Cal poly students learned to build with adobe from Don Geraldino (second from the left) and his family in Los santos province, Panama

The right faculty-led study abroad trip is more than just a quick jaunt into a foreign land to smile and wave at locals in passing. A properly executed program is deeply profound, thought-provoking, and inspires all those who partake.

Faculty members pave the way with real-world, culture-focused teaching. Students flourish and mature as they explore new communities. Universities help spread positive influence and facilitate international growth. Host communities provide, progress, and prosper.

Well-run faculty-led programs offer an intimate journey into fascinating communities and produce long-lasting benefits that echo through the lives of everyone involved. These culturally immersive and hands-on experiences, known as 'community-based learning,' bring about results both powerful and widespread.

And while short-term study-abroad may be an unconventional approach to higher education, a well-organized trip will expand the mind, heighten the senses, and impact lives more than the best-laid lesson plan ever could.

Read on and see how short-term faculty-led study abroad benefits everyone involved, and don’t forget to explore some of the fully customizable programs we offer here at Learn from Travel.

Benefits of Faculty-Led Programs for Faculty Members

jorge hurtado, a hydrangea farmer in colombia, explains flower selection to students from cal poly

Faculty Members Can Help Facilitate an Extremely Impactful Experience in Students’ Lives

It’s no secret that college-aged students are amidst a very enthusiastic, curious, and impressionable stage of their lives. Community-based study abroad allows faculty members to harness their students’ raw energy and focus it on living out cultural experiences in a thought-provoking new land.

Teachers shoulder the crucial responsibility of challenging, motivating, and inspiring their students on a daily basis. Community-based international travel creates a lively and eye-opening environment for faculty to connect with their students, keep their attention, and reshape the way they view the world.

Field-Based Instruction Allows for Real-World, Hands-On Teaching

Holding the focus of students in a classroom setting can be a daunting task, a reality that faculty members are all too familiar with. Teachers often must deliver their lesson plan to a partially distracted, preoccupied, or unenthusiastic audience - which doesn’t exactly benefit everyone involved.

But when the faculty ditches the doldrums of the classroom in favor of a real-world setting, learning becomes an attention-gripping journey, not an obligation.

So, whether students and faculty are helping to construct sustainable homes in Panama, learning the business of flowers in Colombia, or studying marine life and conservation efforts in Belize, short-term study abroad takes the classroom to a vivid and real-world setting – far from the fluorescent lights, textbooks, and PowerPoint presentations that await back on campus.

Short-Term Study Abroad is a Refreshing and Effective Way to Develop a Curriculum

Immersive, short-term study abroad programs will help evolve curriculums and relieve the pressure of lesson planning for faculty members.

Trusted companies like Learn from Travel ensure that all the logistics, reservations, payments, and scheduling of short-term study abroad are taken care of ahead of time. Faculty members, much like students, simply need to pack a bag, hop aboard a plane, and enjoy their educational tour without worry.

A “junta de Embare” in Panama brings together the whole community to build a house from adobe

Additionally, faculty members almost always travel for free to a country of their choosing during short-term study abroad programs. In exchange for their leadership and support, their trip is usually covered by student fees or the university ahead of time.

Benefits for Students

Community-Based Learning Can Have a Profound Impact on Students’ Lives

Immersive international travel can open students' eyes to a compelling new way of life they may never have imagined before. The opportunity to dive into a fascinating new culture, practice a foreign language, and forge meaningful relationships will fundamentally change the way their budding minds see the world.

While many students embark on short-term study abroad programs as a quick getaway from life back home, the experiences they soak in can trigger career-defining or life-changing epiphanies. For many, community-based learning can be far more of a personal catalyst than a traditional college classroom.

Roman Yavich, the founder of Learn from Travel, had his lightbulb moment while spending a semester traveling abroad throughout Chile and Argentina. During this immersive adventure, he witnessed the highs and lows of life abroad on a deeply personal level.

His profound and immersive experience has since inspired him to create study abroad programs focused on community-based education, sustainable tourism, and poverty reduction for host communities.

Short-Term Study Abroad is More Affordable and Less of a Commitment than Semester-Long Programs

Traditional study abroad programs don’t make financial sense for a large percentage of college students. Semester or year-long programs can inflate the cost of tuition and swell student loan obligations, which tends to scare many students away.

Luckily, customizable short-term programs offered by companies like Learn from Travel give students a financially approachable opportunity to travel internationally and further their education in unison.

And while money may not be an issue for some students, time certainly can be. Whether these students have a stressful academic life, a demanding job, or at-home commitments, sometimes long-term study abroad isn't an option.

But thanks to short-term study abroad programs – usually between one and three weeks – these busy students have the opportunity to study internationally while appeasing their demanding schedules back home.

Studying Abroad is a Great Career Builder

On top of all the financial, cultural, and personal benefits offered by short-term study abroad, faculty-led programs are also a great way to further a student's future career aspirations.

