Yearly Archives: 2018

Adjusting to New Learning Environments and Style When Studying Abroad

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You’ve planned your semester abroad to a tee, prepared for the worst, and hoped for the best. The minute you land, you’re busy taking in the newness around you. Suddenly, you find yourself feeling lost and out of place in your new classroom with different faces, languages, or confused by what your teacher is asking. This, brave international student, is called culture shock. But don’t panic – you’re not alone.

A recent study found there are over 765,000 international students – a year on year increase of 6.5%. Being an international student is an incredible experience with tons of benefits. However, thousands of international students find the learning environment to be different from their native country. Here’s how you can adjust to new learning environments and style when studying abroad.

Enhance Your Prep Techniques

Chinese students favor the “talk and chalk” approach to learning, while countries such as the UK, Australia, and the US look at a collaborative method of teaching. In fact, studies from Australian Catholic University show that there is no single “right” way to teach as there is to study. Just because you’re studying abroad doesn’t mean you should change the way you study. Instead, look for inspiration for the local students and see what helps them thrive. When you learn to focus on your energy and productivity, you will begin to notice the different methods of studying and use it to your advantage.

Discuss Issues with Your Teachers

Like most students, you will be eager to succeed in your newfound environment. After all, you did travel across the globe to experience a new culture. Still, there may be times where you don’t understand how your classmates are following the lessons or even find the assignments too challenging. This can be especially true for tasks that involve strong language skills.

The best thing you can do is to talk to your teachers. They are there to help you succeed, even if you don’t plan to stay there long. Make the most out of your host school’s resources and talk to your instructor if you are struggling.  If they cannot help you, they will make an effort to find you the resources you need.

While it may be difficult for some students to adjust in the beginning, it is completely understandable to ask for help when you need it. Most universities offer counseling as well as other services for their students. Make sure to utilize your resources, make new friends and most of all – make the most out of your study abroad. 

How Parents Can Solve the Study Abroad Funding Gap

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College comes with a wide variety of experiences, some of which can be categorized as once-in-a-lifetime. One of the most highly prized—and highly regarded—experiences for a college student is studying abroad. With a semester spent studying overseas, a student can gain valuable skills, excellent resume points, among other benefits. For a parent, study abroad is starting to sound like a must-have for their kids in college.

There’s just one problem; a study abroad program can be astronomically expensive. Combined with college’s already exorbitant costs, the idea suddenly seems a lot more like a fantasy than an achievable goal. There are ways, however, that you can help close that funding gap, with a little creativity and effort.

The Financial Problem with Study Abroad

If you have a child in college, then you already know about the staggering cost of higher education. Even with federal financial aid, most students end up taking out student loans to bridge the gap; in fact, about three-quarters of college students have loans at graduation, trying to cover a piece of the $25,000 price tag on a four-year education.

As a parent who’s on the hook for the cost of college, you might feel that covering a semester abroad is a bit much.

Once your student has received his or her financial aid package at the beginning of the school year, it’s not easy to get that amount extended or raised, which makes it hard to turn to federal student aid to pay for a study abroad trip.

Because of semester start dates and the need to set up these trips early, the funding deadlines often end up falling inconveniently at awkward times of the year as well. January—right after the holiday season—and May, right before the summer, are typical deadlines.

The timing can be incredibly difficult for parents who want to be able to help their student get that abroad experience but also can’t necessarily come up with the money at those specific times of the year.

There is hope, however. Let’s take a look at some of the ways you can help fund that overseas trip.

Closing the Funding Gap

If you’re the parent of a college student, then you’re already feeling the crunch of an expensive education. There has to be a way to help your student study overseas without overtaxing your already-hurting wallet, right? Yes, there is! There are actually a number of options to consider.

Study Abroad Scholarship Funding

There are many scholarships specifically meant to fund overseas study. There are plenty of listings of such scholarships that can be found online. Some are merit-based and set aside for top academic students; others are meant for students looking to go to a particular country, or pursuing a certain course of study. Each scholarship has its own criteria, and most of them are competitive. It’s best to start pursuing them early.

With scholarships, the money doesn’t require repayment, making them ideal sources of funding. However, in some cases, your student may need to sign an employment contract with the providing organization – this is a specific drawback to keep an eye out for.

