The
FORUM
Focus
June 2016 | Volume 2 | Issue 3
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President’s Corner BrianWhalen, President & CEO,The Forum on Education Abroad What is the Importance of the Insurance Claims Data Report? A Look Behind the Scenes In March of this year The Forum published a historically significant report, Insurance Claims
Data and Mortality Rate for College Students Studying Abroad. The publication of this report
was a watershed moment in the education abroad field. Many colleagues immediately recognized this, and I received a number of email messages from people who enthusiastically noted its importance. What was all the fuss about? Why all the excitement? There are several reasons that I think make the report one of the most significant publications ever in the field of education abroad.
What the Data Says
First and foremost, the report caused excitement because of what the data tells us: that U.S. university students who study abroad are 2.18 times less likely to die than students on U.S. campuses. This information is a first for the field. Until now our understanding of the rare case of a student death abroad came from newspaper reports, which provided no context about how frequently deaths occur, and sometimes sensationalized the reporting of a death. Education abroad professionals had no data that they could cite that would provide a way to understand a student death abroad. The Forum’s report provides the data that advances our understanding.
Nature of the Data
Another cause for excitement is due to the nature of the data itself, which is robust, representative, and has a high degree of validity. The report presents an analysis of insurance claims for students studying abroad and represent approximately half the number of students who studied abroad ∙2∙
in calendar year 2014, making it one of the largest samples ever in a study about education abroad. The sample is also highly representative in terms of study abroad country destinations when compared to Open Doors data. Finally, because the data came directly from two objective, external sources, there is a high degree of confidence in its validity.
Analysis of the Data
A key to the report was the analysis provided by two expert statisticians: Dr. Michael Johnson of Crafted Analytics, LLC and Professor Steven Erfle of Dickinson College. They analyzed the data by using odds ratios to compare the relative rates of the rarely occurring “U.S. university events of student deaths. By calculating a confidence interval for the odds ratios, students who study they were able to estimate that a stuabroad are 2.18 times dent studying in the U.S. is 2.18 times more likely to die than a student studyless likely to die than ing abroad. Further, they could state at students on U.S. the 99% confidence level that a college campuses.” student abroad has a lower chance of dying than a student in the U.S. A further sensitivity analysis on the data concludes that even if the death toll of students abroad had been 5 rather than 4, then studying abroad is safer at the 99% level; if the death toll had been 6 rather than 4, then studying abroad is safer at the 95% level. Only if the death toll more than doubled to 9 would the reverse conclusion be obtained, and that conclusion would not be statistically significant. The death toll among students studying abroad would have to have tripled (from 4 to 12) before that conclusion would become statistically significant at the 95% level.
Strategic Collaboration
Another significant aspect of the report is that it involved close collaboration between The Forum and two of the major education abroad insurance providers: HTH Worldwide (HTH) and Cultural Insurance Services International (CISI). To my knowledge, this is the first time that the insur∙3∙
ance industry has collaborated with a higher education association to produce this type of report, and it perhaps can serve as a model for other such collaborations in other areas of higher education.
Using the Report to Advocate
The report is a major advocacy tool unlike any the education abroad field has had before. Already the report has been useful as a resource that can increase the public’s awareness of education abroad. Legislators who have been considering the need for laws regarding study abroad health and safety now have an authoritative study that helps them to understand the relative risk of study abroad. The report is helping institutions, organizations and education abroad professionals to make the case for education abroad by assuaging ungrounded fears about the “dangers of study abroad.” The Forum will continue to promote the report and encourage its members to use it to advance our common goal of increasing access to and participation in high quality education abroad.
The Future
One of the possible criticisms of the Insurance Claims Report is that it reports data from only one calendar year, 2014. Could it be that this was an atypical year during which there were fewer deaths of students studying abroad than in other years? To answer this question, The Forum asked HTH and CISI if they would be willing to collaborate on a follow-up study that looks at insurance claims data and student deaths abroad over multiple years. Both agreed to do so. We are now in the process of collecting and analyzing data from 2010 through 2015 (data from 2014 of course has already been collected and reported). We anticipate publishing the results of this analysis sometime within the next several months. The results will provide an even better understanding of the mortality rate for students studying abroad.
