More than 1,000 University of Delaware students have packed their bags, said their goodbyes, and have eagerly begun departing for the airport to begin their Winter Session travel study journeys.

UD students are participating in 49 programs across 24 countries (including the U.S.) and six continents. Led by a UD faculty director (or two), these programs allow students to earn credits in disciplines ranging from computer science to ecology, nursing, history, languages, and more.

Another 39 students will spend their winter break giving back via the University of Delaware Alternative Breaks Program (UDaB). Some will travel to Washington, D.C., to complete a service project with the nationally accredited child and family development center Bright Beginnings, while others will work to build a home for a family in need with Bridges to Community in Nicaragua.

UD has long been recognized as a leader in international education and is considered to be the founder of the first study abroad program in the United States in 1923. Today, approximately 30 percent of UD undergraduate students will participate in at least one study abroad program during their college careers.

In 2015, UD was recognized as one of five institutions to receive the Senator Paul Simon Award for Comprehensive Internationalization, an honor given to universities who demonstrate significant progress towards internationalization, particularly through innovative programs.

Those who wish to experience moments of students’ global adventures should follow along on Instagram and Twitter and engage using the hashtag #udabroad.

Capturing ‘connectivity’

Students who studied abroad during summer or fall 2016 or who are studying abroad during winter or spring 2017 are encouraged to enter the Institute for Global Studies’ Study Abroad Photo and Video Contest.

Photos will be accepted in the categories of Landscape, Portraiture and “Connectivity.” Individuals may submit no more than two photos in each category.

Participants are also invited to “Dare to Take Us There” with a 60-second or shorter video compilation of their experiences as a study abroad student.

To help students prepare their media for submission or for their own portfolios, representatives from IGS and the UD Library will host a “Study Abroad Storytelling 101” editing session on Monday, Feb. 13, from 6:30-7:30 p.m. The event will take place in the UD Library Student Multimedia Design Center. Registration is strongly encouraged.

Photos can be submitted anytime through March 31 via this online form. For complete details, visit the IGS website or contact go-global@udel.edu with questions.

Contest judges will choose winners based on the ability of the participants to capture moments that truly represent the study abroad experience, and that changed the students' outlook on the world, their host country, or themselves.

Winners will be awarded their prizes at this year’s Best of UD Global celebration, slated for May. Winning photos will also be featured in a November 2017 Global Month exhibit on campus.

About the Institute for Global Studies

The Institute for Global Studies was created in 2009 to enhance the international dimensions of teaching, research and outreach at the University of Delaware. IGS provides leadership and support for programs and experiences that contribute to the education of informed, skilled, open-minded citizens of the world.

Best known for coordinating the University’s study abroad program, IGS also awards scholarships and grants to faculty and students for a number of global opportunities, and administers internationally-recognized State Department-sponsored programs such as the UD Fulbright Initiative, Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) Student Leaders Institute, Mandela Washington Fellowship Program for Young African Leaders, and most recently the Study of the U.S. Institutes for Student Leaders on Women’s Leadership (SUSI-WL) program.

IGS sponsors such signature events as Global Month each fall and country-specific celebrations each spring.

IGS collaborates with other global partners on campus, including the Office for International Students and Scholars, the Confucius Institute and the Center for Global and Area Studies. In addition, IGS partners with Enrollment Management to coordinate the UD World Scholars Program.