In an age where social media has made the world smaller than it’s ever been, traveling to another country has never been easier–but what about attending school in another country? APA, Academic Programs Abroad, makes that possible at LSU, and today, they host a Study Abroad Fair in the Student Union Royal Cotillion Ballroom, from 11:00 AM to 3 PM, to showcase the benefits and experience of studying abroad.
Benefits that, according to Dr. Harald Leder, director of APA and also of LSU in Germany, are nothing to scoff at. “It looks very good on a resume,” Dr. Leder said. “It adds a competitive edge, both for jobs and for grad school applications as well.” For many corporations, and not just international ones, applicants that have studied abroad stand out from the crowd. And the experience itself, of course, is an enriching one, both academically and culturally.
Even so, some students might be weary of the study abroad program; it seems too expensive to many, especially with the uncertainty currently surrounding TOPS, which previously paid the required tuition for studying abroad, just as it would if the student stayed at LSU. Dr. Leder, however, doesn’t believe that uncertainty will be enough to keep students away. “With or without TOPS, the program has aspects that are attractive enough for students to still participate,” he said. Apart from that, we all know that at least in most European countries, higher education is not quite as expensive as it is in the US. “We’re not really adding anything,” Dr. Leder said of the program. “Apart from the plane ticket. You have to pay tuition no matter what, and once you get there, most of the time housing and meals will be subsidized, and sometimes it can even be cheaper than remaining at LSU.”
College can be scary in and of itself, and traveling to another country for a piece of it seems incredibly so; but to gain an advantage in the job market, or in a pool of graduate school applicants, and for the chance to experience living outside the United States, it just might be worth it.