Final Thought
After the Insurance Report was published, I received an email from Kathleen Sideli, Associate Vice President for Overseas Study at Indiana University, founding board member of The Forum, and The Forum’s first president, in which she reflected on its importance. Her message provides a ∙4∙
useful historical perspective that seems a fitting way to end this article.
“We now have the objective, authoritative
Believe it or not, I remember like it hapdata that provides a pened yesterday that when I was in the context to understand SECUSSA chair stream (1998-2001), I atthe rare occurrence of tended a meeting of the Interorganizational Task Force on Safety and Responsia student death bility. During the meeting they were disabroad.” cussing the age-old issue about the press jumping on the rare study abroad death as if it were a common occurrence. I made the point that day that until we had solid objective evidence that there were fewer study abroad deaths than on-campus deaths (which we knew intuitively at the time, given how many campus deaths happen each year), we would never win the argument. No one knew how to make that happen at the time.
It took some years before the field was able to find a way to make it happen, but we now have the objective, authoritative data that provides a context to understand the rare occurrence of a student death abroad.
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Perspectives on the profession William Gertz, President and CEO, AIFS, & Kris Holloway, President, CISabroad
How and when did you get your start in the field? Bill: In 1973, after graduating from SUNY Binghamton, I went to Europe with three friends on a whim. We flew Youth Fare to Amsterdam, traveled around with a two month StudentRail Pass, stayed in Youth Hostels and $5 hotels, did a bit of hitchhiking and grew up along the way. It was the turning point of my life. I got married and went to Europe the following year with another couple. We traveled around and rented a house in Eastern France staying there until the money ran out. The next year I got a job at CIEE, which was then in NYC. I was a marketing manager in charge of the International Student Identity Cards. I traveled abroad on our charter flights, visited college study abroad offices and began to write our promotional material. I then started my own marketing company before moving to AIFS in 1985. I was hooked. Kris: The day I landed in Mali, West Africa as a Peace Corps volunteer was the first day of my lifelong commitment to international development and education, though I didn’t know it at the time. It took me 16 years to wend my way into actually working in this field after working for non-profits (Planned Parenthood, the GreenBelt Movement International, National Priorities Project) and higher education institutions (University of Michigan and ∙6∙
Springfield College). I began at CISabroad in 2007, right around the same time as I published a book about my Peace Corps experience. I started in university relations, took on marketing in 2010, and was lucky enough to be chosen to lead the organization this year.
What is the biggest shift you've seen in the field? Kris: The biggest shift since I studied abroad in 1988 is diversification. I was a middle class white female who studied French and Baudelaire in Paris, France for a semester. Today, though white females still make up the majority of participants, we see broadening participation. Innovative program models create wider access, and there is more recognition by higher education institutions that study abroad is valuable for almost all students and studies. And, there’s data to back it up: when we are at our best, we offer experiences that help students become more complex thinkers and more employable.1 Bill: I don't totally agree with Kris on the diversification issue. The needle is moving ever so slowly. Institutions have plenty of money to build football stadiums. How about more funding for study abroad? The commercialization of education abroad has been a big change in my lifetime. Maybe we were naive but it was such a small field then. There were no CRM systems, no words like “ROI.” NAFSA was tiny (the first NAFSA meeting I attended was held at Iowa State University and we slept in the dorms) and had yet to identify the millions of dollars that could be made by sponsorships, exhibit booths, etc. Institutions also didn’t realize that there was a lot of money in study abroad so they built more centers and added study abroad fees instead of hiring more staff or paying them better.
