ABSTRACT
Many of us who work in higher education are aware of the tremendous importance of preparing all of our students to become global citizens who are committed and able to work within the intercultural, interconnected world. Study abroad experiences can and must play a critical role in such an education. The National Survey of Student Engagement (2007) posits that study abroad programs provide the types of “high impact” college experiences that teach the cognitive complexity and intellectual engagement necessary in today’s increasingly sophisticated world. The survey reports that students who study abroad are “engaged more frequently in educationally purposeful activities upon returning to their home campus, and reported gaining more from college compared with their peers who have not had such an experience” (p. 17). The goals and educational value of study abroad experiences reach beyond the development of international perspectives or increased intercultural communication skills; these experiences infl uence students’ personal development and elevate their intellectual maturity. Students often return from overseas experiences more engaged in their own education, confi dent of their interpersonal and intellectual abilities, and committed to exploring how they can become active members of their communities. Students go abroad expecting to learn about others and return home with new understandings about themselves and their place in the world.
