The study abroad fair was held in the Grand Ballroom in the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union on Wednesday. There were many booths showcasing the different trips that students could go on.

CC Wharram, director in the Center for the Humanities and one of the faculty leaders on the Harlaxton England trip, said the turnout of the fair was positive.

“(The fair) seems to be very good, I mean there’s a lot of students coming out, there’s a lot of different opportunities, it seems,” Wharram said. “The organization has been terrific, Emily Tooy (study abroad coordinator), she’s done a terrific job of getting things organized and keeping us all in line.”

The fair also provided information for students who might want to go on a trip sometime in the future.

Wharram said it was a great place for students to get their study abroad information because the experience was so condensed.

“We’re all here in the same place and we can reach out to students who might be thinking about it but didn’t realize that there’s a trip to Chile, and all over the world, I see the one to Mexico, there’s different opportunities as well, some of them are summer, some of them are semester, some of them are even spring break,” Wharram said. “It’s just to show the students that there are a lot of different opportunities out there.”

The opportunity to travel through school is one that takes a lot of planning though, according to Naomi Saxon, a graduate student working in the Study Abroad Office.

“Study abroad, and especially paying for study abroad, you have to be so proactive,” Saxon said. “It’s definitely something you want to start thinking about now even if you want to go on a trip in the summer or next fall, so you can get everything lined up.”

Another reason for the fair is to give information students need about trips and paying for them, said Mallorie Fonseca, a financial aid adviser and manager of scholarships and outreach. 

“I think it’s great, I think it’s a good way for students to find that it’s a lot more affordable than what it seems,” Fonseca said. “I’ve actually seen students get enough scholarships that it’s super easy to go and really cost effective.”

Wharram said the interest in study abroad was unexpectedly high that he was worried about the level of interest he’d gotten in the Harlaxton England trip.

“I am worried that we have too many people, which is not the worry that I expected at the beginning of the day, so I guess that’s a good problem to have. There is a limit,” Wharram said.

Karlye Fuller, a senior public relations major who was working at the booth for a trip to Italy, said the fair was going well and there were over 40 signatures for the Italy trip already. 

“We’re giving a lot of information about Italy and the study abroad program,” Fuller said. “There’s no better way to get information about it than from hearing from students and teachers who have gone on the trip.”

Allison Little can be reached at 581-2812 or aclittle2@eiu.edu