1. http://www.iie.org/Blog/2015/September/How-Study-Abroad-Contributes-To-Career-Readiness-8Studies#.V1l3JtIrLct ∙7∙
Another change is the dramatic shift to short term study abroad. It was inevitable for economic and social reasons and that is why study abroad has grown so dramatically. Kris: Money, money, money, as ABBA sings. At the IIE Summit last year, it was obvious that the verbal commitment is there, but it will be vital to match $ to the mission.
What hasn't changed? Bill: The field hasn’t changed all that much. Students are still going to Europe mostly (with the exception of China the top five countries remain the same). Despite our best efforts, as I said, the students still are mostly white, female and middle class. Where are the working class kids?
“Study abroad folk have always been open to exploring and understanding our common humanity.“
But the advisors are still optimistic about study abroad hoping to make a difference in the lives of their students, which is fantastic. Kris: Yes, I love the fact that those who work in this field remain so committed. There are very few jaded people. Study abroad folk have always been open to exploring and understanding our common humanity. We embrace the desire to see the “other” in ourselves. We don’t discount differences, and refuse to resort to stereotypes from a simple lack of knowledge. This spring, I spoke with a professor from Morocco who works at a university in the southeast, asking her if she ran into prejudice. She said “I have lived in the U.S. for twenty years now, and the quality that has always impressed me in my students and colleagues is that you are willing to have your minds changed.” How great is that to hear? ∙8∙
Did you have a mentor and if so, who? Kris: Dr. Sora Friedman at World Learning is a huge inspiration to me. She leads by example, is beloved by her students, and is constantly learning and growing. Jeff Palm, the founder of CISabroad, has shown me the importance of never asking your staff to do what you yourself aren’t willing to. His humility and hard work have affected how I manage. And lastly, Natalie Mello (and no, readers, The Forum, did not pay me to write this!). Natalie organized the first Fireside Dialogue around women in leadership and I have been delighted to be a part of this growing movement in our field. She leads with strength and clarity. Bill: I have had a few mentors in my career. First John Bowman who was the Executive Director of CIEE. He was a great man who walked the walk and started CIEE in 1947. It was an amazing place to work. Then Jon Booth of the University of Michigan and John Pearson of University of Tennessee who taught me much about the field. Lily von Klemperer was another influence. She was my neighbor in New York and I used to go to her home on West 9th Street and drink sherry and talk about “commercialization.” She was a tough woman and put me in my snotty 25-year-old place. Clay Hubbs, Editor of Transitions Abroad was another mentor, and a great writer who understood the field better than anyone. He gave me a place for my student guide series and good career advice, too.
Kris: You got to drink sherry with Lily von Klemperer? I am so jealous….
What's the most important quality you look for in a staff member at your organization? Bill: Brainpower, hands down. I don’t care where you went to school or what your grades were. I like people who can think on their feet and are ∙9∙
street smart. I like a good sense of humor and good (my) taste in music. Everything else can be learned. Kris: I agree with Bill: a sense of humor is priceless. I also look for personal integrity. And then, I look for a match with our company values: fun, passion, cultural awareness, teamwork, being helpful, willingness to accept change, and a desire to grow. Oh, and good ideas. We have a dog-friendly office, so lovin’ the canines is pretty important, too. Bill: Too many people with allergies to allow dogs here. We have on-site daycare partially subsidized for kids but, alas, nothing for dogs.
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing the field? Kris: Our ability to be constantly connected and aware of worldwide news and events is a blessing and a curse. We are safer, more responsive, and aligned with best practice than ever before. But it also means there is always something to post about, a protocol to be updated, a plan to be tweaked. The more we know means the potential for more fear. My younger son was abroad during the Paris attacks, and my older son during the Brussels bombings. I experienced these events as an informed educator and as a concerned parent. How do we incorporate best practices but also let our participants be free to make mistakes and take chances? We grow from challenge not comfort. How do we impress upon our students to worry less about terrorism and more about wearing a seat belt? When perceived risks and real risks appear equally true, we must stay focused on what matters and let the rest go. That is getting harder to do. Bill: Being connected is great for emergencies. But if you are on Facebook or Snapchat the whole time you are never really away, are you? This bothers me although you can’t stop the wave. I think it’s the same challenges we have always faced--price of the programs, terrorism, worldwide eco∙10∙
nomics. Everyone wants study abroad to grow--we don’t have a lack of commitment.
