Study abroad financial aid faces tough economy

Students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln are encouraged to spend some of their time in college studying abroad. However, the recent economic recession has made paying for those studying abroad programs a little more difficult.

The College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, or CASNR, announced that it has been tougher to provide financial aid to some of its students who wish to take part in one of the college's study abroad programs.

Dann Husmann, CASNR's associate dean of student affairs, said the college's study abroad trips are set up through professors who have connections in the areas students would be traveling to.

However, with more students taking part in more trips, the college is left trying to distribute a small amount of aid to as many students as possible, Husmann said.

And this year has been a huge hit for the college's study abroad programs, and next year is expected to be as well, he added.

Most scholarship money comes from the University of Nebraska Foundation, which had to decrease the amount of funding it provides to each of the NU campuses, said Robb Crouch, director of public relations at the NU Foundation.

Foundation donors are the ones who decide where their money goes, so if they choose to give money to a specific college at UNL, the other colleges can't take from that fund.

"I just know that these are the funds we have in the college, what we have access to," Husmann said. "As far as tapping into other university accounts, we just don't have that luxury."

Even though some of the colleges' study abroad programs have been hit, programs set up through the university's Office of International Affairs haven't experienced much change.

Christa Joy, director of study abroad programs for the Office of International Affairs, said some scholarships can't provide the same amount of funding that they have in the past.

However, new scholarships have been created over the past year that make up for the decreased funds for the other scholarships, she said.

Joy said students should also be aware that the scholarships and financial aid they are awarded for their schooling on UNL's campus can also be applied to their study abroad experience.

Craig Munier, director of scholarship and financial aid, said the NU Foundation would have to have a much larger downturn for scholarships to decrease significantly.

"We're making more of a commitment (to study abroad) than ever before," Munier said. "There's always a little element of truth to every rumor, but that doesn't meant that there's a noticeable amount of difference."

katiesteiner@dailynebraskan.com