Decline in students studying abroad is still less than projected

UA study abroad enrollment for the spring semester has declined 15 percent, primarily as a result of the Sept. 11 attacks, said Kirk Simmons, executive director of UA International Affairs.

This number is significantly less than the projected decline, which was as high as a catastrophic 50 percent, Simmons said.

"We are extremely encouraged that so many people are still signing up. It shows how open-minded and interested people are in the world beyond where we live," said Cathleen Keenan Church, program director for Study Abroad.

Meryl Thomas, a senior majoring in Spanish, said the attacks have not deterred her from going to Chile next semester.

"I can't see myself not doing something that I want to do just because of the Sept. 11 attacks," Thomas said. "You've got to go on and keep living your life,"

Simmons stressed the importance of an open-minded response to the attacks.

"The events of Sept. 11 have only accentuated need and desire for cross-cultural understanding, which has been evidenced by the persistence of students seeking overseas experiences," he said.

But Simmons said some students and parents are worried that people studying abroad might be discriminated against for being Americans.

"There is valid concern for students studying in the Middle East," he said. "(But) we do have students in those countries that seem quite comfortable in remaining."

There have been no reported attack-related incidents overseas, Simmons said.

Church emphasized that most students are not afraid to study overseas.

"There is very little paranoia. Students are realistic and very well informed," she said.

She added that most parents have been cautious, but supportive of their children studying abroad.

Political science senior Nicole Bilodeau, who has been studying abroad in London since Sept. 5, said that many American students were worried immediately after the attacks, but that their fears have abated.

"Students were thinking of going home right away," she said. "You have to take precaution, but you can't live in fear either."