Studying abroad provides students with a unique opportunity to engage directly with some of the world’s most pressing global issues—transforming theoretical understanding into lived experience. 

When students leave their home environments to live and learn in another country, they gain first-hand insight into how challenges such as climate change, housing crises, human rights abuses, gender inequality, economic disparities, forced migration, and disputes over borders and resources affect people and communities in tangible ways. Rather than learning solely from textbooks or lectures, students see how these issues manifest in everyday life. 

How do rising sea levels threaten coastal neighborhoods?  How does rapid urbanization and/or rising trendiness deepen housing shortages?  How do social movements emerge in response to political oppression or systemic inequality? 

Interacting with individuals and communities directly impacted by these challenges pushes students to think beyond statistics and policies, recognizing the human stories behind global headlines.

Living outside your comfort zone requires adaptability and open-mindedness. Students must navigate unfamiliar social norms, languages, and political contexts. In doing so, they develop a more nuanced and globally informed perspective. These experiences challenge assumptions shaped by one’s own cultural and/or geographic background. 

Studying abroad transforms global issues from distant concerns into personal experiences, inspiring students to approach their academic and professional futures with greater understanding, compassion, and commitment to positive change.