Grants from Third-Party Organizations

Much like scholarships, grants don’t need to be paid back, and they’re offered by various philanthropic organizations and non-profits. Like a scholarship, a grant award is a competitive offer. In many cases they require an essay or other submission package, and the student may be required to follow through on certain promises like reporting back to the group about the study abroad experience.  NAFSA, the Association of International Education is a good place to start.  NAFSA List of Study Abroad Scholarships and Grants.

Student Loans for Study Abroad

It’s not the best option, but taking out an additional student loan to cover the cost of a study abroad trip is possible. It can help defray the expenses while still putting the responsibility for that cost on the student instead of your own wallet. Of course, keep in mind that the student loan would need to be repaid with interest. As mentioned, it’s tough to get more federal financial aid in the middle or end of the school year, but some students and parents may be able to find funding in the private sector with banks and lenders. However, remember to weigh the risks and benefits of taking on debt. You can get a wealth of experience from study abroad, but is it worth paying interest?

Find a Job for Your Kid

The idea of “working your way through college” doesn’t really work as well as it used to; the constantly climbing costs of education make it nearly impossible to simply rely on a job to pay for school. A job can, however, help cover the cost of an overseas trip, leading to less money you’ll have to contribute as a parent. Conversely, a part-time job could help your child pay for miscellaneous expenses or even rent. This could free up money elsewhere to support a study abroad trip.

Find a Cheaper Trip

If all else fails, you could always advise your student to choose a less expensive trip. Going to a different country, for a shorter duration, or with different living arrangements can often drop the cost to a more manageable amount.  Think of the entire cost, including the cost of travel and cost of living as well as the cost of the program.  Cost is considered on some study abroad review websites, look for comments on cost.  On Abroad101, programs have a compiled star-rating for cost and tips for saving money, search for affordable study abroad programs on Abroad101

Conclusion

Sending your student abroad for study can be prohibitively expensive—but it doesn’t need to be. Take the time to do some research, and you’ll find that a semester abroad, with all of its once-in-a-lifetime experiences, is well within your student’s reach.

 

By guest author Andrew Rombach, a Content Associate from LendEDU – a consumer education website and financial product marketplace. Andrew learned plenty about financial aid from his own experiences with student loan debt in college. Now he covers a range of personal finance topics in general.

Abroad101 Providers Newsletter – Spring 2018

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Ten Years Later, It’s Still All About the Reviews:

Abroad101 got its start as the “Trip Advisor for Study Abroad” being the first website to focus on study abroad reviews.  Ten years later we host the largest collection of program reviews, in part because a number of colleges and universities use Abroad101 as their official program evaluation software.  Abroad101’s system gives university administrators a nice set of web-based tools to:

  • manage the publishing of reviews (approve/disapprove)
  • add custom evaluation questions (optional)
  • measure their students’ results against other universities (charts)
  • generate performance reports on programs and providers (ratings scores)
  • export reviews for further analysis and trends

More than 70% of the reviews on Abroad101 come at the invitation of university advisors, many who will read and discuss the reviews as part of school’s re-entry process.  In recent years, we have opened up these features to program hosts (foreign universities) and providers who use the reviews for both marketing and quality control.  Whether you invite the student or not, you can see your program reviews and can use the comparison tools by accessing your account dashboard.  If you have not done so, we encourage you to login and explore what Abroad101 has for you.  If you need your password reset or would like a web demo of the software, email: mark@abroad101.com.

Abroad101’s Directories

Any list of programs on Abroad101 is displayed based on an algorithm we have fine-tuned over the years.  Recent review volume is currently the most important factor, adjusted by the age of the review along with several additional factors including standard deviation (range of scores).  Inclusion of photos and review completeness impact positioning.  We do this because as a review website, people come to us looking for current and thorough reviews so it seems only right that the programs with the most reviews are at the top of the list.

Student Inquiries:

As a reminder, the primary mechanism for prospective students to interact with providers is through Abroad101’s inquiry form.  When you get an inquiry from Abroad101, you will notice a “lead type” in the message.  These are:

  • fav = Favorite, where a student tags your listing as one to consider later, not a formal inquiry 
  • rmi – the standard Request More Information inquiry
  • app – student states they want to apply for the program listed.
  • mp – Matching Program (a featured offered to advertisers)

Often people will visit review sites to do further research, so when you get an inquiry marked Apply there is a reasonable chance that that student is already known to you and has come to a decision to apply to the program while on Abroad101.  Please don’t view these as duplicate leads, instead think of them as conversions and prioritize your response to the student.

