Participation in study abroad programs at the University of Colorado Boulder continues to hit record-breaking levels, with annual participation up 13% year over year.

CU Boulder will have 1,636 students studying abroad this spring, a 33% increase from the 1,230 students last spring. There were 2,289 total students who studied abroad in 2024 — an all-time high since at least 2015 — and 2,034 students who studied abroad in 2023.

Data from Open Doors, a federal resource on students studying abroad, ranked CU Boulder fourth for participation in semester-long study abroad programs for 2022-2023. The data was released on Monday.

“I am very excited about it and I am very happy about it because all of our efforts are designed to increase access to study abroad to all the students who want to do it,” CU Boulder Education Abroad Director Sylvie Burnet-Jones said.

In 2021-2022, CU Boulder was placed fifth by Open Door, and in 2020-2021 was placed eighth.

The university has roughly 400 study-abroad programs in 65 countries. The most popular destination is Western Europe, with about 74% of students choosing a European country for their study abroad program in 2024.

To encourage student exploration outside of Europe, CU Boulder’s Education Abroad office has chosen Latin America as this year’s Region of the Year. This program highlights CU Boulder’s study abroad offerings in Latin America and offers additional scholarship opportunities.

“This whole increase in participation is mostly in Western Europe,” Burnet-Jones said. “This is great, western Europe is wonderful, but what we’re trying to do with this initiative is try to make sure students understand all the options there are in the rest of the world.”

CU Boulder engages in various initiatives to reach students about studying abroad. The office conducts outreach to first-year students by holding meetings and information sessions, posting on social media and hanging posters on campus.The university also has various scholarship programs and holistic study abroad support for students from choosing a program to preparation to showcasing the experience to potential employers. The office helps students find scholarships, and some programs cost less than studying and living in Boulder for a semester.

CU Boulder spokesperson Stacy Wagner said the increase in study abroad participation reflects the identity of many Boulder students.

“That curious, adventurous nature is consistent with our students,” Wagner said.

A lot of students want to study abroad to have fun, travel and meet lifelong friends, Burnet-Jones said. But, the impacts go beyond that. Students who study abroad can tackle problems better and often graduate sooner than students who didn’t study abroad.

“Traveling and studying abroad is a great experience to see what you can do on your own, to suddenly be in a different environment and be successful,” Burnet-Jones said. “That really, really helps with resilience and self-confidence.”