Rutgers resumes full operation of study abroad programs

Rutgers’ study abroad programs experienced setbacks at the start of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, getting canceled in the Spring 2020 semester. But with national travel opening back up, these programs have followed suit by returning to full operation.

This semester, 124 students participated in the University’s study abroad programs, said Kathryn Rosko, associate director of marketing and communications at Rutgers Global. Eighteen are enrolled for the upcoming winter semester, and 137 students have enrolled for the Spring 2022 semester as of Nov. 8.

“We knew that even during an ongoing global pandemic, we had to find a way to ensure that our students could engage in global learning opportunities,” she said. “In fact, the global nature of the pandemic illustrates just how important it is for students to be prepared to solve global problems by working together with people all over the world.”

To this end, Rutgers Global—Study Abroad pivoted toward providing virtual programming last school year, such as online global internships, Rosko said. These internships enrolled students from all three Rutgers campuses to work for companies located in China, South Korea, Turkey, Vietnam, India and Nigeria while earning college credits.

For students who cannot travel due to work obligations or family concerns, Rutgers Global plans to keep many of its virtual options and other alternatives that were developed during the pandemic, said Dan Waite, executive director of Rutgers Global—Study Abroad.

“For the upcoming spring semester, we have about 30 semester options,” he said. “These are all what we call ‘access the world’ — they're at or below the cost of attending Rutgers. And that's a bit less than what we'd offer in a normal semester, which would be maybe closer to 100.”

Waite said that a normal summer semester would entail approximately 50 Rutgers study abroad programs, but the Rutgers Global team is not sure yet about summer 2022, as it is waiting to see how the pandemic might impact short-term programs. Still, he said the team expects to release close to the usual number of study abroad programs, including short-term ones.

Students who are studying abroad have to jump through many hoops in terms of COVID-19 testing and monitoring, such as a quarantine period, as well as comply with other countries’ regulations during the pandemic that they may not be used to at home, Waite said.

“We emphasize very strongly that they need to follow all the local regulations, so sometimes that can mean that they can only go out in certain-sized groups,” he said. “Even while ... Rutgers has approved some travel, it still comes with limitations. We still think that students can have a great learning experience, even with those limitations, but that does certainly make it more challenging for students.”

Despite this, Alice Lee, a Rutgers Business School senior currently studying abroad at John Cabot University in Rome, said the experience has far exceeded her expectations.

She said she has had to comply with airport safety precautions such as the European digital passenger locator form and COVID-19 vaccine card screening as well as John Cabot University’s student mask mandate, but she considers these minor tradeoffs for the opportunity to study abroad.

“By the end of this journey, I will have traveled to 11 different countries, tasted countless local cuisines and treasured invaluable memories along the way,” Lee said. “I have been so grateful for this unreal opportunity as it has allowed me to gain a new global perspective while traveling safely through Europe with life-long friends."