In a recent study conducted by IES Abroad, results found that studying abroad may be one of the best ways for college students to find jobs sooner after graduation, related to their majors, and at a higher salary.

Included in their key findings were:

• 90 percent of study abroad alumni found their first job within 6 months of graduation (compared to only 49 percent in a recent survey of the general college graduate population)
• Study abroad alumni earned, on average $7,000 more in their first full-time job salary than the general college graduate population
• 78 percent of study abroad alumni considered their first job after college to be a “stepping stone to a career or as a career itself.”

At Antioch Education Abroad (AEA), our program alumni continuously connect their experiences abroad to successful international careers, graduate studies in a related field, prestigious fellowships, and use the cross-cultural skills they acquired abroad on a daily basis. In addition, our alumni demonstrate an ongoing dedication to our institutional mission of advancing social, economic, and environmental justice.

Below are a few examples of our former students who are now leaders in their fields, as well as links to additional featured alumni that we recently added to our website.

Zachary Strassburger participated in our 2004 Comparative Women’s and Gender Studies in Europe (WGSE) program. The research Zach conducted on the WGSE program strengthened his commitment to advocacy for marginalized populations. Zach is now an Equal Justice Works Fellow at Kids Voice in Pittsburgh, PA, working as an attorney representing mentally ill young people in the foster care system. In addition, while a student at the Yale Law School, Zach published “Our Moral Duty to Address Gay Discrimination in Iraq” in the Huffington Post.

Eric Herman participated in our 2003 Arts and Culture in West Africa program. He is now co-founder and President of Modiba Productions in NYC that manages a number of established and emerging artists, including Bombino, Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars, and Vieux Farka Touré – son of world-renowned musician Ali Farke Touré – whom Eric met while studying guitar in Bamako with AEA. Upon its founding in 2004, Modiba first released the 100% benefit album ASAP: the Afrobeat Sudan Aid Project to critical acclaim, and has since raised over $140,000 to fund humanitarian groups in Darfur.

Christine Bacon, a 1999 participant in our Brazilian Ecosystems program, is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, based in Ancon, Balboa, Panama. In 2012, she wrote: “AEA’s Brazilian Ecosystems program was fundamental in forming both my career and life choices. During the program I was exposed to language, rivers, culture, Amazonian rainforests, amazing people, plants, cities, and science. My experiences helped me get into graduate school afterwards and to shape my Masters and PhD projects.” Christine has dedicated her career to understanding the evolutionary forces behind the formation of biodiversity hotspots, such as those found in the tropical Americas.

Check out additional Featured Alumni on the following AEA program pages:

• Arts & Culture in West Africa featured alumni
• Brazilian Ecosystems featured alumni
• Buddhist Studies in India featured alumni
• Comparative Women’s & Gender Studies in Europe featured alumni
• Japan and Its Buddhist Traditions featured alumni

If you are a prospective student interested in speaking to program alumni about their experiences on an AEA program, contact us!

About Antioch Education Abroad: Since the 1950s Antioch Education Abroad has been a pioneer in global education offering rigorous academic programs with cultural immersion abroad. Two of AEA’s co-founders, Irwin Abrams and Paula L. Spier, were instrumental in helping to shape the field of international education nationwide.

In 2012, one-third of all students participating in AEA programs came from the top 25 colleges or universities in the United States, as ranked by U.S. News and World Report, including Amherst, Bates, Bowdoin, Carleton, Carnegie Mellon, Colby, Columbia, Harvard, Middlebury, Northwestern, Smith, Swarthmore, Vassar, and Wesleyan.

AEA students are directly engaged in their fields internationally and gain invaluable, relevant, real world experience. The top-notch academic quality of Antioch’s study abroad programs includes the unique integrating of academic study with practical, hands-on learning through internships, service learning, and independent field research.

More information is available at: antioch.edu/aea/.

Antioch University

Antioch University

Antioch University provides learner-centered education to empower students with the knowledge and skills to lead meaningful lives and to advance social, economic, and environmental justice. Inspired by the work of pioneering educator Horace Mann, Antioch University includes a Graduate School of Leadership and Change; Antioch Online; and campuses in Keene, New Hampshire; Los Angeles; Santa Barbara; and Seattle. A bold and enduring source of innovation in higher education, Antioch University is a private, nonprofit 501(c)3 institution and accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. antioch.edu

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