{"id":10869,"date":"2016-04-25T13:48:56","date_gmt":"2016-04-25T18:48:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.studyabroad101.com\/?p=10869"},"modified":"2022-06-24T12:45:23","modified_gmt":"2022-06-24T16:45:23","slug":"abroad101-advisors-newsletter-spring-2016","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.studyabroad101.com\/blog\/2016\/04\/abroad101-advisors-newsletter-spring-2016\/","title":{"rendered":"Abroad101 Advisors Newsletter – Spring 2016"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Abroad101-reviews-logo-web\"We appreciate you taking a few minutes from your busy day to catch up on the happenings at Abroad101, the first and largest study abroad review website.\u00a0 As we wrap up another semester, we start by reminding you to send review invites to returning students through your account on Abroad101.\u00a0 You can also guide your students to start their reviews here: http:\/\/www.StudyAbroad101.com\/reviews\/new<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The Latest Study Abroad Rankings:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

For the fifth year, Abroad101 has tallied student reviews and produced \u201cThe 2015 Study Abroad Rankings.\u201d\u00a0 The rankings recognize the study abroad programs and locations rated highest by American students who have studied abroad in the last year. The rankings also reflect the dynamic nature of study abroad and identify up-and-coming destinations and program types in addition to top programs and providers.\u00a0 From this year’s data we found that big cities are in, programs are touring, and more American students are studying abroad on programs coordinated by their home universities.<\/span><\/p>\n

You can read the press release<\/span><\/a>\u00a0or view the latest\u00a0rankings<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

As advisors, you can help improve the study abroad rankings by encouraging your students to tell their story and submit a review.\u00a0 Each review counts toward the rankings and contributes insight about the whole of study abroad: from academics to food and from cost to the friendliness of the destination.\u00a0 Please remember, rankings are an indicator of quality, not a measure of quality, and it is in the spirit of transparency that we publish the rankings.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Review and Parents: Helping Set Expectations:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

About 25% of the visitors to Abroad101 are parents searching for more insight into their children’s options. It is no secret that parents are increasingly involved in their children’s college education, and study abroad is no exception. \u00a0Reviews are a good way to redirect parents\u2019 inquiries about programs and also as tool to help set expectations about a particular host university, host country, or provider.\u00a0 Each Abroad101 review has 38 questions including star ratings on 9 different program aspects.\u00a0 Put a review in front of a family and you’ll see the eyes of the student got to the social (or food) ratings, the mother to the safety ratings and a father to cost ratings.\u00a0 This is more than just a stereotype; it demonstrates that reviews serve multiple audiences and deliver multiple perspectives. \u00a0Abroad101’s reviews are designed to foster conversation around the options and build a better sense of awareness before making the final choice.\u00a0 As the old adage goes “An educated consumer is the best customer.” \u00a0For mom and dad, they think of study abroad as a product and themselves as a consumer. \u00a0Considering everything else that is rated and ranked it is only natural for parents and students to consider\u00a0study abroad reviews.<\/span><\/p>\n

Reviews and Re-entry:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Often we hear that it is hard to get students to do anything, let alone spend 20-30 minutes on a review. \u00a0This is especially true when students feel that the activity has no benefit for them. \u00a0However, they are inclined to share their stories if the exercise gives them a chance to tell their story, and that is exactly what they do on social media for hours a day!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If the student believes the review is good for them, they will generally participate.\u00a0 That takes some groundwork before they go abroad and as they prepare to return.\u00a0 One idea to get more engagement is to incorporate a review in your re-entry programming and use the review process as a step toward preparing the students to share their experience with others.\u00a0 Just like career counselors who tell students to prepare a good resume for a job search, we hope that study abroad advisors will help their students prepare for their return home by guiding them to submitting a thorough and candid review.<\/span><\/p>\n

If you have a formal re-entry process, you can tie that to your Abroad101 results in a number of ways.\u00a0 Within your account dashboard you can export the reviews of your students.\u00a0 Those reviews have an email address and a serial number.\u00a0 You can enter that serial number in your enrollment or student information systems to fulfill a requirement, or you can create a process for the student to do so.\u00a0 If you are using Terra Dotta for example, we encourage you to tie the returnee phase to a questionnaire with that serial number. \u00a0Read more about linking Abroad101 and Terra Dotta Software<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

What can be Better than Abroad101’s Free Software?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Since 2007, Abroad101 has been suggesting that program evaluations and online reviews can be the same thing.\u00a0 A number of colleges and universities have already adopted Abroad101 as their program evaluation platform.\u00a0 Today Abroad101 is the largest publisher of these powerful study abroad testimonials, yet some institutions feel that the system isn’t right for their needs.<\/span><\/p>\n

To serve the market better we created Abroad201, a combination of software and services that provides a full range of customization and publishing options for your program evaluations.\u00a0 With Abroad201 you can take those paper-based forms and turn them into meaningful data.\u00a0 You can manage the publication of some or all of the reviews to wherever you want them displayed and whomever you want them shared with.\u00a0 You can take the results and turn them into reports, benchmark them as you choose, and greatly enhance your reporting capabilities.<\/span><\/p>\n

Abroad201 is a cloud-based software program and service with fees that vary depending on the level of service.\u00a0 Abroad101 is free software that will remain standard in function and purpose.\u00a0 Pick whichever tools meet your budget and your goals.\u00a0 If you’re interested in learning more about Abroad201, please visit the new product\u00a0website<\/span> and sign up for a presentation call or an online demo.<\/span><\/p>\n

Talk to us:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

For those of you attending NAFSA<\/strong>, please stop by and say hello.\u00a0 We’ll be at Booth #1133<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Every university has an account on Abroad101.\u00a0 If you’d like more details on accessing yours with the option of a private online web demo, please contact support@abroad101.com<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Happy Spring!<\/span><\/p>\n

Mark Shay<\/span><\/p>\n

Abroad101 \u00a0\/ \u00a0<\/span>+1-610-357-4648<\/a>\u00a0 \/ \u00a0<\/span>mark@abroad101.com<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

www.StudyAbroad101.com<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We appreciate you taking a few minutes from your busy day to catch up on the happenings at Abroad101, the first and largest study abroad review website.\u00a0 As we wrap up another semester, we start by reminding you to send review invites to returning students through your account on Abroad101.\u00a0 You can also guide your […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_ppma_block_editor_authors":""},"categories":[3,445],"tags":[502,594],"ppma_author":[691],"class_list":["post-10869","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-abroad101-news","category-study-abroad-advisors","tag-advisor-newsletter","tag-spring-2016","author-mark-shay"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t