Diversity Abroad

The students who study abroad are just as diverse as their destinations.  Often, a student’s identities will play a role in where they decide to study.  Likewise, students may have specific questions related to their identity as they prepare to go abroad.  The Diversity section of Middlebury’s Study Abroad website is intended to be a starting point to help answer some of those questions.  You can find helpful information and resources for: Being an American Abroad, Disabilities and Medical Considerations, First-Generation Students, Gender, Heritage Speakers, International Students, LGBTQIA+, STEM Students, Student-Athletes, Students with Financial Considerations, Racial and Ethnic Identity, and Religion and Spirituality.

The staff in International Programs are also happy to help you locate resources, or to connect you with study abroad returnees who can share their experiences with you.  Please feel free to contact us at 802-443-5745 or internationalprograms@middlebury.edu

Personal Inventory

Time abroad often facilitates personal reflection and teaches people as much about themselves as it does about your host culture. Before you go, you will want to consider how your identity might affect, or be affected by, your experience abroad.

Gender

Gender is a socially defined characteristic that can affect your experience abroad. Women are often particularly aware of gender-based treatment in a foreign culture. It’s good to talk with someone who has spent time in your host country about these differences before you go. Some of the best ways to avoid problems are to try to fit in, spend time with other women from the host country, and understand the roles of the sexes in the culture in which you are living. Observe how the host country’s women dress and behave and follow their example. What may be appropri­ate or friendly behavior in the U.S. may bring you unwanted, even dangerous, attention in another culture. Try not to take offense at whistles and other similar gestures, regardless of whether they are compliments, invitations, or insults. Realize that, in many countries, these gestures are as much a part of the culture as is the food, history, and language.

Race, Ethnicity and Minority/Majority Status

Because of your race or ethnicity, you may encounter different privileges or barriers abroad than those you experience at home. A negative racial stereotype subscribed to widely at home may be nonexistent in your host country or vice versa. This can be liberating or shocking, respectively. Be aware that cultures define “race” and “ethnicity” differently and create categories that have different expectations.

Class

Overseas you may experience class issues differently than you do at home. In certain contexts, working class Americans may be considered rich. In other contexts, upper-middle class Americans may be considered poor. Certain cultures have more rigidly defined or more openly articulated ideas about class than those in the United States. Think about who you will be meeting as a student engaged in higher learning in your host country. Think about who you would like to meet during your semester or year abroad.

Sexual Orientation

While overseas, people often examine, or reexamine, questions of sexual identity because of increased personal freedom or increased time for personal reflection. Since many ideas we have about sexual orientation and sexuality are culturally-based, students need to be aware of how this will affect their relationships with host nationals, cultural adjustment and re-entry, and the overall study abroad experience. Please feel free to talk with the staff of International Programs about this issue and/or consult http://www.rainbowsig.org/us-students-abroad/.

Religion

People around the world have different ideas and expectations regarding religion. To be respectful of others, it is important to learn as much as possible about the religious beliefs, practices and norms of the area to which you are traveling. You may also want to research whether or not people of your faith meet and practice in the place you are going.

Disability

Travel is always a challenge to a person’s problem-solving abilities; this is no different for a person with a disability. Mobility International USA (www.miusa.org) is an excellent resource on travel for people with physical disabilities. Please also feel free to contact Middlebury’s Disability Resource Center if you have concerns about these issues.

Learning Style

Classes in many other countries are often more formal, consisting almost entirely of lecture with little interaction between students and professors. Research the system of education in your host country before your departure. Be prepared to be an active participant in your learning. Talk with students who have studied abroad in your host country about these issues. (For more information, see Academic Matters.)

Dietary Concerns

In the United States, we live in a society which offers a wide range of food options. When traveling abroad, it is sometimes difficult to maintain a particular diet. Vegetarianism can mean a variety of things to different people. Prepare yourself for places in which ingredients are rarely listed on packaging, and if you have any food allergies, discuss this with your physician(s) and program provider. Lastly, think carefully about how your food choices might affect your friends who invite you to dinner, your homestay family, or students with whom you cook in the residence halls.

Health

Because an experience abroad can be physically, mentally and emotionally demanding, think carefully about your health. A certain amount of stress due to culture shock and a change in living conditions is a normal part of an experience abroad. In some cases, such stress may aggravate an illness you have under control at home. You may also have concerns about health care facilities, delivery and insurance (For more information, see Health Issues.)

Smoking

While there is strong support in the United States for banning smoking in public places, the situation in many other countries is quite different. While abroad, you may encounter more second-hand smoke than you are used to in restaurants and on trains, with smokers showing little concern about whether or not it bothers you. For smokers, traveling abroad might be a long-sought haven of smoking freedom.