The team’s primary interest in conceiving this research project was to determine whether students taking courses abroad, regardless of the nature of their particular program, acquire “global awareness” to a greater extent than those who enroll in similar courses on campus and whether, at the end of the session, there was a statistically significant difference between the two groups.  The project was also influenced by previous work done by the University of Georgia’s Office of International Education on study abroad outcomes assessment. (See www.usg.edu/oie/initiatives/ for details.)

This study investigates the impact of a five‐week intermediate Spanish course on the listening comprehension ability of 48 participants in short‐term study abroad programs, and compares these groups with 92 peers enrolled in a similar course on the home campus. While both on‐campus and study abroad groups experienced similar gains in listening comprehension, there were significant differences in the way learners approached listening tasks: The study abroad group applied primarily top‐down and social listening strategies, while the on‐campus students favored bottom‐up processing. Higher‐proficiency students in the study abroad groups had significantly higher comprehension gains, and the study abroad groups achieved higher levels of confidence and self‐perceived ability after the treatment. Results outline some of the benefits and limitations of short‐term foreign sojourns for beginner and low‐intermediate language learners.

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We describe the development and validation of a new instrument to measure the non-academic impact of education abroad, the Global Engagement Measurement Scale (GEMS). Based on a review of the extant literature, we developed a 37-item instrument containing scales for four specific constructs of interest: a) cultural engagement; b) ambiguity tolerance; c) knowledge of the host site; and d) diversity openness. The measure was piloted with 263 education abroad students before and after a 5- week education abroad program. We examined the scales’ underlying factor structure, reliability, and sensitivity to education abroad program effects. Results indicate strong reliability and statistically significant increases across all scales following education abroad experiences. The GEMS instrument is brief and easy to administer, publically available, and includes important constructs for assessing the impact of education abroad. Additionally, the GEMS could be used to assess campus internationalization efforts with domestic and international students.

Increasing numbers of US college students are participating in travel study programs. As part of their pre-departure preparation, institutions provide orientation materials covering a range of topics. These materials typically cover such health-related topics as immunizations, sun safety, psychological distress, personal assault, and water quality. However, comprehensive coverage of strategies to ensure optimal physical wellness while traveling has been overlooked. This article describes the development and evaluation of an electronic (e) magazine entitled, "How to Stay Healthy While Studying Abroad". This e-magazine not only explains the importance of physical activity, food and beverage practices, sleep, and stress and time management, but also offers tips for achieving wellness during travel. The primary objective of the study was to evaluate the usefulness of the e-magazine. The secondary objective was to enhance the content of the guide based on an assessment of students' attitudes, perceptions and behaviors related to wellness pre-and post-participation in travel study programs. Prior to travel over 70% of students felt they would be able to engage in healthful eating and physical activity. Fifty-two percent of students found it challenging to eat healthfully and be physically active on their travel study programs. The vast majority of students (87%) reported that they found the guide helpful in promoting healthful behaviors. Hydration, health during travel, and getting enough sleep were the top three e-magazine areas utilized. Self-motivation, social support and tips within How to Stay Healthy While Studying Abroad were the top three factors which contributed to achieving physical wellness. The guide was considered useful based on the findings and evidenced by students' recommendations that the guide be shared with all university students.