About EF Study Abroad
Since 1965, EF Education First has helped millions of people see new places, experience new cultures, and learn new things about the world and themselves. EF Study Abroad is a division focused on offering today’s students curated programs that intentionally combine knowledge acquisition with an emphasis on skills building for the 21st century, equipping learners with the level of intercultural fluency that the world needs and we know employers are increasingly demanding.
To create programs that continue to elevate and enrich the lessons taught in a classroom, EF Study Abroad partners with the world's top colleges and universities to facilitate culturally immersive, international educational experiences that bring learning to life.
CSU and EF Study Abroad
Beginning Spring 2024, EF Education First is proud to announce a strategic partnership between CSU and EF Study Abroad. Through this collaboration, CSU will work jointly with EF Education First to design and implement innovative education abroad programs ranging from programs for first year students to thematic challenge-based programs on topics such as sustainability to specialized programs for Honors Program students. For non-CSU students who participate in this co-designed suite of program offerings, CSU will authorize academic credit, provide official transcripts and maintain quality assurance.
As the keystone of this partnership, Colorado State University will serve as EF Study Abroad’s official school-of-record, providing transcript oversight and continuous quality assurance that attest to the academic rigor and integrity of EF Study Abroad’s programs.
The partnership between CSU and EF Study Abroad recognizes the critical role played by global study experiences in preparing students to undertake lives of purpose and meaning after they graduate from their home colleges and universities. To achieve these goals, the two institutions will harness their combined strengths in teaching and learning, enviable network of global partners and vast experience with the mobility of students and faculty to develop innovative study and immersive learning opportunities that will set a standard for academic and programmatic excellence.
Global Challenge Semester
This recently announced alliance highlights several areas for thought partnership and collaboration. One notable co-development is the Global Challenge Semester, a traveling 12-credit program that journeys from CSU’s Mountain Campus to Costa Rica and Panama, concluding at CSU Todos Santos in Mexico. With a strong emphasis on sustainability, this program is open those entering their first or second year of studies at CSU as well as eligible non-CSU students.
This program is targeted toward gap, first and second year students as participation in education abroad early in one’s academic career can have a profound and far-reaching impact on personal and academic development. Early engagement abroad offers a unique opportunity for students to gain a global perspective, broaden their horizons and instill a sense of international curiosity from the outset of their educational journeys.
Another unique component of this program is how purposefully integrated it is with the CSU Honors Program.
To learn more about the Global Challenge Semester, CSU students can visit the Education Abroad website. Non-CSU students can visit EF Study Abroad to learn more.