Ole Miss Expanding Presence on the International stage

According to the data from the StudyAbroad Department at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss), the international students have increased dramatically, and the number of countries Ole Miss exchanges with is growing.

The Study Abroad program at Ole Miss, called “Exchange,” has been growing over the last few decades. In 2009, the number of the exchange students was around 50, but in 2013, the number reached to around 150. In 2014, 111 international students came to Ole Miss as the academic exchange students. Ole Miss made exchange program contracts with many countries, including South Korea, Brazil, Germany, and China.

 “We have two kinds of visiting students for the IntensiveEnglish program (IEP) and for the academic credit exchange,” said Molly Fryman, an International Student Advisor at the University of Mississippi, from Illinois. “Exchange students are able to get academic credit at Ole Miss for one semester or two semesters,” Fryman said.

Molly Fryman, an International Student Advisor, talked about the Study Abroad program.

In the response to the increasing number of exchange students, Study Abroad Department has several programs for international students. 


One of the programs is peer-mentor program, called “global ambassadors program.” To help the international students to get used to unfamiliar environment, the peer-mentor program was designed. This program is also good to Ole Miss students. Through this program, Ole Miss students are able to have opportunities to interact with international students. Most of the global ambassadors are foreign language majors or minors and are interested in studying overseas in future. There are few academic requirements and interview process for Ole Miss students to be a global ambassador.

Rachel Yi, biology major, senior, talked about her experience as a global ambassador. “My friend, Annie Hu, was a Global Ambassador at the time. Through her, I learned about role of the Global Ambassadors program and the way it impacted the lives of foreign exchange students here. As I met more international students, I also became more closely connected with the ambassadors who took it upon themselves to look after the well-being and cultural integration of these students," Yi said.

The Study Abroad Department also has several trips to larger cities such as New Orleans and Atlanta. One of the popular trips is the Memphis trip. This trip consists of visiting the Graceland and going to international food market.

“The last event in this semester will be the farewell party on Thursday just before the final week,” Fryman said.