Stephen Ferst describes study abroad as part of CUNY's academic fabric

Thank you and good afternoon.

As Kim Holland mentioned, my name is Stephen First and I am the Executive Director of the Center for Global Engagement at the College of Staten Island.

In this role, I coordinate the overall internationalization and our strategy at the college to oversee our efforts of studying abroad.

Bringing in international students, our on-campus international programming, our faculty development, our scholars, and our international intensive English language program.

I mention these specifically as I want to highlight that study abroad sits squarely in the academic enterprise, does not exist in a vacuum, but it is part and parcel of the academic fabric at CUNY.

As you might have gained from their previous testimony, the experiences we offer are varied in nature and appeal to a broad range of students.

This is by design.

With CUNY's 136 programs, we endeavor to offer every student in every major an opportunity to study overseas during their academic career.

This is central to our mission, and we hold these values not just because we understand the value of enhancing a student's worldview, but also because we understand the benefits of studying abroad for all students.

For example, students who study abroad have a 95.1% six-year graduation rate, a full 30 points higher than their peers who stay at home.

They're also 6.2% more likely to graduate in just four years.

For first-generation students, that number goes up to 11.6%.

They graduate with higher GPAs, 52% go on to graduate degrees, and they earn 6.3% more, that's over $4,000, in their first job, and find that first job sooner than graduates who do not study abroad.

These hold true across the nation.

Succinctly put, study abroad is good for the student, it's good for CUNY, and it's good for New York City.