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Supporting Pathways for First-generation Students to Study Abroad

First-generation college students represent a growing segment of the U.S. higher education population and a group consistently underrepresented in study abroad programming (Cataldi et al., 2018; Rausch, 2017). According to the Consortium for Analysis of Student Success through International Education (CASSIE), only eight percent of first-generation students study abroad, yet those who do are more likely to graduate within six years and have higher GPAs at graduation (Bell et al., 2020).

As U.S. higher education institutions return to offering study abroad programming, there is an opportunity for education abroad leaders to focus on educational equity by examining pathways for underrepresented students to access study abroad. Dr. Leah Mason, research lead at IIE, and Ms. Kelly Holland, vice president of institutional partnerships at AIFS Abroad, will share findings from the AIFS/IIE Global Education research report, Supporting Pathways for First-Generation Students to Study Abroad, including promising practices for all phases of a first-generation students’ study abroad experience, highlighting unique program models being implemented at U.S. higher education institutions. 

Learning Outcomes:

Participants will:

  • understand the benefits of study abroad for first-generation students;
  • identify funding sources that support first-generation students to study abroad; and
  • implement strategies for demystifying the study abroad application process for first-generation students.

Maria Dykema Erb, M.Ed.

Inaugural Executive Director

Boston University Newbury Center

Maria Dykema Erb, M.Ed. is the Inaugural Executive Director of the Boston University Newbury Center which was established to foster the holistic development and success of first-generation undergraduate, graduate, and professional students. Maria has over three decades of higher education experience having worked at the University of Vermont, Elon University, Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and currently at Boston University. She has worked in a broad range of areas including Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging; student recruitment/admissions, enrollment management, academic advising, retention, and outreach; academic dean’s office and graduate/professional school program administration; and student affairs/life.


As a proud first-generation college graduate, Maria holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of New Hampshire and Master of Education degree from The University of Vermont (UVM). She is past president of the FirstGen Forward – Forward Thinkers group.


Maria has shared her scholarship through numerous presentations and book chapters. She has chapters in: Know That You Are Worthy: Experiences from First-Generation College Graduates; A Handbook for Supporting Today’s Graduate Students; A Practitioner’s Guide to Supporting Graduate and Professional Students; and Fostering First Gen Success and Inclusion: A Guide for Law Schools (in press).

Adriana Smith

Regional Director, University Relations

AIFS Abroad

Adriana Smith began her career in international education in 2016 as the assistant director of international programs at Presbyterian College in South Carolina. She studied and lived abroad in Spain (twice!) and has also volunteered abroad with UBECI (United to Benefit Ecuadorian Children International) Foundation, in Quito, Ecuador. In 2019, she published Studying Abroad for Black Women—a guide that discusses what it means to be a Black female college student studying abroad.

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