Resources to Support Health and Safety Planning

Once you know where you want to study abroad, it is important to review health and safety issues in the countries where you will be studying and traveling. Following are websites that can help you plan effectively and find out about safety issues abroad:

U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs (http://travel.state.gov/) protects the lives and interests of American citizens overseas and to strengthen U.S. border security. They provide lots of information pertaining to students abroad.

1. Studying Abroad gives tips prepared by the Office of Overseas Services to help keep you prepared and safe.

2. International Travel Safety Information for Students for students going abroad for any information.

3. Travel Warnings, Country Specific Information & Travel Alerts lists information about all countries, specifically ones that U.S. citizens should avoid travel and countries that pose short-term risks.

4. Emergency Assistance to American Citizens Abroad gives specific information about who to contact for specific safety issues abroad. 

5.  Medical Information for Americans Abroad describes what a consular can do if an American citizen becomes seriously ill or injured abroad.

6. Country Specific Information - Medical Insurance urges Americans to confirm their insurance policy for going overseas and how to find out what is covered. 

7. Road Safety Overseas gives overview of road conditions in a particular country and how to understand country’s road and driving laws.

8. Registration with Embassies. It is important to makes your presence and whereabouts known, in case it is necessary for a consular officer to contact you in an emergency.

9. Consular Affairs Students Abroad Website is specifically intended for study abroad students for everything they need to know about documents, health, emergencies, embassies, and how to be a smart traveler.

10. Websites of U.S. Embassies, Consulates, and Diplomatic Missions Learn where the nearest embassy will be when you go abroad.

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Travelers Health Information provides users with credible, reliable health information for international travelers.  Their resources are particularly helpful to support preparation for potential health risks for every country in the world.  When special health issues arise (like H1N1), they are an important resource to get current updates on international travel health.

1. Travel Health Tips for U.S. Students Studying Abroad

2. Your Survival Guide to Safe and Healthy Travel

3.  Illness and Injury Abroad

4.  Country Specific Travel Health Information

5. Travel Notices

Association for Safe International Road Travel (ASIRT) has many resources to support transportation safety, including country-specific travel advice for some countries, to help students avoid dangerous situations, medical emergencies and threats to personal security.

NAFSA: Association of International Educators keeps “current and accurate information available to make decisions about your programs, faculty and students. This site lists online resources from various sources to ”help you make decisions about the health, safety and security of your students, faculty and staff who are involved in study abroad programs.”

The Center for Global Education at Loyola Marymount University and its Safety Abroad First – Educational Travel Information (SAFETI) Clearinghouse promotes international education to foster cross-cultural awareness, cooperation and understanding. The Center for Global Education at Loyola Marymount University has developed Student Study Abroad Handbooks, with general information, as well as questions, checklists, and emergency preparation resources as well as online courses for students to help them before, during, and after study abroad, and resource to provide support for students from diverse backgrounds.  All of these resources include questions and issues to assist in evaluating program quality and considering various factors when choosing a study abroad program.  The following resources provide comprehensive background information, such as sample emergency card and crisis response tools, an integrated study abroad training, certification, and diversity outreach program, and vital information on health and safety issues to students participating in study abroad programs.

1. Student Study Abroad Safety Handbooks

2. GlobalScholar.us Online Courses for Study Abroad

3. Safety Abroad First – Educational Travel Information (SAFETI) Clearinghouse

4. AllAbroad.us: Diversity Outreach for Study Abroad

Culturgrams Provides concise, reliable, and up-to-date reports on more than 200 countries.

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