Social issues like gaining access to education, earning a living, medical decisions, and human justice are universal. Learning how families, individuals, and groups of people do things in a non-US culture provides valuable perspective and helps you identify and address your own personal biases. Taking your studies abroad lets you explore the shared beliefs of a new culture. It broadens your understanding of human behaviors and how social systems work. It lets you compare aspects of social life like education reform and how family life differs and flourishes in other countries.

Studying public and global health abroad gives you the chance to see how public health systems, policies, and practices of another country work. Compare the influence political systems, economics, and culture have on public health issues in Botswana. Learn what it takes to work with multiple cultures and institutions by connecting with people living in those systems. See first-hand how to promote health and preventing diseases in at-risk populations in Brazil. Learn about the ethical issues facing public health professionals working in developing countries. Discover the cultural nuances that make it more likely that members of a community will accept and follow recommended health treatments in Mexico.

Gain insights on thought processes, motivators, and human behavior. Taking your psychology studies abroad will reveal how culture can influence human behavior and affirm the ways that we can be motivated by the same things. See first-hand the challenges that psychologists in other societies face and how they operate within the communities they serve. Examine how people with memory issues, psychiatric disorders, and developmental conditions are cared for in countries outside the US. Learn research methods, including qualitative and quantitative methods, and statistics to strengthen your research skills.

The need for understanding between nations, governments, and more importantly between people has reached an all-time high. Issues like nuclear proliferation, human trafficking, and forced migration are not isolated to California or the US – these are world issues that transcend political borders, geography, and history. Taking your political science studies abroad helps to unravel the complex and often hidden factors that impact the global political climate. Compare government processes and standards from other countries to those of the US. Learn how other governments manage issues like justice, financial crises, and access to education. Work with policymakers and stakeholders making decisions about sovereignty, global justice, and human rights in the context of global affairs.

Learn the foundations of science by studying subatomic particles to galaxies and everything in between. Taking your physics studies abroad will provide interaction with international research and opportunities to work in state-of-the art labs. Train your telescope on the skies from the top of mountains close to the earth’s poles. Gain access to lasers, semiconductors, telescopes, and mass spectrometers in other countries. Join physics professors and graduate students researching at organizations and universities around the world.

From the origins of Socratic thinking in Greece, to the existential musings of Nietzsche in Germany, to the Zen Buddhist teachings in Japan, philosophy is a global subject. It derives its knowledge, practice, and development from countless places throughout the world. Expand your thinking and reasoning skills in an entirely new environment. Study the ideas of great philosophers in the places where they lived and taught. Explore philosophical topics like religion, ethics, and aesthetics in the context of a culture not your own. Discuss questions about direction, purpose, and morality of the human race with other passionate philosophers from different backgrounds and cultures.

Understanding mathematics and statistics equips you with skills that can provide a strong foundation for any profession. Taking your mathematics or statistics studies abroad is an opportunity to work with numbers in a new environment and challenge the way you solve problems. Identify trends and discover relationships in consumer data in a new cultural context. Apply statistical methods to solve specific problems faced by people working in fields like economics, biology, and engineering. Learn about cutting-edge research in applied mathematics from professors and industry leaders in another country.

Discover how people use and structure language in another country while exploring the intricate links between language, culture, and society. Taking your linguistics studies abroad means putting your skills of observation, critical thinking, and analysis to work in a broader community. Study the endangered languages of the Indo-Pacific in Australia. Learn how the different components of a language interact with the others in a new cultural context. Research how the human brain processes and understands speech sounds in Singapore.

Experience first-hand the places, monuments, and primary sources that make up the world’s history. Get an Australian or French perspective on the history of your home country. Walk the paths of ancient royalty and view battlefields from the top of castle walls in Scotland. Page through preserved manuscripts in the places they were written. Conduct research to support public programming and the development of exhibits at historical sites, libraries, and museums in London. Debate conflicting historical interpretations and ideas with professors and students from countries around the world and analyze records, maps, and cultural artifacts from an earlier era.

Understanding transnational connections and relationships provides insight into issues like human rights and climate change. Taking your global and international studies abroad gives you the chance to discover local responses to the political, economic, and cultural challenges of globalization. You'll examine your own perspectives and find empathy with people in all parts of the world. Examine topics of war, peace, and security on a global scale in Australia. Learn the motivations and gain greater understanding of migration, asylum, and exile in Argentina. See how the challenges of growing populations, aging demographics, increased pollution, and diminishing resources are being managed in other countries.