Piece of advice for someone new to the field? Bill: Don’t get cynical. Change as many lives as you can. Kris: Yes! And, if you want something, ask for it. There are many opportunities in this field, and many talented and warm-hearted people to help you. There are more open doors then closed; just knock. If you do, you’ll find a great community of people working hard to realize their own potential and make the world a kinder, smarter, and more peaceful place. Bill: I agree. Kris: Thanks, Bill. Great to have this conversation with you.
Education Abroad is Inaccessible and Our Administrative Systems may be Part of the Problem Lily Lopez-McGee, George Mason University The systems intended to support students trying to study abroad may be making it harder to send more diverse students abroad. If we as education abroad practitioners are serious about increasing access to and participation in education abroad programming, it’s going to take more than a website redesign and photo contest to make it happen. Developing an ecosystem that encourages a wide range of students to go
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abroad can be tough. Higher education is notorious for its silos and divisions.1 Physical and administrative barriers abound, and for those professionals who try to work past the barriers, the time and effort they put in can be taxing. Still, crafting intentional policies and cultivating partnerships across campus are necessary to building systems that engage and support students at all points of their study abroad experience. And for those who engage in this work, the pay off is rewarding. Asking people to discuss administrative processes, though, isn’t likely a strategy many leaders use to inspire their teams. When we talk about diversity and inclusion in education abroad, we tend to gravitate toward quick and immediate solutions that might include updating photos, posting student testimonies, and crafting scholarship advertisements. When it comes to developing a comprehensive marketing strategy or changing how scholarships are administered, well, those might seem to be less exciting endeavors. It should not come as a surprise, then, that at U.S. institutions and provider organizations report that changing policies and processes to improve access to education abroad is not very important. Results from the 2016 Forum on Education Abroad State of the Field survey found that only 30% of both U.S. institutions and providers reported this strategy as important. In contrast, these two groups ranked the need to diversify study abroad as high (more than 80% in each group ranked this as important). Research on access to higher education suggests that the two are intrinsically connected,2 and it
education abroad professionals
“Crafting intentional policies and cultivating partnerships across campus are necessary to building systems that engage and support students at all points of their study abroad experience.”
1. See “Horizontal and Vertical Structures: The Dynamics of Organization in Higher Education,” “How to Create a Problem-Solving Institution,” and “Blasting Academic Silos” 2. See “Diversity in Academe: Who Sets a College's Diversity Agenda? “ and “The Cost of Colorblind.” ∙12∙
would be a mistake to ignore administrative and policy change as pragmatic approaches to making education abroad more accessible. Our policies and processes may be the very things perpetuating the barriers that keep more students from going abroad. Scholars who have looked at college retention and persistence have found that, generally speaking, students from underrepresented populations find themselves having to negotiate the dominant culture of the institution or office in order to succeed.3 Students’ underrepresented identity becomes something they must negotiate and in many cases downplay in order to fit into the institutional culture, which often reflects domi“Our policies and nant culture (middle class and white).4 This processes may be the negotiation of identity, a challenging experivery things ence in and of itself, is complicated by the perpetuating the fact that college students are also in the probarriers that keep cess of learning to make complex decisions.5 more students from As a result, college students may be making going abroad.” decisions using simplistic and often blackand-white logic. That’s why it becomes incredibly important for the professionals helping students during these decision-making processes to develop effective interventions that incorporate considerable contact and communication with students. At this point, an example may be helpful to illustrate how these ideas apply to education abroad. The study abroad office at Anywhere U.S. University has a longstanding scholarship program to provide more funding to cover part of the tuition associated with education abroad. The application deadline for all spring study abroad programs is October 1st and students have to submit their deposit to by November 1st in order to participate. The rub? They won't know whether or not they got the scholarship until November 15. Effectively, students who depend on that scholarship have a choice to 3. Chambers et al. 2014. 4. Barajas & Pierce, 2001; Moore, 2012; Yosso, 2005. 5. Research by Baxter Magolda (1992), Kohlberg (1963), and Perry (1968) suggests students’ decisions made at this point in their lives may not be “complex, preponderantly rational, or subject to careful evaluation and consideration of alternatives” (Hermanowicz, 2006, p. 36). ∙13∙
