What is happening with Study Away and NSE?

Andrew Wilson News Co-Editor

The Study Away and National Student Exchange programs were canceled due to COVID-19 for the Spring 2021 semester. Only a few students have attempted to sign up for the program for this semester due to the dangers of traveling abroad and the fact that many countries’ borders are still closed. For this reason, not many people were affected by the decision. However it begs the question of what is happening with both programs going forward.

In August of 2019, former Director of SNHU, Laura Malito, stepped away from the position and Allyson Snell took her place. As the new Director of International Programs and Experiences, Allyson set to work to digitize the Study Away and NSE programs. The goal is to make the application process as easy as possible for a future, post COVID SNHU. With the SNHU Study Abroad Program webpages under construction, the hope is that taking the time to work on infrastructure will make restarting the program much easier when it is no longer dangerous to travel.

National Student Exchange.

(image courtesy: nse.org)

Additionally, a new program has been started to give students an opportunity to have an international college experience. The program is called Virtual International Exchange, and it is currently in the testing phase to see how it will work. The idea is to pair up professors from different countries with SNHU professors and have them work together to teach a group course. This would not replace the Study Away or NSE programs, rather it would be another project to try and offer opportunities to those that can’t participate in a semester abroad due to time or financial reasons.

As unfortunate as it is that international travel is shut down and that travel from state to state is restricted, the future of the international study programs looks bright. When travel is no longer a risk, it seems like the ability to do so through SNHU will be more accessible than ever.

NSE travel flyer.

(image courtesy: National Student Exchange)