Abroad left bedless
Students abroad face housing dilema

Meghan McNamara | staff writer

When St. Michael’s students decide to go abroad for the fall semester, they usually plan on returning to fill in the rooms of those who are going abroad in the spring. However, this year it may be a bit more complicated.

According to St. Michael’s Study Abroad coordinator Peggy Imai, 88 students went abroad this fall and only 54 will be overseas in the spring.

Push-pin map of past study abroad students. Jon Ketchum, photo

History repeated

According to St. Michael’s housing coordinator Sheryl Fleury, the housing issue is resolved in the same way every year.

Every student who goes abroad in the fall is guaranteed housing when they return to St. Michael’s, Fleury says.

The 88 students who went abroad are mostly compromised of the junior class, which is the largest class in St. Michael’s history, Fleury says. However, it is not just the size of the junior class but the size of the student body overall that causes a housing issue, she says.

“I work with those needing housing after we close the semester and the registrar confirms who is definitely not returning in the spring due to study abroad, leave of absence, graduating or academically dismissed,” Fleury says. “Then,once those individuals are confirmed, I work with the remaining roommates on the vacancies in their space; then I am in contact with those returning from abroad.”

Feelings from abroad

Junior Joe Gil is currently studying in Prague and is not positive of where he will be living when he returns to campus for the spring semester.

As of right now, Gil plans on moving into Cashman and taking the room of a friend who will be going abroad for the spring semester, but it is not yet official, Gil says.

Study abroad coordinator Peggy Imai's door. Larry Frisoli, photo

 “It would be tough to come back [to St. Michael’s] and be just randomly placed into somewhere you don’t want to be and probably in the worst housing on campus,” Gil says. “Housing priority should go to kids studying abroad so that they can come home, essentially, without being screwed.”

Gil says the housing issue was one of the first things on his mind when deciding to go abroad.

St. Michael’s College study abroad coordinator, Peggy Imai says that she does not know much about how housing works with study abroad students, but it is an issue that is discussed before the students leave.

“Every semester we have a pre-departure meeting where Sheryl Fleury speaks to the students who are leaving about how housing works when they return from being abroad,” Imai says. 

“When you go abroad Residence Life will give you a vague answer when you ask where you will be put,” Gil says. “Basically, the department says that they deal with returning study-abroad students in January when they return and do not do anything official until then. So you really have no idea what will happen.”

Fixing the problem
Fleury says students returning from abroad are going to be placed all over campus, which means that some students from the junior class may be unhappily living on North Campus.

The best way to accommodate students who may be unhappy living on North Campus is to have them submit a “wish list”, through the wish list students may try for other areas of housing once the school opens for the spring semester, Fleury says.

Although housing seems to be an increasing issue at St. Michael’s according to Fleury, placing a cap on the amount of students allowed to go abroad in the fall could actually just complicate more issues, one being student enrollment in the spring.

“There are many discussions about our enrollment at all levels of the college community and it is something that we will continue to work on,” Fleury says. “This is an institutional decision that has to be discussed because it is more than just only a housing issue.”

The fact that the class sizes at St. Michael’s keep increasing does not make the housing issue easier on Fleury, however it is a large topic of concern across many different departments on campus.

“Don’t let housing drive your decision to go abroad,” Fleury says. “Take the opportunity to study abroad because you may not be able to do that in later years.”