Message from our Executive Director

Denison University recognizes off-campus study, whether domestic or foreign, as integral to an undergraduate liberal arts education and academic experience. Developing global competencies, including the ability to understand and value the importance of different cultures, perspectives, languages, and world views are critical for all students. These competencies help them prepare for post-graduate success, understand what it means to be a citizen of the world, and live meaningfully in a globalizing era. To develop these competencies, one size does not fit all. A portfolio of carefully curated opportunities that engage an increasingly diverse student body at various points in their academic careers is essential. With active, thoughtful advising along the way, students begin to develop a narrative, a story, about who they are and what they have learned from all of the experiences that prepare them for life beyond the Hill. Here are some key elements of study away at Denison:

• Approximately 50% of the junior class spends a semester away from campus. With hundreds of carefully vetted study abroad programs in roughly 60 countries, students have plenty of opportunities to find a program that aligns with their academic interests and personal goals. 
• We do all that we can to ensure that finances do not pose a barrier to study away. All need and merit based aid applies to offset the costs of semester study away (read our full OCS financial policy). 
•  All students who are accepted for study away are required to attend a pre-departure orientation.
• All students are invited to enroll in a credit bearing pre-abroad and post-abroad course to prepare them for study away and to help them integrate the learning from their time abroad into the arc of their four-year study at Denison.
• Our office works with each student to provide academic advising at every step: from selecting a program, to identifying appropriate academic courses, to completing the application, and more. 
• Denison students are expected to be independent and self-reliant in their academic and non-academic pursuits while they study away, yet they are supported by colleagues at our partner universities and programs abroad.
• Study away can help students develop a sense of direction for their future professional lives. Many companies, not-for-profit organizations, graduate schools, think-tanks, and other sectors of the economy increasingly recruit individuals who have demonstrated the ability to live successfully outside of the United States and work with people of different cultures and backgrounds. 

We very much look forward to working with you as you plan and prepare for your time away from campus. 

Dr. Katy A. Crossley-Frolick
Executive Director, Center for Global Programs