By Miharu Sugie, news staff
Northeastern is joining eight other universities to enhance student abroad and exchange programs as part of President Barack Obama’s,“100,000 Strong in the Americas” initiative. The university was granted $25,000 by the US Department of State, sponsored by Santander Bank.
By 2020, the initiative aims to facilitate 100,000 student exchanges between the US, the Caribbean and Latin America, according to the US Department of State website. This exchange will “increase the student mobility in the Americas and address institutional barriers that prevent students from studying abroad in the region,” the website said.
Currently, Northeastern sends 2,000 students abroad per year, but, like most other US universities, a disproportionate number of students travel to western Europe, said Brian Gibson, director of Northeastern’s Office of International Study Programs. Although these ties with western European countries are important, Gibson said that Northeastern also wants to expand into other countries, to help students become global citizens.
To cultivate this global culture on campus, Northeastern will team up with the University of the West Indies in Trinidad, the University of the Andes in Chile and the Fundação Getulio Vargas in Brazil.
“Part of this grant is focused on capacity building. We’ll be working with three institutions to build their capacities, which includes customizing programming, facilitating student support and benefiting from best practices,” Gibson said. “The schools will have new capacities that they can offer to other schools so it is scalable and sustainable.”
In addition, Northeastern will support students through “virtual embassies,” an online counseling network for students. Students who have experience studying abroad or working abroad as a co-op can give advice and counseling to prospective students who are interested in going to specific countries. By connecting students with peers, Gibson said students gain better insight.
“What we’re looking to achieve is number one, to have a very fruitful and productive partnership with these schools, with more of our students going there, more of their students coming here, more co-op opportunities in Trinidad, Brazil and Chile,” Gibson said.
Photo courtesy Universidad de los Andes, creative commons