For those of you who advertise, our LeadMatch (mp leads) feature gives students three additional programs to consider after they have sent an inquiry to a non-advertised program.  These matching programs are drawn from our pool of advertised programs, matching on city, country and/or subject.  It’s modeled after the popular recommendation feature on sites like Amazon.com and accounts for 13% of all leads sent from Abroad101.

Search by Subject:

As a reminder, Abroad101 is using the CIP Codes from the US Department of Education for our study subject search.  We presently list a total of 423 including all of the top level subjects and the most popular of the specific disciplines.  From time to time, providers will request we add a category, such as Kinesiology and Exercise Science which we added last month.  We encourage you to take advantage of the study subject field when updating your program listings with Abroad101.  Let us know if you’d like any additional categories/directories.

Include Abroad101 in your Advertising Budgets:

Abroad101 is supported by advertising from foreign universities as well as program providers.  Advertising on Abroad101 is designed to bring you more inquiries, improve your conversions and raise the brand and visibility of your programs, all at a price that won’t blow your budget.  Featured Listings start at $500/year and we offer generous volume discounts for multiple programs and display advertising.  Advertising is mixed gently in the pages adding additional choice to students.  With 20-25% of Abroad101’s visitors being parents or university advisors, advertising has the extra impact of reaching those that influence students.  We hope you will include Abroad101 in your next year’s budget.  Prices remain unchanged since 2015, please download our Ad Guide for more information.

See you at NAFSA?

Abroad101 won’t have a booth this year or a reception, but we will be at the conference.  If you’d like to meet at your booth, or after exhibit hours, please email: mark@abroad101.com.

Thank you,

25 Benefits of Studying Abroad

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Studying abroad is a life changing experience for college students. It opens the door to a world full of travel and adventure, it creates exciting new educational opportunities, and it forms lifelong friendships. If you’re considering studying abroad and are still wondering if it’s right for you, check out the infographic below. It shows 25 benefits of studying abroad, including research and findings from top university studies. From increased self confidence to increased future salaries, you might be surprised at all that studying abroad can do for you.

Prevent The Risk of Identity Theft While Studying Abroad

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Gone are the days when thieves stole purses and wallets and settled for the coins and notes in there. In 2016, more than 791 million identities were reported stolen from American students living abroad. In fact, Americans are most likely to fall victims to identity theft than any other nationality. Today, your credit card, passport, identity card and bank ATM’s are all targets. People traveling abroad for studies are at a higher risk of identity theft. Thieves tend to target students from western countries as they are assumed to be wealthier than any other. Once the fraudsters get their hands on your personal and financial documents, phone, and wallet; chances are that your identity will be stolen and render you a victim of fraud. However, there are measures that you can take to minimize your risks.

Carry Less Valuables

It is highly advisable that you do not carry unnecessary documents when traveling. This includes your credit cards, photo identification, or paperwork bearing vital details. If possible, leave your wallet at home or hide it well within your luggage. Do not put it where it can easily be snatched or stolen.

Keep Copies of Important Documents

You can never be too safe with your documents when in transit. Making copies of all your; VISA, Passport, Student Identity Card, Insurance card, as a precautionary measure is necessary. Email these copies to yourself and leave original documents with a trusted family member or friend whom you can contact from overseas. This way, you can easily organize for the replacement of the documents in case any of them is stolen.

Create a New Email Account For Travel

Creating a new email account is free of charge and only takes a few minutes. As a precautionary measure, creating one to use while studying abroad is a necessary measure. By doing this, you deny them the power to cause havoc. By hacking your private account, they stand a higher chance of accessing your school and financial data.

Take Advantage of Travel Cash Rewards

Anyone can prevent identity fraud when studying abroad. Identity protection service providers advise that students consider using travel cards. These can be loaded with foreign currency prior to travel. This option comes with other benefits besides preventing identity theft. You can avoid bank conversion fees by locking in the current exchange rate. These cash cards can also be used as an ordinary Visa credit card. It is best that you register for this card online so that you can easily deactivate it and also retrieve the stolen money. This denies fraudsters access to your identity or the bank accounts linked to that card. Students overseas are susceptible to theft as they are oblivious and focused on having a good time. For safety purposes, it is best that you avoid public WiFi networks, opt for fingerprint security for your phone, and report immediately in case your documents get stolen. Luckily for students, they can purchase a travel insurance prior to the trip. It covers lost travel documents cash and credit cards. Others additionally cover missed trips, delayed flights, food expenses, emergency/unplanned accommodation in case a student is held up due to lost documents.

