefore there was a lot more time for other activities, including socializing. Is that all I did? No, but it definitely was a big part of the experience.</p>

<p>

And I find it interesting that everytime FB comes up, someone feels the need to brag that their kids won’t friend them on FB. We also communicate the old fashioned way, in addition to the new fangled including FB, twitter, buzz, gmail chat, skype and anything else that will enhance our communications.</p>

<p>Also, even in Saudi Arabia, there are women on the beaches in bathing suits.</p>

<p>My son’s university offers a summer program in Oxford, where a professor accompanies the students and they stay together. That is the kind of program I’d be comfortable with. I agree. I would want my son to have fun, too! He really wants to go to England. Unfortunately, he has no interest in this program, as it concentrates on English Literature. He is an engineering major and is hoping to find something in his field as part of a study abroad, perhaps even an internship. Ever the pragmatist, he says he would rather spend that money on something that would contribute to his degree and is related to his major. He doesn’t want to spend the money just to go abroad. I differ with him on that. As long as he’s in a supervised setting and does get course credit for the experience, I’m fine with it. But, he’s the one giving up his summer, so it’s got to be something he wants to do. BTW, his college also has a summer study in Greece, and that is one I’m pushing for as well. Like one of the above posters, I would schedule a concurrent trip to Greece myself! Son took four years of Greek and Latin in high school, and I know he would love it. But it’s not an engineering program, so he won’t even look at it. Arghh!</p>

<p>Our older son did a semester abroad taking engineering classes in a foreign language and he also had an internship for that semester arranged by his college. Two other summers he did language immersion programs (one in a different language). </p>

<p>I don’t think he learned much in his semester abroad classes because they were very difficult and he was too busy with work (internship) at the same time. He passed and got credit, but one was a nail biter. </p>

<p>The internship on the other hand turned into a full-time job offer after graduation in a job he adores. The language immersion programs were important prerequisites to make that later semester of engineering classes and internship, not to mention later full-time job, possible. Study abroad coursework is more difficult for engineering majors, but obviously not impossible. </p>

<p>Our younger son, also an engineering major, has no interest in a study abroad program and we are fine with that, particularly since he is well traveled already. If he wanted to do a summer abroad we wouldn’t object, but for him it would almost certainly need to be in an English speaking country. He studied Latin in high school and has no foreign language skills. I could see him enjoying studying mining in Australia, for example, but he is our homebody so that is not happening.</p>