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Studying abroad is one of the most rewarding learning opportunities students can experience while in college. Every year, more and more students are heading to foreign lands to study for credit. The most recent figures from the Institute of International Education show that during the 2004-2005 academic year, over 205,000 U.S. students studied abroad.1 The Institute of International Education also provides data on the race and ethnicity of U.S. students studying abroad and it is this demographic data that concerns study abroad professionals and higher education administrators. The percentages of African American, Hispanic/ Latin@ American, Asian American, and Native American students studying abroad are significantly lower than the percentages for these students in U.S. higher education enrollment. For instance, African American students made up 12.5% of the total U.S. higher education enrollment in 2003-2004 yet only 3.5% of the total U.S. college student population studying abroad during th at same academic year was African American. Despite efforts in the field of study abroad to understand this phenomenon and to increase study abroad participation rates the percentages of African American, Hispanic/ Latin@ American, Asian American and Native American students studying abroad each year have remained virtually the same for more than a decade. The following tables provide demographic data on race and ethnicity in study abroad and comparatively with U.S. higher education enrollment and national population.
Demographic Data on Race and Ethnicity in Education Abroad2
| Race/Ethnicity |
1995/96 |
1996/97 |
1997/98 |
1998/99 |
1999/00 |
2000/01 |
2001/02 |
2002/03 |
2003/04 |
2004/05 |
| Caucasian |
84.4% |
83.9% |
84.5% |
85% |
83.7% |
84.3% |
82.9% |
83.2% |
83.7% |
83.0% |
| Asian American |
5.1% |
5% |
4.8% |
4.4% |
4.8% |
5.4% |
5.8% |
6% |
6.1% |
6.3% |
| Hispanic American |
5% |
5.1% |
5.5% |
5.2% |
5% |
5.4% |
5.4% |
5.1% |
5% |
5.6% |
| African American |
2.9% |
3.5% |
3.8% |
3.3% |
3.5% |
3.5% |
3.5% |
3.4% |
3.4% |
3.5% |
| Multiracial |
2.3% |
2.1% |
0.8% |
1.2% |
0.9% |
0.9% |
2% |
1.8% |
1.3% |
1.2% |
| Native American |
0.3% |
0.3% |
0.6% |
0.9% |
0.5% |
0.5% |
0.4% |
0.5% |
0.5% |
0.4% |
| TOTAL |
89,242 |
99,448 |
113,959 |
129,770 |
143,590 |
154,168 |
160,920 |
174,629 |
191,321 |
205,983 |
- Institute of International Education Open Doors 2006, http://opendoors.iienetwork.org/?p=89220
- Institute of International Education Open Doors 2006, http://opendoors.iienetwork.org/?p=89220
Comparative Data on Race and Ethnicity in Education Abroad3
| Race/Ethnicity |
U.S. Students Abroad 2004-2005 |
U.S. Higher Ed. Enrollment 20044 |
U.S. Population 2000 |
| Caucasian |
83.0% |
66.1% |
75.1% |
| African American |
3.5% |
12.5% |
12.3% |
| Hispanic/ Latin@ American |
5.6% |
10.5% |
12.5%5 |
| Asian American |
6.3% |
6.4%6 |
3.7%7 |
| Native American |
0.4% |
1.0%8 |
0.9% |
| Multiracial |
1.2% |
Not Available |
2.4% |
| No Response |
X |
X |
X |
In November 2005, the Commission on the Abraham Lincoln Study Abroad Fellowship Program released its report.9The highlight of the Commission’s report is the vision to send one million students studying abroad by the 2016-2017 academic year. To achieve this goal, the Commission firmly believes that “the demographics of the U.S. undergraduate students abroad should be similar to those of the U.S. undergraduate student population.”10 A similar stance was taken by the NAFSA: Association of International Educators Strategic Task Force on Education Abroad when it released its report in 2003.11 The Strategic Task Force stated that, “the United States is failing to show the world the diversity of its population. Study abroad can be a truly eye-opening experience for Americans of all races who discover that people elsewhere categorize them more by national origin than by ethnicity.”12 These two major reports are only two examples of the field’s call for greater student diversity on study abroad programs.During the past twenty-five years, research on study abroad has increased at a rapid rate and a fair amount of this research has focused on underrepresented students. An in depth review of the research literature found that the number one factor cited by minority students regarding their decision to study abroad or not was related to program cost. This was closely followed by lack of family support and/or needing to remain close to family, concerns about discrimination, concerns about language and program sites not being of interest.
- Sources: U.S. Census 2000, http://censtats.census.gov/data/US/101000.pdf; Institute of International Education Open Doors 2006, http://opendoors.iienetwork.org/?p=89220; National Center for Educational Statistics - Digest of Education Statistics 2005, http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d05/tables/dt05_208.asp.
- Excludes Nonresident alien data.
- U.S. Census data provides separate data on Hispanic/ Latin@ populations.
- Includes Hawaiian/Pacific Islander populations.
- Includes Hawaiian/Pacific Islander populations.
- Includes American Indian/Alaska Native populations
- The Commission on the Abraham Lincoln Study Abroad Fellowship Program final report titled Global Competence & National Needs: One Million Americans Studying Abroad is available at http://www.lincolncommission.org/report.html.
- Global Competence & National Needs: One Million Americans Studying Abroad (2005), p. 27.
- NAFSA: Association of International Educators Strategic Task Force on Education final report titled Securing America’s Future: Global Education for a Global Age is available at http://www.nafsa.org/_/Document/_/securing_america_s_future.pdf.
- Securing America’s Future: Global Education for a Global Age (2003), p. 10.
The reasons stated above as having the greatest impact on a student’s decision to study abroad certainly cross all racial and ethnic lines. However, they are most prevalent with minority undergraduate students. Allabroad.us offers students from diverse backgrounds, their parents and faculty and administrators a place to find answers to common study abroad questions and concerns such as what study abroad program length is best, how does financial aid factor into paying for this opportunity, health and safety issues, or availability of support services while abroad. Mentors from across the United States who have studied abroad and understand the process have provided answers to a variety of questions that you and your students may have.
Perhaps you don’t have experience in working with diverse groups of students and are wondering what the issues and barriers to study abroad participation may be or you’d like to encourage these students to study abroad but are unsure how. We’ve developed a special section of the website designed specifically to answer questions and concerns that faculty and administrators such as yourself may have. Allabroad.us Mentors represent the diversity found throughout the United States and in U.S. higher education and we hope that you find their stories informative as you help your students make this educational leap abroad.
Please also feel free to contact us at   if you have additional questions you would like answers for.
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