make: take a risk and make the deposit assuming they'll get the scholarship, or drop the idea of study abroad because they don't know if they'll be able to afford it. Based on the research, students likely only see going or not going as viable options, and may not reach out to discuss alternative options with anyone.6 The scenario is compounded by the fact that the office does not have protocol in place to follow up with students who ultimately decide not to go abroad. The staff might reach out on a case-by-case basis, but without a formal feedback loop the student’s experience goes unreported. From the office’s standpoint, the student didn’t communicate what the issue was preventing her/him from going abroad. From the student’s standpoint, no one reached out to ask what happened and in her/his mind the deal was sealed. While the issue might seem easy enough to fix initially—change the timeline—the more complex resolution might involve developing a policy to solicit feedback about the application process (especially from those students who don’t end up going), tracking application and admissions process more closely to identify when students are leaving, and reassessing the these processes on a regular basis.
To be sure, there are pockets of successful initiatives getting diverse students to go abroad. You only have to go to the Diversity Abroad Network website to access a growing repository of case studies that highlight the good work institutions across the country are doing. Unfortunately, in discussions about how to increase access, we too often point to the small groups of students who we would coin success stories in getting diverse students abroad. But simply looking to the success of an individual student doesn’t dismiss the role of the office/institution and the systems that continue to keep the majority of other underrepresented students at the institution from studying abroad. If there is any merit to the media hype about the importance of gaining international credentials during university, then we have to look inward at our office structures, our applications, our on- and off-campus partnerships, and other places in our administrative structures to see how we might be perpetuating systems of inaccessibility. 6. College students vary in the ability to seek help or see seeking help as an important component of decision-making. See Cramer, 2999 and Hermanowicz, 2006. ∙14∙
Some systems are hard to change and some policies might require more energy and negotiation than others. The question is, with the policies and processes that won't take a lot of heavy lifting, why not? What if our efforts to be more intentional about our day-to-day administrative tasks made education abroad even a little more accessible to students of all backgrounds? Small changes, opportunities to pilot projects, and a willingness to test ideas may take us further than we have let ourselves imagine. References
Barajas, H. L., & Pierce, J. L. (2001). The significance of race and gender in school success among Latinas and Latinos in college. Gender & Society, 15(6), 859–878. http:// doi.org/10.1177/089124301015006005 Baxter Magolda, M. B. (1992). Knowing and reasoning in college: Gender-related patterns in students’ intellectual development. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Chambers, T. V., Huggins, K. S., Locke, L. A., & Fowler, R. M. (2014). Between a “ROC” and a School Place: The Role of Racial Opportunity Cost in the Educational Experiences of Academically Successful Students of Color. Educational Studies, 50(5), 464–497. http:// doi.org/10.1080/00131946.2014.943891 Cramer, K. M. (1999). Psychological antecedents to help-seeking behavior: A reanalysis using path modeling structures. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 46(3), 381-387. http:// dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022-0167.46.3.381 Hermanowicz, J. C. (2006). Reasons and reasoning for leaving college among the academic elite: Case study findings and implications. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, 8(1), 21–38. http://doi.org/10.2190/711H-UY47-CED1-8M47 Keeling, R. P., Underhile, R., & Wall, A. F. (2007). Horizontal and vertical structures: The dynamics of organization in higher education. Liberal Education 93(4). Retrieved from https:// www.aacu.org/publications-research/periodicals/horizontal-and-vertical-structures-dynamicsorganization-higher Kohlberg, L. (1963). Moral development and identification. In H. W. Stevenson (Ed.), Child psychology 62nd yearbook, national society for the study of education, part 1. