Why First-Year Programming Abroad?

An Enrollment Management Initiative

First-Year programs abroad can be a strategic enrollment management tool for institutions facing capacity challenges on campus. When retention rates going into the second semester are anything below 100%, there is a possible surplus of housing on campus and potential lost tuition fee revenue.  

First year study abroad programs allow institutions to over-enroll the incoming class and thereby mitigate these concerns. Through over-recruitment and utilizing programs abroad for first year students, institutions can optimize enrollment to mitigate the attrition of students between the first and second semesters, or between first year and sophomore years. 

Enrich On-Campus Students' Learning

Returning students bring back with them learning experiences and a perspective unlike that which they would have likely developed had they commenced their education with you on your home campus. This outlook can add to their peers’ on-campus experience, who are exposed to the new viewpoints and energy the re-entering students bring with them.  

Differentiate Your Institution
Regionally and Nationally

A first-year abroad program is a differentiator when students are interested in several schools that, on the face of it, are alike. Having the provision of a first-year abroad program helps build a larger pool of candidates, allowing recruitment teams to increase selectivity and through the wider value of your institution having such a program abroad, helps increase yield. 

Finally, there is a real competitive advantage at not only the institutional level but also departmentally.  If there is a major or department your home campus is looking to grow, a first year abroad program is a very attractive feature.   

High-Impact Practices

High Impact Practices (HIPs) are inherently embedded in a study abroad experience, and their impact is compounded in the first academic year. 

Among these include self-confidence/self-awareness, a tolerance for ambiguity, open-mindedness, flexibility and adaptability, curiosity, leadership, teamwork, intercultural skills, and problem-solving skills. These HIPs are achieved through collaboration inside and outside the classroom in project-based learning, community-based learning, and small group learning communities. During their time abroad, students take responsibility for their own learning, while faculty take more of a mentorship role. While this takes students outside of their comfort zone and asks them to take responsibility for their learning, it also allows for more active, rather than passive learning.  

 Student feedback from FIE’s 10 years of first-year programs has revealed significant takeaway value for students both academically and personally following their semester abroad.