The deadline for off-campus study applications for the 2011-2012 academic year has come and gone. On Monday, approximately 46 percent of the Class of 2013 submitted an application to study away to the Off-Campus Study Office (OCS).
OCS received a total of 229 applications, 19 of which were applications to study away for the entire year. 116 students elected to study away in the fall semester, while 94 opted to study away in the spring of 2012.
Director of Off-Campus Study Stephen Hall explained that his office generally expects half of the junior class to apply for study abroad.
"We have seen the numbers go down a bit," said Hall. By this time last year, his office had received 261 applications.
Of this year's applicants, only two will not be juniors in the 2011-2012 academic year—one is a rising sophomore, the other a rising senior.
"It is not uncommon to have seniors study away in the fall," added Hall.
Female students also far outnumbered male students in applying to study away next year. 61 percent of this year's applicants are female, while only 39 percent are male.
According to Hall, of the 210 students who applied to study away exclusively in the fall or spring, "a handful will end up doing both [semesters]—about six."
"About 10 to 15 percent of students who applied will not go," he added. Most of that projection comes from applicants who withdraw voluntarily, but based on previous years, a few students will not be accepted to their program of choice.
The Danish Institute for Study Abroad in Copenhagen remains one of the most popular destinations for Bowdoin students applying to study away.
Student plans for study abroad in 2011-2012 varied widely, according to Hall.
This year, OCS received its first application for a student to study peace and conflict studies in Serbia. Another student applied to study computer science in a new specialized program in Budapest, Hungary. Among others, one student plans to study in Vietnam, four applied for programs in Hong Kong and two chose to study Arabic in Morocco.
OCS generally does not encourage students to "go home to study abroad," though some international students will return home to polish skills in a foreign language or learn more about their native culture.
As a result of the recent deadline, Hall noted that OCS is still in the process of compiling exact data for students studying abroad next year.