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Kolowich, S. (2010, January 28). Blasting academic silos. Inside Higher Education. Retrieved from https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/01/18/silos McMurtrie, B. (2016, May 15). How do you create a diversity agenda? It takes more than just a plan on paper. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/article/How -Do-You-Create-a-Diversity/236427?cid=cp38#sthash.a55OEVuZ.dpuf Moore, W. L. (2012). Reflexivity, power, and systemic racism. Ethnic & Racial Studies, 35(4), 614– 619. http://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2011.630097 Perry, W. G. Jr. (1968). Forms of ethical and intellectual development in the college years: A ∙15∙
scheme. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Posselt, J. R. (2016, January 18). The cost of colorblind. Inside Higher Education. Retrieved from https://www.insidehighered.com/views/2016/01/18/how-so-called-colorblind-admissionsreviews-create-barriers-people-color-essay Thorp, H. & Goldstein, B. (2010, August 29). How to create a problem-solving institution. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/article/How-to-Create-a/124153/
Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, A Valuable Resource to Add to Your Toolbox Amelia J. Dietrich, Mellon/ACLS Public Fellow and Assistant Director for Digital Resources,The Forum on Education Abroad, Assistant Editor of Frontiers Last year, The Forum assumed ownership and management of its long-time strategic partner, Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad. Known simply as Frontiers to many in the field, this journal is an online, open-access academic journal that publishes research articles, essays, and reviews on a wide range of topics in the field of education abroad. For over 20 years, articles appearing in Frontiers have undergone a rigorous peer review by scholars and experienced education abroad practitioners. All of these articles are available on the Frontiers website. Since joining the panorama of resources that The Forum offers, Frontiers has maintained a biannual publication cycle, with new volumes released in April and November each year. Submissions are accepted on a rolling basis throughout the year, and the current acceptance rate is 13%, ensuring high quality and reliability of the published work. This should not, however, be mistaken to mean that the journal is for “academics” only. One need not have a research program of their own to draw value from the articles published in Frontiers. Recent themes among the submissions received highlight this fact: ∙16∙
Multi-year and multi-program outcomes assessment studies can help you choose the best design for your programs, e.g.,
Shadowen, Chieffo, & Guerra’s “The Global Engagement Measurement Scale (GEMS);”
Kronholz & Osborn’s “The Impact of Study Abroad Experiences on Vocational Identity among College Students;”
Find out what works and what doesn’t for study abroad recruiting and campus internationalization efforts, e.g.,
Anderson & Lawton’s “The MSA: An Instrument for Measuring Motivation to Study Abroad,”
Learn how education abroad contributes to student employment outcomes and personal development, e.g.,
Hall et al.’s “Jafari and Transformation;”
Instruments that measure intercultural learning, student motivation, and global perspectives can be adopted into your own assessment plan, e.g.,
Spenader & Retka’s “The Role of Pedagogical Variables in Intercultural Development,”
Richart’s “Effects of an International Experience Requirement, Year in School, and Preferred Program Duration on Student Interest in Study Abroad;”
Support the health, safety and security of your students with guidance from tried and tested measures, e.g.,
Bathke & Kim’s “Keep Calm and Study Abroad.”
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Want to get more involved? Read the journal! Share it with faculty and graduate students on your campus or with other professionals in your office. Follow Frontiers on Twitter for the latest updates and highlights from the archives: @FrontiersSA. Write a review of an education abroad publication. Submit your own work for consideration.
Opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of The Forum on Education Abroad. The Forum encourages responses to the perspectives in this issue. Reflections, topic suggestions and other correspondence are welcomed, and all contributions will be considered for future publication. Please send correspondence to: info@forumea.org
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© The Forum on Education Abroad Dickinson College P.O. Box 1773 Carlisle, PA 17013 info@forumea.org +1 717 245-1031 ∙19∙