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Message from the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State

Study abroad programs return to normal after almost a full year of uncertainty on whether they will be available for students. Applications for study abroad programs are currently open for the summer and fall terms of 2022. Study abroad director Bo White, Ed.D., suggested that students start preparing early in the year. In the long run, he said it is more beneficial for students to get on these tasks, given they will have more options and availability for their intended courses.

The Center for Global Engagement partnered with the Paul L. Foster Success Center and hosted an International Dr. Pepper Hour on Tuesday in conjunction with the celebration of International Education Week on campus. Brandon Hoye, the international programs coordinator within the Center for Global Engagement, helped run the event, conversing with students and faculty about the program’s initiatives.

Baylor University's Center for Global Engagement’s First Abroad Fellows Program received an Excellence in Diversity & Inclusion in International Education award by Diversity Abroad at the Global Inclusion conference.

Baylor is celebrating International Education Week from Nov. 8 to Nov. 12 with events celebrating and promoting international exchange. The Center for Global Engagement coordinated the week’s activities, which are hosted by numerous organizations. International Education Week is an initiative by both the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education. It is being celebrated nationally from Nov. 15 to Nov. 19.

Global Baylor, one of the four major initiatives of Baylor’s Quality Enhancement Plan and internalization effort, has grown in its most student-facing and driven aspect: the Certificate in Global Engagement. The Global Baylor Initiative began in the spring of 2018 with the initial goal of having 40 students enrolled in the certificate program; as of recently, there are 308 students enrolled.

Social and biomedical scientists at Harvard University and Baylor University have joined forces to launch the largest initiative of its kind to investigate the factors that influence human flourishing. This $43.4 million initiative – “The Global Flourishing Study” (GFS) – will involve a five-year study of 240,000 individuals, representing 22 countries globally, with annual data collection across a broad range of well-being outcomes. This effort includes the data collection and management expertise of Gallup and the stakeholder coordination and open science leadership of the Center for Open Science. It also represents largest funded research project in Baylor’s history. What does it mean to live well? To be truly healthy? To thrive? Researchers and clinicians have typically answered these questions by focusing on the presence or absence of various pathologies: disease, family dysfunction, mental illness, or criminal behavior. But such a “deficits” approach tells only so much about what makes for a life well-lived – about what it means to flourish.

Dr. Toten Beard is a Professor of Theater History at Baylor University, where she teaches a variety of undergraduate and graduate Theatre Studies courses. In 2012, she was named a Baylor Teaching Fellow, a recognition of great teaching with a cohort devoted to experiment in teaching. Dr. Toten Beard has also taught in the Baylor interdisciplinary core and is the past co-director of the Baylor in Oxford study abroad program. We are delighted to have Dr. Toten Beard on the show to discuss how place affects teaching, what students learn about themselves and each other and others when they study abroad.

In 2019, Baylor partnered up with a private company called Study Group to help internationalize the university through a pathway program called the Global Gateway Program (GGP). When the COVID-19 pandemic began, enrollment in the program was hit hard, but it is making a slow return. Dr. Cornell Menking, GGP’s director, said the program has begun to gain more students, with 223 in the program since spring 2019. He said the goal of the program is to help students from different countries become more acclimated in the American university environment by giving them a “soft landing” with some introductory courses to life on campus.

“Oxford and Cambridge universities have been beaten in a national league table for the first time after St Andrews was named the top university in the UK. No university before now has been placed higher than the elite Oxbridge institutions in the nearly 30-year history of The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide.”

Study abroad programs are up and running this fall after being canceled in past semesters due to COVID-19. However, new travel restrictions from the European Union could affect international travel.

There are many reasons why musical creatives should expand their expertise and broaden their horizons with a degree. Sure, many artists topping the charts on Spotify would say otherwise; however, if you wish to gain employment –– in an orchestra, studio, opera, or even Broadway –– a degree can seriously pay off.

As more countries open their borders to U.S. travelers, many people have planned trips abroad. While there is debate around the ethics of international travel right now, there’s also a logistical factor that may get in the way of your vacation: an expired passport.

The Center for Global Engagement is offering alternatives to international learning due to the cancellation of study abroad trips through July 1 because of COVID-19 related travel restrictions. Students affected by the cancellations can apply to a later term in the event that study abroad restrictions are lifted, Dr. Bo White, director of the study abroad, said.

As we continue to navigate the complex and uncertain circumstances arising from the COVID- 19 pandemic, Baylor University has canceled all Study Abroad programs for Spring 2021.

When COVID-19 broke out in the U.S., many schools were closed and a large number of international students living on campus found that they no longer had a place to live. As an international student, my social media was full of posts from people who were looking for housing at that time. Fortunately, Baylor allowed all international students to continue to live on campus, and provided services, such as meals and grocery shopping shuttles. However, not all international students were as lucky as Baylor’s. I have a couple of friends in Seattle, Wash. who are international students from Japan and Korea. They ended up living in others’ living rooms or basements for a while.

Fulbright and Goldwater are two of the more prestigious names in higher education, thanks to the incredibly competitive scholarship awards that bear their names. It’s become commonplace for Baylor to win multiple such awards — last year, nine Baylor students were awarded either a Goldwater or Fulbright, building on successes over the the last few years.

The Office of the President announced earlier this month that all international mission trips and study abroad programs would be canceled this summer, but the University will, “explor[e] alternative opportunities and experiences for students as well as the possibility of opening up additional course sections over the summer months”. However, the effects have been far more immediate for current study abroad students and professors.

All study abroad and international mission trips for this summer have been canceled. We are exploring alternative opportunities and experiences for students as well as the possibility of opening up additional course sections over the summer months.

Baylor University’s Department of Public Safety and Center for Global Engagement continue to monitor the latest information on coronavirus (COVID-19) from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Department of State. This resource page provides the latest updates on COVID-19 and any impact to the Baylor University campus and/or University-sponsored travel. More information about COVID-19 is available on the CDC website at www.cdc.gov/covid19.

The Academy for Teaching and Learning held a seminar about teaching international students on Tuesday afternoon in Jones Library with speakers Jeff Hamilton, Xin Wang and Daniel Barish.

All university-sponsored travel to China has been temporarily postponed due to a level three warning about travel that was released on Monday evening as a result of the Coronavirus. As this respiratory virus can be passed from person to person, Baylor said they have postponed travel to China for global safety and security. While it is unclear how long travel will be postponed for, it is something that could potentially last several months.

Of the nearly 15,000 undergraduate students on this campus, Baylor reported that 484 are international. These students, like American citizens and residents, will be looking for jobs after graduation and many of them would like to work in America. However, it can be difficult for them to attain these jobs because of the various regulations in place.

Baylor is hosting a week of events to celebrate International Education Week beginning Nov. 18. The week includes opportunities for international students to mingle with other students and faculty in addition to food, coffee and tea from around the globe.

Stories about Baylor's study abroad, international students and scholars, and other global initiatives that make Baylor a truly global campus.

Baylor’s mission has long been to prepare students for “worldwide leadership and service,” but the university is kicking that up a notch with a new emphasis known as “Global Baylor.”

Students learn leadership and service skills for an increasingly global society through Baylor's study abroad programs.

Baylor Students share their stories of being an international student on Baylor's campus and going abroad throughout the globe.

Helps Prepare Students for Leadership, Service in 21st-Century Global Society