Leader Handbook
Assisting with Re-entry
After returning from study abroad, students may want to process their experience and will definitely want to talk to others about it. As friends and family members may tire of hearing stories from abroad, the Office of Study Abroad encourages students to get involved and share their stories and international interests in other ways.
One thing you should plan to do is have post-experience group activities (i.e. presentations of final projects, student processing and sharing or journal entries, etc.).
Here are some additional suggestions for ways in which your students can direct their interests and skills while sharing their experiences:
- Volunteer with OSA and get involved with study abroad alumni through Study Abroad Society. Visit www.eiu.edu/~edabroad/alumni.php for more info
- Develop a website or scrapbook for the program
- Submit an article or a letter to the editor for the Daily Eastern News, or other local newspapers
- Continue foreign language training; continue studying the host country by taking related courses, reading international papers, viewing films and videos, writing research papers, etc.
- Join international organizations or clubs and talk about your study abroad experience to clubs and groups, including adults and children
- Volunteer to work in the community or on campus; help organizations that support community service and development; look for groups working with immigrants, refugees, or the aged that can use the skills of listening, patience, and empathy.
- Start thinking about when and how to return abroad; some students have applied to graduate schools in the country in which they studied, have found employment possibilities while they were on the program, have joined the U.S. Peace Corps, or have just returned to visit host family and friends.
