Broadening Their Horizons

Four students from Inter-American University in Puerto Rico arrived at Penn State Altoona this fall as part of a new exchange program between the two universities. The students will complete the fall semester at Penn State Altoona and then will return home to Puerto Rico in the spring, along with the Penn State Altoona students who are participating in the exchange program.

Geared toward students who are studying biology, science, or environmental studies, the program allows students to complete one field biology course together at each higher education institution. During the spring semester, all students enrolled in the program will study at Inter-American University in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, where they will visit the Mata de Platano biology field station and complete classes that count towards their general education requirements, as well as a field biology course.

Study abroad is now a more affordable option for Penn State Altoona students thanks to new grant-funded scholarships. The college recently was awarded a two-year grant from The Institute for Study Abroad (IFSA), providing scholarship money for semester and full-year study abroad programs.

Since its founding nearly two years ago, IFSA has committed more than $2,400,000 in grants to thirty-seven colleges, universities, and other not-for-profit institutions in support of undergraduate study abroad programs. Penn State Altoona students can receive up to $2,000 through IFSA-funded scholarships.

During Penn State Altoona's 2005-06 academic year, the college had fifty-nine students study abroad in countries such as England, Mexico, Germany, Italy, and Australia. The college also sponsored three study abroad programs: a spring break program in Bulgaria that enrolled fourteen Penn State students, of which eight were from Penn State Altoona; a program in London, England, at the end of the spring semester that enrolled fourteen Penn State Altoona students; and a program in Oaxaca, Mexico, this past summer that enrolled twelve Penn State students, of which six were from Penn State Altoona.

Several new programs are planned to begin during the 2007 spring semester: a trip to Stockholm, Sweden, to learn about the political and cultural climate of the country; a spring break trip to Southern Germany focusing on the cultural and historical aspects of the country; a two-week trip to Istanbul, Turkey, that will explore how major civilizations and faiths have come into close contact for eighteen centuries; and a business-focused international conference and study tour in Tumon, Guam, that will allow students to study global economics, business, and information technology.