Online Directory StudyAbroad.com Shows Real Gift Incentive for International Study Abroad Student Travel Programs

StudyAbroad.com reveals real gift incentive for international study abroad student travel programs -- proof that studying abroad can improve a life.

(PRWEB) September 7, 2007 -- The Internet is abuzz with the latest school scandal: gift incentives for international study abroad student travel programs. But free study abroad directory StudyAbroad.com is trying to remind students, parents and advisers that the real incentive to study abroad is an amazing, life changing experience that can lead to a better career and more interesting social life.

StudyAbroad.com's gift incentive for international study abroad student travel programs is BlogAbroad.com, a free social network where four students chronicle their study abroad experiences via interactive Web journals.

The aim of this site is to inspire more students to study abroad, and to be able to answer questions and deter any reservations students might have. This will occur through dialogs visitors to the site can have with the actual bloggers.

"With a federal commission hoping to increase study abroad participation to a million students a year by 2016, a big step has to be taken to start inspiring more students to travel abroad," says John Duncan, manager of StudyAbroad.com. "The negative press lately has been about travel providers offering gift incentives for international study abroad student travel programs, but our blogs can accomplish the same thing by showing interesting pictures and explaining that studying abroad is possible and safe and that it can be done. It's the legal, ethical way to promote learning abroad."

Duncan says he struggled to choose bloggers who were going to varied locations and could give differing points of view.

After 300 audition essays and a string of follow-up questions, Duncan and his staff decided on Zach Dionne, a University of Maine student going to Bangor, Wales; Clarissa Arevalo, a University of California Irvine student going to Barcelona, Spain; Edward Dolphin, a Drexel University student going to St. Petersburg, Russia; and Abyan Lokman, a University of Virginia student from Malaysia going to Lyon, France, to serve as their human embodiment of gift incentives for international study abroad student travel programs.

"These four really seemed to epitomize what it means to be a study abroad student," says Duncan. "They are going to different places, and they are doing it for different reasons, and I think their experiences will be a great example of how beneficial studying abroad can be."

He hopes it's enough of an example to serve as a true gift incentive for international study abroad student travel programs.

The four students are chronicling their experiences three times a week at www.BlogAbroad.com. This is the sixth straight semester that BlogAbroad.com has done this, and all previous blogs are archived on the site.    

About StudyAbroad.com
Since its launch in 1995, StudyAbroad.com has been the Internet's leading source of information on educational opportunities for students to study in other countries. It is a comprehensive directory of study abroad and intensive language programs organized by subject and destination. StudyAbroad.com also offers specific country and city pages, a handbook serving as a guide to traveling abroad and financial aid information. StudyAbroad.com is a service of Educational Directories Unlimited, a higher education Internet company serving the graduate school and study abroad communities.

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