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Davidson Faculty & Staff

Thank you for visiting the Office of Education Abroad & Away (OEAA) website. We are excited to collaborate with our on-campus partners to help connect all Davidson students with meaningful opportunities for credit-bearing education abroad and away experiences during their time at the College.  Review this page for information about our work, requesting classroom or group presentations, how you can support students interested in study abroad, and useful resources from the field of international education.

If you have any questions, please contact Naomi Otterness, Director of Education Abroad & Away at naotterness@davidson.edu

What We Do

The Office of Education Abroad & Away:

  • Develops and maintains relationships with programs around the world, and acts as primary liaison with foreign institutions and partner organizations

  • Vets program options and manages the approved program list

  • Advises students and oversees all stages of the application process

  • Prepares and supports students throughout the pre-departure, abroad, and returnee phases of their off-campus journey

  • Helps connect students with budgeting materials and scholarship/grant opportunities to fund their experiences

  • Works with the Office of the Registrar to help confirm curricular equivalencies and facilitate credit transfer process

  • Supports and collaborates with faculty who are planning international study programs or non-credit-bearing academic experiences abroad

  • Adheres to recommended U.S. best practices for program development and risk management

 

Supporting Education Abroad & Away at Davidson

This section explains how Davidson faculty and staff can help support the work of our office, from encouraging students to explore their options, to leading academic excursions abroad, and more.

A group of Davidson in France participants and faculty director seated on stairs outside a building

Request a Presentation

The OEAA team would love to speak to your class or student group about the benefits of education abroad and how the process works at Davidson.  We are also available to speak to groups of new faculty or staff during onboarding.  Complete the request form to get started, or email us at edabroad@davidson.edu with any questions.  We look forward to hearing from you!

Complete the Presentation Request Form

Information for Holistic & Academic Advisors

Students often approach their holistic or academic advisors with questions about education abroad opportunities.  If you receive an inquiry, please encourage your student(s) to schedule an appointment with an OEAA advisor, as they are the best sources of up-to-date information about study abroad and away at Davidson.  

If a student asks you to complete an approval or permission form for their education abroad program, please direct them to contact an OEAA advisor instead.  Please do not complete the form yourself; OEAA staff and a few select campus partners are the only individuals who should complete study abroad or away forms for students.

That said, the OEAA does encourage advisors to familiarize themselves with some of the basic details about how education abroad works.  Expand the accordion to view some general information that may help guide you in conversations with interested students.  Don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions!

  • Program Options

    • All students who plan to study abroad during the academic year must select a program from the approved programs list, which offers over 140 program options in more than 50 countries, plus eight Davidson faculty-led (group) programs in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Europe.

    • There is also a list of recommended programs for summer and winter break.

    • Regardless of term or choice of program, students must complete an application with the Davidson Office of Education Abroad & Away to receive approval to go abroad and earn transfer credit.

    • Students can go abroad for the first time the summer after their first year, and then any time up until their senior year. Some seniors can go abroad with special permission

  • Who can go abroad?

    • Students must be in good academic, financial, and disciplinary standing to go abroad.

    • Any major or minor can go abroad. Students hoping to earn major credit must discuss their planned courses with their Department Chair

    • Students should begin planning early, ideally at least a year in advance of when they hope to go abroad

    • ALL students are required to meet with an Education Abroad advisor at least once in order to get access to an application


 

Travel Registrations

All students traveling abroad for College-related purposes who are not on study abroad programs, e.g. research, internships, volunteering, athletics, grant-funded travel, etc. are required by the College to complete a Travel Registration in the OEAA system.  

If you are advising students planning international activities or will be taking students abroad, please share the Travel Registration page with them and ask them to complete the registration form in the OEAA portal at least 3-4 weeks in advance of their planned travel start date.

Leading Programs and Academic Excursions

If you are interested in taking a group of students abroad, please meet with Naomi Otterness, Director of Education Abroad & Away, to ensure that all Davidson-sponsored travel follows consistent policies for program development, student selection and preparation, and sound risk management for travel plans.  You can also get started by submitting this form.

Faculty recipients of DRI grants for group investigations are required to sign a leader agreement, collected by the OEAA on behalf of the VPAA, before funds will be distributed.

Student groups going abroad but not earning credit are considered academic excursions, and are also required to complete the College travel registration process.  For groups of four or more students, OEAA staff will create a customized group registration in the portal for your students, rather than having them complete the individual travel registration form.

Resources from the Field

For anyone interested in learning more about education abroad, OEAA encourages you to explore resources from the leading professional organizations dedicated to education and exchange.
 

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Diversity Abroad is the leading membership consortium that inspires and supports educators, policy makers, and other stakeholders in advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in and through global education and exchange.  The consortium's mandate is twofold. First, to ensure that all students—domestic and international—have equitable access to the benefits of global education and are able to leverage such educational opportunities to thrive in globally diverse academic settings, workplaces, and in the communities where they live. Second, to advance diversity, equity, and inclusive practices and policies that support diversifying the field and promote a climate of inclusion and belonging in the workplace.  
 
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The Forum on Education Abroad is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, membership association recognized by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission as the Standards Development Organization (SDO) for the field of education abroad. The Forum provides training and resources to education abroad professionals and its Standards of Good Practice are recognized as the definitive means by which the quality of education abroad programs may be judged. The Forum’s mission is to cultivate educators who champion high quality education abroad experiences that ignite curiosity, impact lives, and contribute to a better world.

Davidson College is an institutional member of The Forum, and all faculty and staff have access to its online resources.
 
 
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NAFSA: Association of International Educators is the world's largest nonprofit association dedicated to international education and exchange. NAFSA serves the needs of more than 10,000 members and international educators worldwide at more than 3,500 institutions, in more than 160 countries.  Davidson College is part of NAFSA Region VII, and our OEAA Assistant Director currently serves as the Region VII Conference Registrar.