LSU no longer offers a scholarship for continuing students who want to travel abroad during their time at LSU. Beginning next year this scholarship will only be offered to deserving incoming students for them to use to study abroad during their time at LSU.
 LSU offers a variety of academic programs abroad. Students can choose from summer programs, national exchange programs and international exchange programs. Programs are offered in destinations around the world and many different LSU courses are offered for students to take classes they would normally take at LSU and take them in a different country.
Christine Derbins, a Mass Communication and Mathematics Junior, has studied abroad in China and in England. “ I think the benefits of studying abroad are immeasurable.  You get to learn about another culture through a first-hand experience.  It allows you to meet other people who, no matter how different they may seem, become your fellow students,” said Derbins.
 Scholarships may be offered through a students’ major college, students can also use TOPS to study abroad. There is a Gillman scholarship open to students who have Pell Grants. “If you have a scholarship to study at LSU you can generally use that money to study abroad,” said Harold Leder, director of Academic Programs Abroad. 
“Student Aid and scholarships looked at this and decided it would be better to award this scholarship to incoming students on a merit-based process,” said Leder. The Office of Financial Aid declined to comment on this recent change.
“The first people who are going to be affected are the students who want to go on a summer program,” said Leder. This change in the way this scholarship is offered will go into effect next year.
In the past students could apply for scholarships ranging from $1000 to $3000 depending on the program and students had to have a 3.0 GPA to apply, this was a competitive process. “In the past we would tell students to apply for this scholarship, but not to count on it and to try to find additional scholarships,” said Leder. The ability to find other scholarships depends on the student’s initiative and putting time into finding additional scholarships.
Derbins received a scholarship from LSU to study abroad and is currently doing a bilateral exchange through LSU Academic Programs Abroad. “I think any time a university cuts scholarship money it will deter students from studying abroad, because there are a lot of costs associated with studying abroad,” said Derbins.
“The layoffs in foreign languages affect us as well,” said Leder. Many of the academic programs abroad are led by professors of foreign languages. Some of the programs have been canceled because of professors being laid off.
In the 2008-2009 school year 640 LSU students went abroad. In the 2009-2010 school year 539 LSU students went abroad. Despite this decrease in the number of students who are traveling abroad, Leder hopes that the number of students who want to travel abroad will level out even with the change in the scholarship. But Leder said they really would not know how this change will affect the Academic Programs Abroad until later in the year.
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Helpful Links:
http://ocs-web2.ocs.lsu.edu/apa/ 
http://ocs-web2.ocs.lsu.edu/apa/Video.wmv