By Kelly B. Trail, PhD
Student travel programs are an opportunity for students to learn and grow in ways that are incredibly valuable both for their personal and career development. That’s why as many as 300,000 college students take advantage of them every year.
Whether they are traveling on a study-abroad program, participating in an athletic competition, or conducting an internship, students learn more about themselves and the world through these programs. Yet leaving the classroom can also bring them face-to-face with complex risks that extend beyond what many adults understand.
Institutions have a duty of care to protect students no matter where their education takes them, and that responsibility doesn’t stop at the campus gates. To navigate this risk effectively, a comprehensive approach to risk management is needed.
Best Practices for Reducing Student Travel Risk
“Coverage limits need to reflect today’s actual medical costs, especially in high-cost destinations.”
With so many risks—medical emergencies, mental health crises, even the outbreak of war—educational leaders can’t afford to leave things to chance. Instead, take action to minimize student travel risk with these best practices:
Do your homework. Beyond the partnership with outside assistance providers, do your own research on all destinations, using sources such as the U.S. State Department STEP (Smart Traveler Enrollment Program) and CDC Travel Health notices, keeping in mind political stability, security concerns, and health risks. Ask questions so you have a better idea of what to expect. Consider your own institutional risk tolerance and policies.
Vetting participants. Consider who can participate in programs abroad. Are there requirements related to academic and disciplinary standing? Discuss what information you are collecting from students (e.g., health info, emergency contacts), how you are storing it, and who has access to it. Do not collect information that you do not plan to review or act upon.
Preparing students. Each destination comes with its own unique factors to navigate. Share these considerations with students as early as possible and present them in a formal document to address duty-of-care concerns. Topics may include: how to protect valuables, common weather-related issues (including heat waves), insect-borne illnesses, access to medical care, and local laws and customs, to name a few.
Develop response plans. It’s best to be prepared ahead of an emergency. Create a detailed plan specifying what to do and each person’s role: who contacts the insurance carrier, who communicates with parents (and what incidents prompt communication with emergency contacts), who manages media inquiries, and who coordinates with legal counsel. If you can practice ahead of time, you’ll be better prepared. Running a tabletop exercise, in which your team walks through a simulated crisis scenario step by step, is one of the most effective ways to test the plan, identify gaps, and build muscle memory before a real emergency hits.
Require travel insurance. Be sure that any participating student secures appropriate travel insurance. If you can offer a school-sponsored policy—either as a blanket plan or something that students buy into—you can provide consistent protection and simplify the administrator’s job as well. Review these policies annually to be sure the limits are appropriate.
Partner with an expert. Consider working with an assistance provider who offers medical and security expertise. These professionals constantly monitor global risks and have up-to-date information on specific destinations and their associated risks. If a disaster occurs, they can provide a point of contact to obtain medical care or plan an evacuation.
Maintaining a Strong Student Insurance Plan
Travel insurance may not be on students’ minds, but it’s an incredibly important consideration for institutions, and not all policies are created equal. Schools need coverage built around the specific risks and circumstances of student travel, and at the core of any strong program is robust travel health insurance, sometimes called out-of-country medical coverage.
Coverage limits need to reflect today’s actual medical costs, especially in high-cost destinations. Emergency medical evacuation coverage is equally essential, since many student-travel destinations lack adequate local medical facilities, and an evacuation can quickly become one of the most complex and expensive situations a school faces.
Beyond medical coverage, schools should consider whether they want to include trip cancellation and interruption policies that account for student-specific hardships, like a parent’s job loss or sudden family financial difficulty. Universal accidental death and dismemberment coverage, security and natural disaster evacuation, and coverage for staff participants round out a comprehensive program.
Finally, schools should assess whether additional endorsements are warranted based on their travel profile. War risk coverage, kidnap and ransom protection, and riders for high-risk activities like skiing or scuba diving may be relevant depending on where and how students travel.
Preparation Today Paves the Way for a Better Tomorrow
Significant emergencies can happen on any student travel program anywhere in the world. Schools should ensure they are meeting their duty of care. Fortunately, colleges and universities don’t need to create these programs from scratch. Partner with a specialized broker or risk advisor who understands the risks associated with educational travel. When you do, the process becomes simpler and safer, too.
