Abstract

Study abroad programs are important, increasing, impactful, and influential in agricultural disciplines. Research suggests that students who participate are changed. However, we do not yet have a clear understanding for how that change is manifested. How do students who participate in a study abroad program change? One measure of student change that has been employed at institutions around the country is the Global Perspectives Inventory (GPI). Texas A&M University students who study abroad have been shown to be statistically significantly different from seniors in the national data. As such, investigation into the manifestation of changes in each of the domains measured by the GPI as a result of study abroad is warranted. The purpose of this study was to identify specific change outcomes in student’s global perspectives through participation in a study abroad program. A qualitative phenomenology using semi structured interviews was conducted. Findings for the objective listed 45 specific outcomes, categorized across each of the three domains of human development.