Dear Parent (or Spouse):

This letter is being sent to all parents (or spouses) of students accepted on Iowa State University Study Abroad programs for the coming semester. We're very pleased that your student has chosen to study abroad with us. What follows will be information that students may fail to pass along to those who feel a need to know. Perhaps your student has been independent for years, and you won't see this information as relevant. In that case, read no further!

While your student is an adult, we recommend that, prior to departure, you sit down and discuss communication, finances, and safety, as these are the areas that are often of most concern to parents and spouses.

Communication

Discuss correspondence with your student and decide on a time each week or month that you will write or make telephone contact. Be sure you each have addresses, telephone numbers, e-mail addresses, and best times to make contact with the other (and be sure to take into account the difference in time zones and occasional "misses" due to unexpected changes in schedule on either end).

Check with your local long distance carrier regarding discounted international calling rates. Many sites have a central office that can relay messages to students studying abroad. Name, phone, fax, and e-mail of this office, if one exists, have been provided to the students in their program handbooks; obtain a copy of this information from your student so that you will be able to make contact with each other outside of your agreed-upon schedule if the need arises.

Perhaps you recall the adjustment that your student had to make when he or she first arrived at ISU: everything was new and different, and nothing was quite the way it was at home. All of this will be true once again, though perhaps even in exaggerated form, in another country.

Remember that what may be related to you as an emergency will often sort itself out. We know of many instances in which a student has called home in distress shortly after arriving at a far-away destination; the parents worried about whether to bring the student home, or send more money, or travel to be with the student. The parents phoned back a short time later and received no response and imagined all sorts of dire scenarios until finally reaching the student several hours later and finding out that all was now well and that the student had made a new friend over coffee and was beginning to enjoy the new setting.

Trust your student: remember that handling these challenges is part of the adventure of being far from home and part of growing up.

Finances:

Most expenses for ISU study abroad programs are billed directly to students' accounts (some programs require that the student pay housing and meal expenses to the host school). All students are responsible, however, for incidental expenses while abroad.

Make arrangements with your student on how you would transfer additional or emergency funds, if the need arises, as well as the source of those funds and their potential uses (emergency travel home versus local travel for sightseeing; funds to cover lost or missing luggage versus gifts for friends). If the source of funds is the student's bank account, consider a short-term Power of Attorney so that the student's signature isn't needed for withdrawals.

The student's financial institution, whether bank, savings and loan, or credit union, can let you both know what is required. You may want to provide a copy of this information to the Financial Aid Office, so that any funds made available to the student can be directed appropriately.

Safety

Your student has participated in a predeparture orientation session provided either by the program's program director or by one of the Study Abroad Center advisors. During this orientation, students were provided with information related to safety and health risks and the means to avoid these risks. For students in a program which entails a change in site during the period of study, briefings are typically held in transit or prior to each departure to remind students of any changes ahead.

Last year, Iowa State University sent over 1040 students to study or work in 40 different countries. Because conditions vary throughout the world, the Study Abroad Center takes safety issues extremely seriously and makes every attempt to tailor risk information to the study site. However, a number of general sources of information are drawn upon to guide all programs. These include:

1. US Government advisories, including those of the State Department and those issued by in-country embassies. Health issues abroad are followed both through the Centers for Disease Control and the ISU Travel Clinic staff.
2. The knowledge and judgment of leadership staff for each program.
3. Contact with professional colleagues at other institutions with program sites in the same vicinity as our programs.
4. Our own advisory staff, who have several decades of experience living, studying, and working abroad.

Despite all precautions, total safety cannot be guaranteed while abroad any more than it can be in the US. In spite of this, the Study Abroad Center continues to do whatever it can to maximize the safety of those participating in our programs. We suggest that you talk with your student regarding your concerns and the student's plans for avoiding risks while abroad.

Other Considerations

A safe and enjoyable experience abroad is not based solely on the factors listed above. The safety of your student also depends on his or her behavior while abroad. If your student's physical or mental health status may be placed in jeopardy by being away from current support systems, you will need to have a thoughtful discussion regarding this.

It is also common for those far from home to feel invincible, ready to take on new challenges and risks. Participating in certain activities, whether that be snorkeling and hang-gliding or taking photographs of a political demonstration, can pose much a greater risk while abroad than at home.

Many countries have a much lower legal drinking age than does the US; alcohol use can be a problem for many students when far from home, either because they are unaware of their personal limits or because they're "breaking loose" from the restrictions imposed in their home country.

Availability of other recreational and/or illicit drugs may also be greater for students abroad, either because of the site of their study program or because they are seen as easy targets by drug dealers. Americans, and especially American females, are often mistakenly perceived as being willing and receptive to sexual advances. If you feel it is appropriate, a frank discussion of personal behavior while abroad would certainly be in order.

All students participating in an ISU program abroad have been provided with the relevant pages from the Dean of Students Office handbook regarding behavior. During their predeparture orientation, students are reminded that they are bound by ISU's disciplinary policy regardless of whether they are on campus or abroad.

In addition, students participating in an ISU program abroad have signed a Conditions of Participation form; this sets out the responsibilities and consequences of behavior deemed detrimental to the student and/or the program. This includes the stipulation that students can be sent home, at their own expense, for behavior disruptive to the program. Students have also been reminded that, while abroad, they are subject to the laws of the host country.

Your student, as part of the pre-departure orientation provided, has learned a bit about culture shock and re-entry shock. Culture shock results from anxiety from loss of what is familiar. Initially, those experiencing culture shock may reject the environment they're in and will often be found complaining about the new environment to anyone who will listen.

The next stage is regression, in which the home environment is "the best", with only the good things about home being remembered and talked about and a hostile attitude is expressed toward the host country. In the adjustment phase, travelers begin to be able to joke about home and about the difficulties they're having overseas. Finally, acceptance occurs and the traveler realizes that this "foreign" culture is simply another way of living.

The longer your student is away, the greater the chance that full acceptance will occur. Because of that, be aware that re-entry shock (or reverse culture shock) is a possibility when your student comes home: everything about the host country will suddenly be wonderful, and everything at home will simply not compare!

What can you do to simplify the transition to the host country and back again? First of all, be prepared to just listen. Often, just talking about the difficulties of the adjustment will be sufficient to aid the student in completing the transition to the new culture or back again. Second, follow the news about the country where the student will be studying or traveling, both to keep yourself current on what the student is experiencing and because recent returnees often show an increased interest in world affairs. Finally, expect a period of readjustment when your student returns, including the possibility of a change in academic goals, interests, and/or hobbies.

Contact Information

While regular office hours are from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, you may leave a message at any hour, day or night, and your call will be returned. The telephone number is 1-515-294-6792. E-mail can be sent to studyabroad@iastate.edu. The office has 24-hour fax capability at 1-515-294-7724.

In case of emergency, contact the ISU Department of Public Safety at 1-515-294-4428. The phone is staffed 24 hours a day, including holidays; personnel there are prepared to relay information both to the Dean of Students Office and to Study Abroad Center staff and will ensure the appropriate staff are notified and that you will be contacted back regarding action taken.

Be aware that Iowa State University, the Department of Public Safety, and the Study Abroad Center are subject to the provisions of the Buckley Amendment, which may limit the information that can be released to you. The amendment, designed to protect the privacy of individuals' records, may result in the delay of your access to detailed information about your student.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your student's time abroad. We hope this will be a valuable and enjoyable experience for both of you!

Sincerely,

Dr. Trevor Nelson
Director, Study Abroad Center