Studying abroad is one of the best ways for college students to develop international experiences, but for many low-income New Yorkers these opportunities remain out of reach. 

In 2025, almost 300,000 American students participated in study abroad programs, destined for popular countries like Italy, the UK and Spain. 

However, this figure represents only 6% of U.S. college students and international opportunities are more limited for humanities majors and federal Pell Grant recipients. 

At Baruch College, the Study Abroad Office coordinates international opportunities across the college’s three schools: Zicklin, Marxe and Weissman. 

When studying abroad through exchange programs, students pay their CUNY tuition rather than the tuition of the partner institution; housing, food and living expenses are not automatically covered. 

In an interview with The Ticker, Cherry Leung, a CUNY BA Scholar studying psychology, English and Asian studies, discussed her experience studying abroad at Kansai Gaidai University in Japan through Baruch’s partnership with SUNY Albany.

“SUNY was pretty lenient with deadlines and helped me work with professor recommendations and transcripts. I chose that program over Baruch’s home program because I wasn’t a business major,” she said.

At Kansai Gaidai, Leung took classes in Koto, East Asian literature and gender and feminism studies. 

By immersing herself in Japanese culture, Leung also learned about the country’s rigorous academic traditions. 

“Their grading [in Japan] is stricter. I had a lot of quizzes and tests compared to America because I took a lot more language classes. There was also a rule where if we came in late to a test, we were not allowed to take it at all. This made it a lot more anxiety inducing,” she said. 

Leung also discussed the finances of studying abroad. “Dorming with UAlbany I had to pay around $2,000. They did have a program where if you worked with one of their offices, they would have waived your dorming fee,” she said. 

In the end, Leung’s tuition for one semester in Japan was around $7,000, although this fee got waived through her membership in the Macaulay Honors Program. 

For many low-income students, however, studying abroad remains unobtainable. 

A study by the Journal of Student Financial Aid found that federal Pell Grant recipients were less likely to study abroad, and another study by the National Association of International Educators found that minority students made up less than 40% of all Americans who study abroad. 

In improving Baruch’s study abroad program, Leung said, “I hope that Baruch in particular tries to cater towards its non-Zicklin students for classes and funding. There should be a bigger push for students to understand that they do have opportunities to apply to scholarships.”

Leung is a recipient of the U.S. Department of State’s Critical Languages Scholarship, which gave her the opportunity to study the Japanese language specifically, with flights and housing covered.

Reflecting on her experience, Leung said, “I ended up carrying a lot of [Japanese] manners even when I came back to America. Sometimes, I will still bow when I say ‘thank you’ to someone.”