A recently announced study abroad initiative aims to increase the number of University of California students who study abroad by 20 percent in the next five years.
The UC Education Abroad Program and the Institute of International Education, a nonprofit organization, are working together to double the number of students in the United States who study abroad by the end of the decade, according to a press release from UCEAP.
So far, more than 150 different institutions including UCEAP have joined the national coalition after the Institute of International Education put out a call to action called the Generation Study Abroad Challenge.
UCLA accounts for 15 percent of UCEAP participants across the UC system, said Emilia Doerr, a UCEAP spokeswoman.
She added that in the 2013-2014 academic year, 712 UCLA students studied abroad through UCEAP programs – a nearly 30 percent increase from the previous year.
“We want to make study abroad more accessible and affordable to UC students and help them integrate it with their undergraduate education” Doerr said.
Generation Study Abroad hopes to reach an annual total of 600,000 participants by the end of the decade.
Compiled by Laura Boranian, Bruin contributor.