Win a trip to Germany – enter DAAD’s Photo Contest!

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Abroad101.com is happy to pass along this Photo Contest with DAAD! Who wouldn’t want to win a trip to Germany!!!

DAAD North America launched its annual contest for students from US and Canadian campuses. First-prize is a round-trip fare to Germany!

Do you have a review published with Abroad101? Post your Germany photos as part of the review and enter them in the contest. Share your favorite places with the world. If you like to write a review you can do that here.

This year, we want to see photos of Germany that reveal #YourHiddenGermany and go beyond Oktoberfest, Neuschwanstein and the Brandenburg Gate (as much as we love them). 

To participate in the 2018 Annual DAAD Contest, students can submit up to 3 photos of #YourHiddenGermany. The best #YourHiddenGermany photos will be featured on the DAAD USA and DAAD Canada websites and in their respective Instagram, Facebook and Twitter feeds. Use #YourHiddenGermany to share your entries with, friends, family, and DAAD USA’s and DAAD Canada’s followers.

Contest Prizes:

First-prize:           Round-trip airfare to Germany.

Second-prize:      GoPro Hero Camera.

Third-prize:          $50 gift card for www.GermanDeli.com.

How to Enter –

To participate in the 2018 Annual DAAD Contest, please submit up to 3 photos of #YourHiddenGermany. Include a description of what the image shows and why it is special to you. The best #YourHiddenGermany photos will be featured on the DAAD USA and DAAD Canada websites and in our respective Instagram, Facebook and Twitter feeds. Use #YourHiddenGermany to share your entries with, friends, family, and DAAD USA’s and DAAD Canada’s followers.

Here are the Contest Guidelines:

  1. To participate, you must be 18 years or older and enrolled as a full-time student in a university degree program in the U.S. or Canada.
  2. All submissions must include a photo and description (max. 255 characters).
  3. Maximum file size for photo uploads is 8 MB.
  4. Photos can be uploaded as JPG-files or directly from Instagram.
  5. Horizontal, vertical and square photos are ok, but please no panorama images.
  6. Do not upload photos that have been edited (no filters) or that feature inappropriate content.

All entries must be received by April 29th , 5:00pm EDT. For more information: https://www.daad.org/en/2018/04/06/daad-photo-contest/

EARN A TOP 10 US DEGREE IN CHINA

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Duke Kunshan University is the first Sino-American university partnership involving a top 10 ranked U.S. university. The product of a partnership between the prestigious Duke University and China’s renowned Wuhan University, our mission is to create a world-class university in China that offers a wide range of academic programs for students from around the world.

Located in scenic Kunshan, in Jiangsu province, the Duke Kunshan campus sits within the stunning Kunshan Yangcheng Lake Science Park while boasting state-of-the-art facilities to provide students a perfect environment for achieving their full potential. At the heart of the Yangtze River Delta, China’s economic powerhouse, students will not only be living in the wealthiest county level city in China, but will also be less than a 20-minute ride by high-speed rail to Shanghai and Suzhou.

Undergraduate Admissions China

Duke Kunshan will launch a new four-year undergraduate program in the fall of 2018. The Duke Kunshan undergraduate program includes an option of a two-semester experience at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, culminating in a degree from Duke Kunshan University in China, a degree from Duke University in the U.S., and the prestige of joining the Duke alumni community. Though courses will be taught in English, non-Chinese students will be required to take Mandarin courses, allowing them to be fully immersed in Chinese culture and society while they study here.

The curriculum is based on an interdisciplinary liberal arts and sciences curriculum designed by Duke University. It will allow for students to explore a variety of subjects before deciding on a major at the end of their second year. Currently, Duke Kunshan has eight undergraduate majors. Additional majors, including interdisciplinary humanities majors and social science majors, will be introduced in the next two years. By 2020, when the first cohort of students is set to declare their majors, there will be over 20 majors from which to choose.

To cultivate a truly diverse and global environment for students, Duke Kunshan’s first cohort of 225 students will include at least 50 overseas students. In the years ahead, Duke Kunshan will steadily increase class sizes to reach a full capacity of 2,000 undergraduate students with a 60/40 mix between Chinese mainland students and students from other regions around the world, respectively.

