University of Arkansas at Little Rock

On Thursday, April 20th, a delegation consisting of nine university administrators from various institutions in China and three officials from the Chinese Ministry of Education visited the UALR campus. The administrators are directors and program officers from nine public universities in east, northwest and northeast China. The delegation spent the morning learning about the services that UALR provides to incoming international students. Wang Chao, Sr. International Student Advisor at UALR, presented information on the statistics of US Students Studying Abroad and on the application and orientation process for UALR International Students. Two UALR students, Penn “Ross” Jackson and Ellen Brown, who recently returned from their 10 day faculty-led travel course to China, and 5 UALR international students from China, Hangkun Ling, Fan Liu, Xiangfei Qian, Xu Lu, and Fei Song, joined the delegation to answer questions and share their experiences. China ranks third, behind Saudi Arabia and India, for the highest number of international students on the UALR campus.

The delegation shared their enthusiasm for continuing to build relationships and cooperation within the US. Additionally, they shared information about the new Study-in-China Scholarships available by the Chinese Government. Many of the institutions in China have begun providing short-term study programs in the summer to meet the needs of US Students. Mr. Zheng, Deputy Dean of the School of Chinese Studies at Xi’an International Studies University, stated “we have 1000 international students but no students from Arkansas.” Ms. Han, Dean of the International Education College, Dalian Medical University, invited UALR to send ten students to visit her institution for ten days to tour and learn about Chinese culture and the education system.

More information on the delegation:
The National Committee on U.S.-China Relations has worked with the Chinese Ministry of Education and the U.S. Department of Education for about 30 years in the implementation of a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the two government agencies in the early 1980’s. Our counterpart organization is the China Education Association of International Exchange (CEAIE). Under the Memorandum, the Chinese Ministry sends two delegations to the United States every year, and the U.S. Department sends a group of American educators to China each summer. The theme of each group, beyond a general understanding of the host country’s education, culture, and history, changes depending on the delegation members’ interests.

Over Spring Break students joined UALR Faculty Members on trip to China and Costa Rica. During their stay, students studied Chinese history and geography by visiting sites such as Mianyang, Xi’an Chengdu and Beijing. In Costa Rica students toured businesses, coffee plantations, national parks and more!

About Faculty-led Study Abroad Programs
Various colleges and departments offer short-term faculty-led programs each year. These programs include month-long summer language programs, short-term winter term or spring break programs, and other combinations.

Please click here for upcoming faculty-led programs ~ 2012-2013 Programs will be added soon!

Interested in leading a faculty-led travel course? Click here for more information.

During the 2011-2012 Academic Year, UALR Programs Abroad has had 150+ students study abroad in various places around the world!

While some students are still abroad, many have been making a transition back to the American lifestyle. As students make that transition, we hope that they are still reflecting back on their study abroad experiences. UALR Programs would love for Study Abroad Returnees to join us to share those experiences and hear what others have to share.

There will be free Starbucks coffee vouchers, tips for your resume and interviews, and discussion about what it feels like to be an American while abroad.

The event will be held on Friday, March 30th at 1:00pm in the DSC Diamond Area.

One of UALR’s Exchange Partner Universities, Fachhochschule Erfurt University of Applied Sciences is happy to welcome students for their 8th International Summer School ~ Erfurt Summer School Brochure

Erfurt, Germany

• Dates: August 25 - September 08
• Topic: International Aspects of Entrepreneurship VII
• Program Cost: 450 EUROS (covers lectures, study materials, guided tours, ceremonies and hostel accommodation)
• Application Deadline: May 31

Business students are encouraged to apply - for more information, please contact Dr. Mark Funk at mffunk@ualr.edu, or e-mail studyabroad@ualr.edu

Globalinks Learning Abroad is an international program provider that seeks to build new and strong relationships among students in North America, with students in other parts of the world by studying, interning and working abroad.

The Globalinks website lists 10 Reasons to Intern Abroad:
1) Make your Resume Stand Out
2) Discover a New Country
3) Receive Academic Credit
4) Expand your Global Network
5) Improve your Language Skills or Learn a New Language
6) Develop your Interpersonal Skills
7) Gain Confidence
8) Prove you can take Initiative
9) Develop a Global Perspective and Understanding
10) It’s an Experience you will never Forget!

