How Taking a Year’s Vacation from School Can Help You Graduate On Time
Do you want to take a year’s vacation from school?
Why wouldn’t you?!
Do you want to still graduate on time though?
Of course you do!
Do you want to do all that, but with better grades than your classmates?
Duh! Why is that even a question?
Well have I got the opportunity for you!
Colleges around the country have been promoting study abroad programs to their students for years. Most students who set off on these trips, return with nothing but praise for the programs.
Foreign exchanges often affiliate themselves with benefits such as becoming more culturally aware, learning a new language, gaining better job prospects, making new friends and hobbies, becoming more independent, and having an increase in GPA and graduation rates.
All of these sound great, but it almost makes you wonder if it’s all too good to be true.
Fear not! Studies have shown that leaving behind that basic college campus for a unique educational experience set on a lovely foreign backdrop can actually improve your grades and make you more likely to graduate on time.
Amidst all the positive words about the academic benefits of studying abroad, it’s important to find concrete evidence in favor of those positive words so you know there is some truth to all the talk. The Georgia Learning Outcomes of Students Studying Abroad Research Initiative (GLOSSARI) and The University of California San Diego, both studied the academics of students who studied abroad while in college and compared their findings to the academics of students who didn’t study abroad.
GLOSSARI found that in university students all over the state of Georgia, students who studied abroad had a 7% higher chance of graduating and an overall increase in their GPAs by 0.03. In their study, UC San Diego discovered that students who studied abroad from their school had a 15% higher graduation rate than students who opted not to go abroad.
Despite these facts, there are many people who argue against studying abroad and believe that, despite the statistics, the program is an overall waste of a student’s time and money. Curtis Chin, the former US ambassador to the Asian Development Bank, wrote an article for The New York Times (which can be read here: http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/10/17/should-more-americans-study-abroad/studying-abroad-can-be-an-expensive-waste-of-time) where he discusses his belief that education is incredibly valuable and worthwhile, and that a student can reach their full potential without having to participate in “expensive study abroad programs.”
Having been an exchange student myself during my junior year of high school, it’s hard for me to have an unbiased opinion. I believe that going on exchange was one of the best decisions I ever made for myself both personally and academically.
While I understand where Mr. Chin is coming from, I think he and the other arguers against foreign exchange programs are simply looking at the surface of the programs. The first word in “study abroad” is “study”. The main purpose of these programs is providing an opportunity for an enhanced education.
Education is so much more than just being lectured at in a classroom. Hands-on experience is one of the best ways to retain knowledge and have a way to apply that knowledge to a real-world situation. Our schooling is such a fundamental part of our society that deviating away from the normal educational system can seem harmful to a student’s future. However, the statistics show that participating in a study abroad program is in fact, improving students’ academic standing. On top of that, it allows students to embark on a journey that would enhance their world view, cultural understanding and provide them with that hands-on learning.
The large majority of students really care about their education (especially at the college level) and would likely not take part in something that would really harm their academics. So while some may criticize the idea of a year’s vacation from school, in this special case, twelve whole months of soaking up the sun in Italy might just be exactly what you need to take your education to the next level.