When students apply for undergraduate admissions, they will be applying for the opportunity to join a diverse community of exceptional students striving to succeed on an international level. Students at Duke Kunshan are given a world-class education from passionate professors who are the foremost leaders in their fields. With an innovative curriculum and an international learning environment, our undergraduates will leave with the practical experience and knowledge needed to become the leaders of tomorrow.

Graduate Admissions China

Duke Kunshan’s graduate program is designed to offer a global learning environment for graduate studies in China. Our curriculum is designed by Duke University and taught through the innovative and global oriented approach of Duke Kunshan. We prioritize a well-rounded educational style that encourages creative thinking. Each semester, acclaimed professors from Duke University come to the Duke Kunshan campus to conduct research, teach, and connect with students.

Students will have the choice of spending a semester at Duke University or conducting research in a different country. The international nature of Duke Kunshan’s program will allow students to develop valuable intercultural and interpersonal skills, enhancing their leadership potential and opening doors to a wide variety of career opportunities.

Scholarships

For Graduate Students

Duke Kunshan welcomes applicants from all over the world; we seek the brightest minds, regardless of country of origin, culture, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status. Following this philosophy, every student in our graduate program is automatically considered for a merit-based scholarship based on their application.

For International Graduate Students

As the world is becoming increasingly connected and China has become more open to the rest of the world, the need for people to transcend geographical and cultural barriers to build a more understanding future has become increasingly apparent. In pursuit of this ideal, the Chinese government has established many scholarships to encourage students from all around the globe to study in China.

To encourage the internationalization of higher education in Jiangsu, the Jiangsu Provincial Government established the Jasmine Jiangsu Government Scholarship. This Chinese government scholarship was introduced to promote and aid the development of international students and scholars studying in Jiangsu Province. At Duke Kunshan, this scholarship will be awarded to international candidates who excel at their graduate studies while pursuing their degrees on our campus.

For Chinese and International Undergraduate Students

To attract the highest caliber students, we are offering generous scholarship and financial aid packages to ensure that top-tier candidates from around the world will be afforded the opportunity to study with us. The majority of our enrolled students in the inaugural undergraduate class will receive substantial scholarship support. Scholarships are awarded for the entirety of the 4-year program, on the condition that all academic requirements are met. The highest amount awarded will provide funds to cover a full tuition scholarship for the duration of the 4-year program.

Need-Based Financial Aid Need-based financial aid is reserved for students with a strong academic record but may lack the financial ability to attend our university. We are seeking a globally diverse cohort of students and encouraging all academically qualified students to apply, irrespective of their family financial situation. Interested applicants will need to provide documentation to prove that their current financial situation is a direct barrier to affording Duke Kunshan’s tuition fees.

Duke Kunshan University offers a number of merit-based scholarships. All applicants for admission are automatically considered for all availabl

e merit scholarships. Separate applications are not required. In addition to the University’s central scholarship fund, the leadership of Duke Kunshan University is dedicated to finding new sources of scholarship funding to support undergraduate students.

Apply Now

Duke Kunshan offers the unique opportunity to study in China while also studying and conducting research under a Duke University designed world-class curriculum. The Duke Kunshan experience allows students to have a foot in two of the most exciting markets in the world. With the Chinese government and Duke Kunshan University currently incentivizing international enrollment at both the graduate and undergraduate level, now is the time to apply to one of China’s top universities.

BY DUKE KUNSHAN UNIVERSITY

Abroad101’s Advisor Newsletter Winter 2018

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Thanks for taking a few minutes to check-in with Abroad101.  Now in our 10th year, Abroad101 continues to be the only website focused on capturing the impact of international education through student-generated reviews.  For those of you who use our system, this is a reminder to send invites to your recent returnees.  For those of you considering new ways to raise awareness of study abroad participation, Abroad101 is here to help.

What Are Study Abroad Reviews?

  • Reviews are Published Program Evaluations
  • Reviews are Testimonials
  • Reviews are Points of Pride
  • Reviews are Social Media
  • Reviews are Popular

When students publish their program evaluations they become reviews, and when they are on Abroad101, they also become Social Media.  As Social Media, these first-hand accounts of experiences abroad becomes a great point-of-pride for students.  They become powerful reference material for future students and parents.  As social media, reviews have many uses, enabling:

  • Universities to promote study abroad to their own students
  • Students to research programs and view first-hand accounts from their peers
  • Parents to set their expectations
  • Advisors to keep informed of outcomes and student satisfaction
  • University Administrators to gather data.

