Grant Supports Study Abroad Program

Recently, Adrian Beaulieu, Dean of the Center for International Studies at Providence College, applied for a grant from Santander Universities so that more students at Providence College would be able to study abroad.Beaulieu’s request was granted and the college held a ceremony celebrating the grant Wednesday afternoon.During this ceremony Dr. Hugh Lena explained how Providence College was first introduced to study abroad opportunities way back in 1962 and how the school started its Center for International Studies in 2007. According to Lena, since the inception of the Center for International Studies, Providence College has seen the number of students studying abroad increase by 150%.

Fr. Brian J. Shanely went on to explain his goal of having 30% of the students at Providence College participate in a study abroad program.Citing his own experiences studying in Fribourg, Switzerland during his college days at Providence, Shanely says his experience overseas will stay with him forever and would like to see more Providence students realize those same experiences.Students can also get a lot of exposure while studying in such universities and different course Engineering,Economics and Computer Science.Shanely thinks this grant will greatly benefit underrepresented populations at the college, namely first generation students and minority students. Shanely feels that these students should be able to experience a study abroad program regardless of their financial background.

The Santander grant will be used to help cover the added expenses of a study abroad program such as plane tickets and visas. A simple Australian visa can cost $570 on average for an American student, which can be a small burden for many cash strapped college students. With the help of this Santander grant, these costs will be covered for the students so that they may experience every possible study abroad opportunity presented to them.