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How area universities prepare students to be safe studying abroad
How area universities prepare students to be safe studying abroad
MILWAUKEE -- Learning to live in a new culture can be a big adjustment, especially when you're a young college student. FOX6 News wondered how area universities prepare students to spend time abroad, and stay safe while there. This, after UW student Beau Solomon's body was found in the Tiber River in Italy on Monday, July 4th after he had been missing after arriving in Italy for a study abroad program on June 30th.
Beau Solomon
Italian police have arrested a 40-year old homeless man in connection with Solomon's death, which is being investigated as a murder.
When heading out of the country, there's a lot to plan for: What's the best way to travel? Will my cell phone work? Those are the kinds of things university officials try to help their students prepare for when they're going to study abroad, but they also stress staying safe.
"Principles like not going out alone, making sure that your group stays together, making sure you pay attention to your surroundings," said Mark Eckman, director of study abroad for the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
At UWM, students go through two rounds of orientation before they leave. Many have a third orientation when they arrive at their study site.
"Show them around the city, help them learn the public transportation system, go over cultural norms," said Eckman.
They're also taught how to find out which places students should check out, and which ones they should avoid.
Marquette University
FOX6 News also asked Marquette University officials about that school's study abroad procedures. A spokesman returned this statement:
While incidents like that involving Beau Solomon are rare, FOX6 News asked whether UWM officials have plans to issue a safety reminder to its students currently abroad.
"That is something that we'll be thinking about in the next couple of days, is, you know, how do we remind our students about the importance of some of those safety procedures that they may take for granted?" said Eckman.
Eckman said they don't want to provoke unneeded alarm in their students studying abroad, because deaths like Beau Solomon's are extremely rare.
He didn't have an exact count of how many UWM students are studying abroad right now, but Eckman estimated it was probably around 75 to 80.