Pandemic Leads to Severe Drop in Global Study Engagement
(Source: Office of Institutional Analysis)
By Shane Carley, Contributing Writer
Despite the ongoing pandemic, the Center for Global Education (CGE) at Gettysburg College is still hopeful for a return to normalcy in the coming months.
According to numbers provided by the Office of Institutional Analysis and the Office of the Registrar Census Enrollment Reports, student involvement in study abroad programs at Gettysburg had been steadily increasing in recent years before plummeting in the fall 2020 semester due to the challenges associated with COVID-19.
In a normal year, CGE will run more than fifty global studies programs in a single semester. To put the pandemic’s impact in perspective, only five programs ran last fall, and there are currently only eighteen study abroad programs successfully running this spring with Gettysburg students. Programs that are currently in session are located in Germany, France, Washington D.C., Greece, and Spain.
Many of the same on-campus restrictions at Gettysburg College are still in place in study abroad programs. According to CGE, these measures include an arrival quarantine, similar testing procedures, physical distancing, heightened cleaning protocols, single rooms to house students, modified academic calendars, and the ability to offer or move to online coursework if needed.
Clifford Bell ‘22 is currently studying abroad in Aix-en-Provence, France, participating in a program run by the Institute of American Universities. The restrictions for his program include a 6:00 p.m. curfew and a ban on sit-down dining.
“The 6 p.m. curfew has certainly impacted my study abroad experience,” Bell said. “One of the main reasons I came to France was for its legendary cuisine, and with no sit-down dining, many of the more upscale restaurants are closed. Additionally, the pandemic has made my abroad experience a little isolating—once 6 p.m. hits we are sent home to our host families instead of hanging out or grabbing dinner with friends.”
The Center for Global Education anticipates that more programs will be up and running smoothly for the fall 2021 semester. Any sophomores and juniors who are interested in study abroad opportunities can make an appointment with a CGE advisor or attend one of the department’s general information sessions that are published on the student digest each week.