In order to encourage more students to intern abroad, Globalinks is offering $1000 scholarships for their internship abroad programs. Students that apply for the scholarship must participant in the Globalinks Internship Program, currently be enrolled in a US or Canadian university, maintain a 3.0GPA, and agree to submitting blog entries while abroad.

Scholarship Deadlines:
- Summer internship programs - April 30, 2012
- Fall internship programs - July 31, 2012

If this program interests you, please visit the Globalinks Learning Abroad website for more information; www.globalinksabroad.org/

Programs Abroad is excited to announce that the deadline for the UALR Faculty-led Summer Language Program to Costa Rica has been extended to March 10th!

The program costs have been reduced to $2,000, and includes the following;

Round-trip airfare

Host family accommodation

Cultural activities and weekend excursions

2 days of service learning experience

On-site instruction and tutoring

Airport transportation

For more information and to apply, please click here
~ Costa Rica Program Flyer ~

* UALR reserves the right to cancel or alter the program format or to change the costs in case of conditions beyond the university’s control.

Each semester, UALR hosts students from our Exchange Partner Universities from more than 15 different countries. Programs Abroad is excited to start its second year of the Exchange Student Mentor Program, where UALR Students are paired with Incoming Exchange Students to help them adapt to the UALR Campus and Community.

If you’re interested in being paired with an Exchange Student for the upcoming fall semester, please visit the Exchange Student Mentor webpage to access the application.

UALR Programs Abroad has many options for students interested in studying a foreign language. You can pay UALR tuition & fees, and attend one of our Exchange Partner Universities.

Please see the Foreign Language Programs Abroad Brochure for more information. Please plan to attend a UALR Programs Abroad Information Session; you can RSVP online by clicking here.

The application deadline for Fall 2012 is March 15th.

UALR Programs Abroad is excited to offer Business Majors the opportunity to take business courses in English while abroad.
Students can spend the upcoming Fall 2012 semester taking courses in Business Administration, Control & Management, Economics, Marketing, Finance, and Human Resource Management.

You can pay UALR tuition & fees, and attend one of our Exchange Partner Universities:

- Graz, Austria | Karl-Franzens University

- Ludwigshafen, Germany | Ludwigshafen University of Applied Science

- Amiens, France | Amiens School of Management

- Newcastle, England | University of Northumbria

See the Business Flyer | Fall 2012 for more information.
Please plan to attend a UALR Programs Abroad Information Session; you can RSVP online by clicking here.

This past December, 15 UALR students participated in our First Year Experience: Costa Rica Program. This program was part of a student success grant initiative to incorporate a short-term travel experience into the semester-long FYE course. Find out more about the course by clicking on the link above.

Returning students have shared a bit about their experiences and lessons learned while abroad. Read on to hear more about one participant’s first experience traveling outside of the US.

One Participant’s Story

by Christopher Dunbar (Freshman, FYE: Costa Rica Student)

The People
Walking down the cobble stone streets of San Jose, my first observation was of the trash and smell as rain water rolled between the stones under by my feet. As I walked, however, I saw a man sitting on the side of the road working on something; I did not want to draw attention to myself, so I passed quickly and did not make eye contact. However, on my way back down the street, I noticed that the man was painting pictures. With my 2 years of studying Spanish and his limited knowledge of English, I was able to spend my first night in Costa Rica talking with this man who painted pictures on the street about his paintings. It was a wonderful experience to be able to practice Spanish and interact with this person. He was friendly and I purchased a painting from him.

Interacting with the local people, including kids at a school in the village of Tortuguero, I found that their way of life was very different from mine. They did not seem to care about the rain or water – it was normal to walk to work – rain or no rain – it was an accepted way of living. The kids from the school traveled there by boat and trudged through water to come to their one room classroom to learn. They were friendly and happy and did not see it as a struggle like many of our group members did.

The Beach
This experience was the first time that I have seen, sat on, and enjoyed the beach and ocean. It was surreal – just like I have seen in the movies. I buried my legs in the sand and swam in the ocean. Sitting on the beach was also a time of reflection and sharing thoughts with a good friend I made from our group. It was awesome!

The Lesson
Anyone who travels abroad grows in a certain way inside. Being faced with challenges and new experiences, I felt older and more mature when I returned. The social interaction of a group of 15 students for 10 days forced me into an intense social interaction and a quick process of getting to know people. This was a most diverse group of people imaginable. I want to travel back to Latin America and spend more time interacting with locals and learning the more about the language and culture.