Dear all,

The leaves are turning, the days are cooler, rainier, and shorter, and the Hawkeyes are winning on the field (hope you’ve recovered from the victory in Ann Arbor!). All this must mean that fall is here, and that a new season is upon us!

One of the most anticipated rites of fall is the annual Study Abroad Fair, which was held in the International Ballroom of the Iowa Memorial Union on September 15. This year’s fair had nearly 700 attendees and took several weeks to prepare. Its purpose is to provide students with a broad sampling of the multitude of study abroad opportunities available to them at Iowa. The ballroom is filled with tables offering information about Iowa faculty-led programs, as well as those organized by various providers who have partnered with the UI for many years. There are tables staffed by representatives from UI colleges and, to get students on their way, International Programs has a table run by our U.S. Passport Acceptance Facility. Internships abroad are in higher demand than ever before, and the Study Abroad Fair features numerous resources on how to choose from a wide range of internship choices. International Programs is committed to making study abroad affordable, which is why the fair offers a wealth of information on scholarships and financial aid.  

Study abroad is booming at Iowa, as we see more and more Hawkeyes eager to learn about the world by exploring it. Recruitment and advising for study abroad are a year-round process, with both our Study Abroad and Communications & Relations teams organizing and publicizing events to educate students about the steps necessary to study at an international destination. Study abroad is a transformative experience providing skills that enhance student achievement on both a personal and academic level. It is no surprise that study abroad is a key factor in Iowa’s Fulbright success, with UI applications for this year’s Fulbright awards numbering over 40 for the upcoming 2027 cycle. Iowa’s global footprint is large and continues to grow, thanks in large part to the curiosity of our students and the efforts of those who support them. Congratulations to International Programs’ Study Abroad team, and to Emily Brown, Ana Jimenez, and Sean Yerkey in particular, for making this year’s Study Abroad Fair a resounding success.

As we open the world to Iowans, we also open Iowa to the world. September saw a delegation visit from the University of Prishtina, where the UI welcomed five colleagues, all of whom were from the health sciences. Most of you know that not only the UI, but the state of Iowa has longstanding ties to the Republic of Kosovo. The linkages date to the late 1990s when the Iowa National Guard lent great support to the Kosovo Security Force to help the country gain its independence. Since then, a Partner State relationship developed that led to collaborations between Iowa and Kosovo in the fields of business, education, sports, culture, and law enforcement. In the realm of education, the UI has been at the forefront of the partnership with Kosovo developing several collaborations which have benefited students and faculty alike. Along with Iowa’s College of Education, the UI’s health science colleges, namely the Carver College of Medicine and the Colleges of Pharmacy and Dentistry, have contributed to the growing number of connections with the University of Prishtina, Kosovo’s premier institution of higher learning. Special thanks go to the faculty and administrators in the aforementioned colleges for all the time and effort they put into making the delegation visit a success. I also wish to thank the Communications & Relations team in International Programs, who meticulously organized the itinerary for our guests.

Lastly, I wanted to follow on the trip to Kenya last month by mentioning that IP hosted a delegation of 17 faculty and administrators from the African continent via Global Ties Iowa. All regions of Africa were represented, with discussions focusing on the health sciences, entrepreneurship, and innovation. Special thanks go to Professor Dimy Doresca, executive director of the Institute for International Business at the Tippie College of Business for the time he spent with the delegation explaining the collaborations we have developed in Africa over the past decade. The universities represented in the Global Ties Iowa group bring a dynamic perspective to international partnerships, and we look forward to pursuing connections in this increasingly important part of the world.

And many thanks to you, our friends, for your continued support of all things international at the University of Iowa.

All the best,