For many students, the costs associated with studying abroad can seem insurmountable. But the Black Alumni Association of Arcadia University (BAAAU) believes that going abroad should be a right of each Arcadia student, not a privilege. Choice should be the reason students do not study abroad, and not affordability.

African-American students make up a mere 5.9 percent of students who study abroad, according to a 2016 diversity study by NAFSA: Association of International Educators. While the participation rate may be low, the success rate of African-American students who participate in international studies is not — a 2017 report, Underrepresented Students in US Study Abroad: Investigating Impacts by the Institute of International Education (IIE), noted that African-American students who studied abroad had a 31.2 percent higher graduation rate than those who did not.

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