When Meredith Kulpaka left Canada for France on a school exchange two years ago, she had no idea she was embarking on a trip that would change her life forever.
“Not to sound cliché, but I really found myself,” she says. “It was a really big personal growth.”
Kulpaka traveled to Amiens, France on a 10-month study exchange, a requirement of her international business program at Carleton University. The opportunity to live abroad for almost a year helped her to gain independence and become self-sufficient, she says.
It’s a sense of accomplishment expressed by many students who complete an international exchange or co-op abroad. The opportunity to spend time in a foreign country while continuing a post-secondary education allows students to develop an understanding of both themselves and the world—something that simply can’t be learned in a classroom.
What are the benefits?
“Going on exchange is like a compressed life skills crash course,” says Julia Green, peer helper for global and cultural awareness at Carleton University’s International Student Services Office. She, too, completed an international exchange in her third year and spent a year in France.
“In a year, the amount that I grew up was just incredible,” she says.
The benefits of studying abroad go beyond mere personal growth. According to the President of the University of Guelph, Alastair Summerlee, Canadian students who participate in international exchanges and co-ops are able to enrich the educational opportunities and cultural understanding of students they interact with abroad. They’re also given the chance to embrace new cultures and learn a new language—assets that are crucial both to the growth of Canada’s workforce and to their own careers after graduation.
“We need a workforce with knowledge of other countries, cultures and languages, and an ability to establish partnerships with colleagues from around the world,” Summerlee wrote in a September 2012 opinion piece to the Toronto Star. “Getting more Canadian students to live and learn in another culture is about developing global citizens and building the labour force Canada needs to be prosperous in the knowledge economy.”
Many universities recognize the value of studying abroad and, in an attempt to develop these “global citizens,” have incorporated international exchanges into certain courses’ requirements. Many students who’ve completed an exchange as a necessary part of their studies agree that the opportunity was a great learning experience.
Justin Burke was one of those students. A graduate from Queen’s University’s bachelor of commerce program, he spent six months at Lund University in Sweden on exchange as part of his program’s requirements. Although the course emphasized a Western approach to business, Burke says he was able to gain a broader understanding of his field while studying in Sweden.
“There’s an emphasis on different approaches to business and different areas of business when you’re in a country that’s not necessarily capitalist like Canada and the U.S.,” explains Burke. “It gives you a new perspective.”
Why aren’t more students going on exchange?
While Kulpaka, Green and Burke all say their experiences abroad were life-changing, not enough undergraduate students are getting the chance to study abroad.
According to the most recent statistics in 2011, while the number of international students coming to study at Canadian universities has grown for the 16th consecutive year, the number of Canadian students going to study abroad remains at only 12 percent. This number pales in comparison to countries like Germany, where an estimated 33 percent of students participate in study-abroad programs.
Financial considerations are the most common reason that so few Canadian students go abroad, according to Summerlee. He recommends Canada create a pan-Canadian international student mobility program with government and private sector funding to help students overcome these financial barriers.
Because of the many benefits of international exchanges and programs, there’s been a national effort to provide more Canadian students with the chance to study abroad. Last year, the federal government’s Advisory Panel on Canada’s International Education Strategy—led by the President of Western University, Amit Chakma—published a full report highlighting the country’s need to both attract more international students and create more opportunities for Canadian students to participate in studies abroad. The report, entitled “International Education: A Key Driver of Canada’s Future Prosperity,” calls for a national strategy to create an extra 50,000 international exchange opportunities per year for Canadian students. The goal is to have these opportunities in place by 2022.
Why should you consider studying abroad?
The benefits of completing an international exchange or co-op abroad are endless. Not only does it give you the opportunity to grow as a person, but it will also give you the means to better prepare for a career after graduation as you build relationships and make new contacts with potential employers. An opportunity to study and live abroad shouldn’t be passed up.
“University isn’t about getting a piece of paper, it’s about getting all the experiences that you can to further yourself and better yourself,” says Kulpaka. “And this is definitely an experience that will help people do that.”
Do employers care?
- 91% value job candidates with international experience
- 50% would hire a candidate with international experience over one without (all else being equal)
- Canadian Bureau for International Education
The world loves Canada!
- 7th most popular destination for international students
- Over 265,000 international students enrolled – 6.5% of student population!
- Canadian Bureau for International Education
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