Among Ivies, interest in study abroad programs remains strong after Sept. 11

Student interest in study abroad programs has not dwindled despite widespread trepidation for traveling after the attacks of Sept. 11.

A total of 167 students will be going abroad this year including 66 students abroad in the fall, 86 in the spring and 15 for the entire academic year. This number is up from the 158 students who went abroad last year, said associate dean of the college Nancy Kanach in an e-mail.

"In September, one student who had been approved to study abroad and had planned to go decided to stay home. Otherwise, everyone went abroad as planned," Kanach said.

"I am pleased that Sept. 11 did not result in a decrease in the number of students going abroad during the academic year, but I am sure that we would have experienced a much greater increase had the attacks on the WTC and the Pentagon never happened."

"Last year we experienced a 48-percent increase in the number of students going abroad," she added. This year, there was a five percent increase in the number of students studying abroad.

Other study abroad programs in the Ivy League are experiencing the similar levels of student participation. Peter Armstrong, assistant dean at Dartmouth College's office of off-campus programs said that student participation this year is at normal levels: 250 students are abroad for the fall, 120 for the winter and 245 for the spring. "We've had a few students who have withdrawn from the winter and spring [programs] because of [concerned] parents," he said.

At Brown University, Kirstin Moritz, associate dean of the college and director of the study abroad program, said that about 500 students go abroad each year. This fall semester, only three out of 253 students changed plans following the Sept. 11 attacks. Applications are still coming in for the spring term, she added.

Moritz added that the program has created a web page addressing the safety precautions students should take when abroad in addition to offering a list of contacts students can make in an emergency.

The web page assures its readers, "the Brown program personnel abroad work closely with their local contacts to insure that safety and security measures are in place in the event of an emergency . . . We feel confident that our students can continue to carry out their studies abroad without major disruption under current conditions." The Brown website also noted that two other students returned home in addition to the three students that changed plans after Sept. 11.

The study abroad office at University of Pennsylvania also offers an almost identical website for concerned students and parents. Geoffrey Gee, director of the University of Pennsylvania's study abroad program said that this year they have experienced "standard interest [in the program, even] better than last year."

However, Gee also said that one student returned home from Greece after Sept. 11 events and three students decided not to continue with plans to study abroad in the United Kingdom this spring. "Mostly our students have understood the circumstances and the general risk of travel anywhere which has heightened" in light of recent events, he explained.

Beatrice Szekely, associate director of Cornell Abroad said that 500 students normally go abroad each year in Cornell University's program. While no students decided to return from abroad during the fall semester, "one or two students decided not to go," she said.

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Some students have dropped out for spring, Szekely added, but numbers were not readily available as yet. She did note that the students who dropped out of the spring programs did not constitute "huge numbers."

Szekely said that Cornell Abroad does advise and caution students to practice all necessary safety measures and that the program keeps in touch with the students abroad and their families. While there is usually up to a 5 percent drop out rate, she added, "this year, there seems to be more students [who have dropped out]."

As for the students themselves, Princetonians going abroad do not seem to show any anxiety or hesitation. Allen Taylor '03, who is going to be in Argentina this spring noted, "I think I'll be safer in Argentina than in New Jersey."

"My parents are definitely concerned about it and prone to worry, but I'm not," said Dan Pastor '03, who is on his way to Santiago, Chile.

Sarah Swords '03 also said her parents were uneasy about her upcoming trip to Scotland. "My family does not want me to go, [but] it's something I really wanted to do. I have great faith."

Keija Parssinen '03 is also going to be studying English at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland next February and said she is not at all worried about being abroad. "You take [the danger of traveling] into consideration...[but] you can't live in fear. It's an opportunity I can't pass up."