According to multiple studies, students who study abroad are more likely to graduate, earn higher grade point averages, learn foreign languages more effectively, and are more employable than those who only study domestically. While the reasons for these findings aren’t cut-and-dry, the message is clear: Those who study abroad are more prepared to succeed in their future pursuits.

And in today’s rapidly expanding global economy, employers are more often looking to hire those with international, real-life experience. While a traditional college degree certainly looks strong on a resume, an immersive and colorful study-abroad experience will go a long way in giving the candidate a leg up in the eyes of their potential employer.

Benefits for Universities

study abroad is a great compliment to on campus education

Study Abroad Programs Enrich the Lives of Students and Faculty Members

Universities that offer well-run study abroad programs allow their students and faculty members to seek knowledge outside the traditional confines of the classroom setting. The unique and empowering experiences that result are a win-win for everyone involved.

Study abroad programs contribute to higher retention rates among faculty members and higher graduation rates among students. Faculty-led programs help to build a positive international reputation and work to spread the positive influence of the university at hand.

Students and faculty members that emerge from these unique trips return motivated and fulfilled, which only serves to strengthen the standing of their university.

Well-Run Study Abroad Programs Help Attract Future Students and Faculty Members

College students are studying internationally now more than ever. Because of this collective urge to travel, a university’s available study abroad programs (or lack thereof) can be a make-or-break proposition for prospective students choosing their future school.

College students have the desire to see the world, and universities that deliver the opportunity to study abroad will attract more of these travel-minded students.

Short-term, faculty-led study abroad programs -- like the ones offered by Learn from Travel -- are an excellent place for universities and community colleges to begin building a program from the ground up. Shorter, more manageable study abroad programs can lay the groundwork for the university to offer more ambitious semester and year-long programs down the road.

Faculty Presence During Study Abroad Programs Allows for Seamless Internalization of the Campus

Colleges that offer customizable faculty-led study abroad programs can offer their students real-world, hands-on experience while upholding the integrity and standards of the university throughout the entire trip.

These short-term study abroad programs create an adaptable, unique, and portable learning experience through an immersive and community-based approach to learning.

Universities that partner with a well-trusted study abroad company, like Learn from Travel, can achieve this internalization of a campus safely and with minimal cost and effort.

Benefits for Destination Communities

regina montero, a community tourism advocate and teacher, in the ngobe bugle district in Panama stands on a ridge near her community

Short-Term Study Abroad Trips Provide a Boost to Local Economies

Meaningful visits from faculty-led study abroad programs can bring a much-needed financial boost to host communities with sometimes struggling economies. Locals, often with limited economic opportunities, earn money by opening up their homes, cooking, acting as guides, and offering other helpful services for students studying abroad.

Learn from Travel, for instance, tends to visit more rural destinations, far removed from major economic hubs and job opportunities. By partnering up with such communities, students and faculty members can put their money to use in the local economy in return for a fascinating, one-of-a-kind immersion into an authentic foreign culture.

Culturally Immersive Study Abroad Programs Can Lead to Ongoing Long-Term Relationships

For the host community, the impact and rewards of faculty-led study abroad doesn’t end once the students and teachers have left. Relationships formed during the immersive exchange between the two cultures have the habit of standing the test of time.

It’s not uncommon for universities and host communities to forge ongoing collaborative research projects, mutually beneficial business partnerships, and annual short-term study abroad visits as a result of faculty-led programs. These visits not only strengthen relationships between students and teachers but also create bonds that unite different walks of life and create opportunities for years to come.

Community-Based Learning Can Provide Lifelong Benefits to the Host Community

The best faculty-led study abroad programs bring about benefits, both tangible and intangible, to host communities. And while the income earned from hosting study abroad programs is undoubtedly helpful to these communities, the most significant benefits often come from students and faculty members applying a given curriculum throughout their trip abroad.

During Learn from Travel programs, visiting students and faculty members can assist locals with construction projects, offer hands-on medical training, give helpful business consulting, and contribute other invaluable assistance. These lessons and skills passed on from one community to the next continue to give for years after the work is finished.

Faculty-Led Study Abroad Benefits Everyone Involved

students visit Parque Arvi and the orchid pavilion near medellin, Colombia

Culturally immersive faculty-led study abroad gives all those involved the chance to view the world through a vivid new lens. Those willing to take the short-term plunge into a fascinating new way of life are rewarded with powerful, formative, and long-lasting benefits.

When faculty members bring the classroom to an international, real-world setting, learning becomes an experience. Life becomes the lesson plan.

And while faculty-led study abroad isn't the most traditional approach to higher education, it rewards those willing to take the leap in ways that a conventional classroom setting never could.

Customize Your Hassle-Free Program with Learn to Travel

Interested in organizing a short-term, faculty-led study abroad program for your university? Take a look at our brochure and get in touch with us here at Learn from Travel to begin customizing a life-changing trip of your own.