Abroad programs disclose contingent restrictions for students.

A year after study abroad in 2020 was cancelled for both Wofford students due to the COVID-19 pandemic, study abroad programs for the 2021 academic year are slated to resume.

However, each country is in a different state of progress in returning to normalcy from the pandemic. This means that each program is closely monitoring their respective situations to make decisions on potential behavioral restrictions for their international students. 

“We continue to monitor the circumstances surrounding COVID-19,” Amy Lancaster, Dean of International Programs said. “As you can imagine, it’s constantly evolving, so we are preparing for many different scenarios. We are encouraged that the EU has recently announced by this weekend’s news that the EU will begin permitting vaccinated Americans to visit as early as this summer.”

Lancaster also said that certain programs have already made decisions based on their country’s current status. 

“Some programs have decided to limit international travel or house students in single occupancy residence halls instead of double occupancy alternatives or homestays, for example. Such modifications may be necessary and appropriate, and while study abroad may look different in 2021 than it did pre-COVID, we will make every effort to ensure that the transformational impact of study abroad will not be compromised.”

There are currently 88 students planning to study off-campus this fall. Each program is assessing their situations based on a number of factors. 

These factors include, but are not limited to, in-country medical resources, quarantine requirements, the number of confirmed cases in the host country and city, percentage of vaccinations in said country, and the country’s travel restrictions among other local COVID guidelines. 

In response to restrictions, some students have decided to opt out of their program. Hunter Randle ’23, who was signed up to study in Vienna, Austria, recently withdrew from the  program.

“One of the reasons I came to Wofford was because of the strength of the study abroad program,” Randle said. “We have opportunities unlike many college students across America, and I wanted to take advantage of them. Once IES informed us that we would be living alone in apartments and unable to leave the country, I changed my mind. That seemed almost like a step backwards from what we have gotten used to on campus this year.”

Isabel Harlow ‘23 voiced a similar response. The sophomore was signed up to attend the medical practice and policy program in Copenhagen, Denmark but recently backed out.

“I ultimately decided to drop out because of the uncertainty and uncomfortable feelings I had when thinking about traveling to Europe,” Harlow said “One of the biggest reasons I wanted to travel abroad was for the freedom it would grant me as an individual in college, but because of COVID those liberties are restricted. Not being able to travel outside of my country played a huge role in my decision to stay at Wofford.”