Overseas Studies & Scholarship Program, Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Multicultural Affairs

The OVPDEI OSSP was created three years ago with funding designated by the IUB provost, Lauren Robel, to support participation by first-generation, low-income, and minority students. The OVPDEI study abroad scholarship is a need-based award that is available every semester to students who are accepted to credit-bearing study abroad programs at IUB. The scholarship is one of the largest scholarships for study abroad on campus. In collaboration with IUB academic departments and the IU Office of Overseas Study, OSSP creates custom, interdisciplinary, short-term study abroad programs tailored to meet the academic interests of students while fulfilling the mission of the office. Topics of these programs include diversity, issues of social justice and responsibility, globalization, cross-cultural understanding, race, human rights, and African diaspora. In addition, student support is an integral part of what we do in the office. The support ranges from providing hands-on assistance with the travel preparation process through all stages, to offering diversity-minded advising; connecting students to on and off campus resources that will enrich their study abroad or multicultural experience and let students share their overseas stories to fellow students upon return.