Students are encouraged to share their finished review with their friends, family and other students.  Students are also prompted to include their review in their Linkedin profiles and to reference the review in cover letters and grad school applications.  The ability to include photos and writing samples can boost the pride a student takes in their review.  Each day, Abroad101 reviews are fed into Twitter, Facebook and other social media outlets by our editor, school advisors and students.  Sharing further spreads their impact. 

Make Public Your Program Evaluations

We encourage you to take the leap and become fully transparent by turning your private study abroad program evaluation process into a public review process.  When every student is required to complete a review in order to received credit, you get more candor, usable data and testimonials of the impact of study abroad.   We can’t help but think this transparent process positively impacts participation at these institutions and with Abroad101, you can do this for free.  What brings so many reviews online, is the full-feature software that Abroad101 provides to universities.

Take a look at a few of our Best Practice Leaders:

  • Brandeis University
  • Middlebury College
  • Trinity University
  • Wellesley College

Institutions like these trust Abroad101 as their program evaluation partner.  Abroad101 is a time-tested, integral part of the study aboard experience at our partner schools.  The Abroad101 team provides training and support for any issues that may arise in the process and we’d welcome being a more integral part of the education abroad experience at your institution.

Make a Review a Re-entry Exercise

Even if your school has an existing evaluation system in place for returning study abroad students, we hope you’ll still consider the student’s point of view and incorporate a study abroad review as part of a student-focused re-entry exercise.  The rationale goes as follows: if a student can coherently state what happened to them in writing, they will be much more prepared to discuss their experiences with friends, family and in future encounters as the student moves toward their next steps in life.  Showing they can express their emotions, in a published format is a big step forward and a reason to complete a review.  With a great sample of their writing and an expression of their new world view., you will help your students better prepare for their future by making a review part of the study abroad process.

Why Abroad101?

The Abroad101 review is 38 questions in length and is designed to walk students through a reflection of who they were before they left, who they are now and what they hope for their future.  As part of this process, they will rate 9 different aspects of their program and provide some insight and tips for future students.  Taking 20-30 minutes to complete, the review can help students put their feelings into words and start the process of communicating their experiences in concise and coherent ways.   They can add photos and turn their review into a point of pride, a capstone to their education abroad experience.

It’s for Faculty-led and Exchange Programs Too:

Abroad101 is happy to list your faculty-led programs in our system.  For your exchange partners, we have a catch-all “Direct Enrollment & Exchange” listing for every university abroad.  You are welcome to use Abroad101 for each of these types of programs in addition to the students on third-party programs and foreign schools.

Let us show you how.

We’re happy to provide you with a tour of the Abroad101 software, its features, advantages and benefits.  Please contact us for a 20-30 introductory walk through of the site and the system that manages is.  As we’ve been saying for 10 years – Its fast, free, easy!

Abroad101 remains free program evaluation software due to the support of our advertisers.  Many study abroad providers and foreign universities and schools pay for advertising in our directories of programs and that keeps us in business.  We thank them, and you for the opportunity to help enhance the field of international education.

Best wishes,

Mark Shay,

CEO / Abroad101

+1-212-321-0928

mark@abroad101.com

http://www.StudyAbroad101.com

Abroad101 Providers Newsletter – Winter 2018

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Happy New Year!  As we all shift our thinking from holidays to work, please take a moment to reflect on how you used the Internet this holiday season.  Did you use reviews to guide some gift purchasing, select a hotel, restaurant or movie, or assist you in selecting someone to fix your home heater?  Reviews influence decisions and for 10 years, Abroad101 has been helping future students and their parents become better education abroad consumers.

How to Get Students to Write Reviews?

Your presence on Abroad101 is greatly enhanced by reviews.  So often we hear that it is hard to get students to do anything, let alone spend 20-30 minutes on a review.  This is especially true when students feel that the activity has no benefit for them.  We find that students ARE inclined to share their experience if the exercise gives them a chance to tell their story – it is exactly what they do on social media for hours a day!

If the student believes the review is good for them, they will generally participate.  That takes some groundwork before they go abroad and as they prepare to return.  One idea to get more engagement is to incorporate a review in your end-of-term programming and use the review process as a step toward preparing the students to share their experience with others.  Just like career counselors who tell students to prepare a good resume for a job search, we hope that study abroad staff will help their students prepare for their return home by guiding them to submitting a thorough and candid review.

