International exchanges still appealing after Sept. 11
The events of September made an impact on the nation, but Kay Forsyth, director of Study Abroad at Utah State University, said the attacks had little influence on the future of international studies.
USU is currently hosting 27 foreign students and has sent 25 USU students to universities around the world. Forsyth said she expects to have as many or more next year.
“The applications are in, and programs are going to be filling up,” she said. “As long as students find a program that is interesting to them, interest is still high.”
Because fall study abroad programs begin between late July and October, some students had flight delays because of airport closures, Forsyth said.
Faith Shepherd, who studied in Leicester, England, last fall, had originally planned to leave Sept. 14 but was delayed.
“We couldn’t fly out on the flight that we had planned,” Shepherd, an undeclared sophomore, said. “We couldn’t get out until the Tuesday after Sept. 11, but I wasn’t scared to fly because it seemed safer than it was before.”
The school gave students the option of canceling their study abroad plans, but none chose to do so, Forsyth said.
“A few students were concerned, but we looked at the pros and cons and everyone decided to go,” Forsyth said. “The university was very supportive of the students’ decision-making at that time and was willing to work with them.”
The partner schools around the world were also very supportive of USU students and of any changes that needed to be made, Forsyth said.
“A few students were delayed in leaving, but the schools were willing to work with them,” Forsyth said. “All of our international partners expressed concern for our students and were available to them which is a reassurance for all of us.”
Shepherd said, “Everyone over there was really supportive.”
Some international students who were at USU on Sept. 11 said they were worried about their safety and about being able to get home.
“It was scary,” said Emiko Takata, a senior majoring in English. “My friends [in Japan] worried about me., but I feel safe here now.”
Sally Pulleyn, a junior American studies major from England, said, “I thought that it would be World War III, and I wouldn’t be able to get home. I thought I might be stuck in America for awhile. I was apprehensive about the future and what was going to happen.”
Forsyth said safety issues are important and she warns students who go abroad not to stick out.
“Safety issues have been in the forefront of my mind, as may have been expected,” she said. “We tell students to maintain a low profile and blend in with the community.”
Sept. 11 may even have encouraged study abroad because students want to learn more about the world so they don’t feel so isolated, Forsyth said.
“A bad thing may have brought about some good things in the long run,” Forsyth said. “In fact, the biggest concerns of students are actually financial, not safety.”
Pulleyn said she feels safe in the United States and plans on coming back to USU to study.
“I want to come back over and do a master’s degree,” Pulleyn said. “[Sept. 11] hasn’t put me off at all.”