According to the latest data from the Open Doors report, the University of Notre Dame ranks #3 among Ph.D. granting institutions for the 2022/2023 academic year, with an 87.5% participation rate for undergraduates studying abroad. This remarkable statistic reflects the university’s strong commitment to providing students with transformative opportunities to immerse themselves in diverse cultures around the globe.
With such a high percentage of students studying abroad, ensuring their health, safety, and security during travel is challenging but is of utmost importance. At the University of Notre Dame, travel health, safety, and security is an integral component of every study abroad program preparation.
The University prioritises not only academic success but also the safety of its students by offering robust resources to address any situation, no matter where they are in the world. In coordination with the university’s Global Safety & Security team, Notre Dame Global is dedicated to equipping all students, faculty, and staff with the tools and support they need to stay healthy and safe while traveling abroad.
Providing support for the entire Notre Dame Global network around the globe requires effective communication and a comprehensive system to ensure that everyone, wherever they may be, has access to necessary information. Below are several key ways that Notre Dame Global addresses travel health, safety, and security for students studying abroad.
● Proactive Preparation & Education: Notre Dame Global collaborates with various campus stakeholders to ensure that all students, faculty, and staff are properly registered for their travel, receive essential pre-departure information, and are equipped with the necessary health, safety, and security resources globally. Notre Dame Global also requires all students, faculty, and staff to attend a mandatory pre-departure meeting and complete an online “Travel Safety 101 Course.” Faculty are required to attend trip leader training led by the Global Safety & Security (GS&S) team.
● 24/7 Assistance and Health Coverage: One of the foundations of Notre Dame Globals’ approach is ensuring that all students, faculty, and staff have access to comprehensive insurance coverage and 24/7 emergency assistance. The university’s partnering with Crisis24 and GeoBlue allows GS&S to monitor and provide support to all students when needed. It is key when event communication with the Notre Dame community around the world is needed. The mobile applications and web-based versions of both systems are available for all students, so they have the resources at their fingertips.
● Care & Wellness Support: Specific to student well-being while abroad, a Care & Wellness Consultant position was created to support health-based incidents abroad. This embedded professional addresses health concerns during the pre-departure process, connects students with in-country and telehealth resources and supports students and families when serious health and mental health issues arise abroad.
● Support on the Ground: Notre Dame Global provides on-the-ground support in numerous countries and regions across the world, including Beijing, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Jerusalem, Dublin, Kylemore Abbey, London, Rome, Mexico, Santiago, and São Paulo. This global network is more than a launching pad for our faculty and students. It allows for rich collaborations with local universities, research centres, governments, churches, and grassroots organiSations.
Chris Ray, Director for Global Safety & Security, states, “The mission is to mirror on-campus health, safety, and security resources regardless of location and wherever students, faculty, and staff are located in the world—specifically with a goal to ensure students have the resources available to focus on the cultural experience and their academics.” All the support on campus is passed to all the global locations wherever students are studying.
While we cannot predict future events, the Notre Dame community can take comfort in knowing that Notre Dame Global has established a robust infrastructure to ensure preparedness for any situation. This is not a small undertaking and involves many different units on campus, as well as the entire Notre Dame Global team. Being part of this team reaffirms the power of international education and the impact that our work has on students. Whatever sector we are part of in international education, it is humbling to know that the work we do can and does make a difference not only for the present but for the future.
About the author:
Brigitta Richmond, director, summer & short-term study abroad, Notre Dame Global
As director of summer/short-term study abroad programs within Notre Dame Global, Brigitta Richmond oversees over 30+ summer and short-term study abroad programs at the University of Notre Dame and is responsible for implementing the strategy and operations plan of Notre Dame Global’s summer and short-term study abroad programs. She collaborates across NDG’s global network and other campus departments to support the institution’s overall goals and provides cross-cultural, analytic, and linguistic support in special projects and initiatives. Brigitta also advocates for underrepresented students in study abroad; as a first-generation college student herself, she prioritised providing opportunities for students to share their stories through the student lens. Brigitta has traveled extensively in both her academic and personal life. She has lived in Austria, Hungary, and Romania and is fluent in Hungarian. As an immigrant and through her travels as a young child, Brigitta became passionate about international education early on.
Brigitta holds two M.A.s in nationalism from Central European University in Budapest, Hungary, and an M.A. in cultural anthropology from Ball State Universit