Alumni Ambassadors and Perfect Reviews

This “always sunny” concept is something that savvy marketers are concerned over.  Study Abroad providers are increasingly using Alumni Ambassadors in their marketing efforts.  These are typically very satisfied students who have demonstrated great affinity for a program and are fantastic spokespeople.  When they are tasked with writing a review, human nature kicks in and we have noticed these reviews are overly promotional and “too good to be true.”  In looking at the traffic these reviews generate, they get less page views than reviews with candid titles and lower overall ratings.

We welcome Alumni Ambassador submissions and in your training of them we hope you’ll reinforce the need to be candid in their stories so the review will be viewed as legitimate and credible.  Please read: Why Imperfection is Ideal.

What to do with Bad Reviews?

The most common objection we get to fully transparent publishing of student reviews is a concern about how a negative experience will impact a program or the institutional stakeholders.  In the complex world of social media and online transparency, the opposite is often true.

People often come to review sites to validate their choices and to search for the negative. Reviews of student struggles and reports of negative things will actually help future students prepare and set their expectations.  In an odd twist of logic, they go to review sites to relieve the anxiety about what happens when things go wrong.  Reviews also provide a practical balance to the always-positive websites, brochures and on campus presentations.  For those, like parents, who may not be present in Q&A sessions, reviews provide a welcome reality check.

Taking some best practices from the tech sector, it is ironic to discover that negative reviews actually have a positive impact.  We suggest you read “You Don’t Want A 5-Star Review”  When you get a bad review, we encourage you to respond using the feedback tool at the bottom of each review.  We suggest you restate what the student said went well, then thank them for their participation and feedback and reinforce your goal to make the program better.  It is never a good idea to tell the student they were wrong, especially in a review.  Some consumers look at the feedback to get a better sense of the personality of a program and the attitude of the staff.  The comment section is a place to showcase that. 

Please note that Abroad101 is still in business today due to our professional approach to review management.  The vast majority of reviews on Abroad101 come from our university partners who either require, or encourage their students to participate in the review process.  Our desire is to collect quality reviews and every once in a while, we have to intervene maintain the quality and integrity of our site, our university partners and our industry.  Count on Abroad101 to do to the right thing.

Putting Reviews on Your Website:

Each review on Abroad101 has a fixed URL, as does each program.  Each provider has an index of programs with an accompanying review tally and average score ratings.  These link addresses don’t change, so we encourage you to benefit from SEO and place web links from your website to your presence on Abroad101 with link text that says something like “Read the Reviews”

Abroad101 also offers a chance to summarize the review scores of programs or you as a provider with our widgets.  The widget produces a badge-like graphic on your website that is constantly updated with the latest results from Abroad101.  See how yours would look:

  • Program Widget
  • Provider Widget

Ratings and Study Abroad Rankings:

Over the years we have used the data collected by the reviews to raise awareness of study abroad and publicize the best of study abroad.  Our system compiles and displays the reviews’ star ratings in nine categories.  We stress that these are indicators of quality, not a measure of quality.  Review scores can indicate strengths of a program as well as weaknesses and our scoring algorithms have adjusted over the years to best reflect people’s behavior.  The summary review score seen on a program listing is an average that factors out old reviews.  The program’s position in the directories is determined by a formula that favors recent review volume and has an adjustment that rewards candid reviews, photos and comments.  As a review website, people want to see reviews, want current, insightful and candid reviews and our ratings and display algorithms help deliver this.

We have produced The Study Abroad Rankings for years.  Our rankings included various factors, including a standard deviation designed to discourage flow of perfect reviews.  The publicity generated by rankings has been significant and has gotten us great media coverage, but we have come to realize that the publicity is not worth the cost.  In the end, candid reviews are what people want, and designating a best program is not in our overall best interest, or in the long-term best interest of our supporters.  We did not publish rankings in 2017 and we will not do so this year.

Advertising Options:

For those of you not advertising with Abroad101, we hope you’ll join us.  We’ve kept our prices the same with Featured Listings in our directories at $500/year/program with generous discounts for multiple programs.  Overall traffic to our site continues to rise, clicks are up, inquiries and review volume are holding steady.  Advertisers report seeing quality leads coming from the site as the majority of visitors remain American college-level students, parents and advisors. 

We want your business, contact me today for a price quote!

Mark Shay

CEO / Abroad101

+1-212-321-0928

mark@abroad101.com

http://www.StudyAbroad101.com