By Keven J. Stratton

As the value of the dollar dwindles, students across the nation are abandoning their plans to study abroad in Europe and opting for cheaper destinations.

Students are avoiding Western Europe and choosing programs in Latin America, Asia and Africa, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Despite the national trend, European study abroad programs at BYU are still as full as ever.

Lynn Elliott, director of International Study Programs at BYU, said there are three reasons for this.

"First, for students who have their mind set on studying in Europe, a decline of 10 percent or more in the dollar is unlikely to discourage them," Elliott said in an email.

Such an increase would show in a program cost going from $4,500 to $4,950, Elliott said.

"If a student had always planned on studying abroad and only has one or maybe two chances to do this in his or her life, the additional $450 is unlikely to dissuade them," he said.

Elliott said BYU programs are 40 percent cheaper than comparable programs at other institutions.

He said study in Europe is expensive, and it always has been. No one understands this better than students who are studying abroad.

Maren Reynolds, a political science major from Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., is interning in Brussels, Belgium. In 2005 she went on a trip to France.

"I thought the exchange rate of about $1.25 was bad then," Reynolds said. "But now it's much worse and it's affecting my buying choices much more than it did when I was in France."

According to The Wall Street Journal report, over the past two years, the dollar has lost more than 20 percent of its value against the Euro and 6 percent against the pound.

This, coupled with the inflation rates in some countries, has made finances tighter for students studying abroad in many different countries.

Jay Bostwick, assistant field study coordinator, went to India three times between 2003 and 2007. He said that the price change is most noticeable in the cost of food.

"You start to notice the difference and you feel it, too, because you're burning through your money faster," Bostwick said.



Copyright Brigham Young University 26 Jun 2008