Going Global

I’ve heard it said that when students go to college or university even a few hundred miles outside of their geographic area, they learn just as much from their fellow students as they do from their instructors and bring home valuable perspectives that could not have been learned in their own backyard. If studying abroad were compulsory, I would like to think that our nations ability to get along with our neighbors may be enhanced just enough to keep our little blue ball spinning awhile longer.

Stuart Siegel, President at College Tuition Solutions, Inc., at 8:52 am EDT on September 27, 2005

Going Global Before Graduation

Soka University of America in Aliso Viejo, California is a private, non-profit four-year liberal arts college that opened in 2001 with the requirement that all students study a non-native language and spend a semester abroad in their junior year in a country where the language they have studied is spoken. This is a requirement for graduation. SUA’s first class went abroad in the 2003-2004 academic year and graduated in 2005 with an 83% graduation rate in four years. The cost of both study abroad and their laptop computer is included in tuition. SUA’s mission is to foster a steady stream of global citizens committed to living a contributive life, and study abroad is a way to help students gain a valuable global perspective. Congratulations to Goucher for “Going Global” also!

Wendy Harder, Director, Community Relations at Soka University of America, Aliso Viejo, at 4:11 pm EDT on September 27, 2005

I am an alumni of Soka University of America. I graduated this May. I just want to express how much I appreciate the study abroad program at SUA. First of all, the language program at SUA is excellent. I feel that it did prepare me to face living in Argentina for 6 months. I participated in a program that allowed me to conduct a research project (written in academic Spanish), attend regular university courses at Argentina’s most prestigious universities (i.e., University of Buenos Aires, Universidad Torcuato Di Tella), achieve fluency in Spanish, and most of all —- open my eyes to the world.

SUA’s study abroad program gave me the chance to immerse myself further in different cultures and traditions. And I know that I learned so much about myself, other people, and the world. I think it has definitely helped me to grow.

Thank you, SUA. I hope that other universities follow this example. Oh, and by the way, I really don’t think it’s a burden to study abroad the way SUA has it because the cost of study abroad is already built into tuition. So, it’s the same amount you would pay attending SUA, anyway.

PIlipino Navarro, Alumni at Soka University of America — Aliso Viejo, at 5:39 am EDT on October 8, 2005