The African American Experience on Study Abroad: A Closer Look at the Student Perspective

While the number of students participating in education abroad is on the rise, historically African American students are absent from study abroad research. African American students recount their personal experiences through interviews and surveys. Students live in the following locations: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, India, Nicaragua, Samoa, and Switzerland. The guiding research questions were: What are the experiences of African American students in study abroad? What are the basic practices of a program that will successfully support African American students while studying abroad? What advice do alumni have on how programming can be improved? Four open ended interviews and 19 surveys were utilized to focus in on issues that were important to students. Three main areas of racism directed at students studying abroad were: treatment by the locals, treatment by the local staff and treatment by the U.S. American peers on the program. The focus is on the experience of African American college students and the findings show issues of gender, race, and nationality. Discussed is the relationship between students of different races on the programs and how that plays a role in the study abroad experience. Recommendations for host country staff and program planners are discussed as well as areas for future research