The 20 best colleges for studying abroad

Location: Syracuse, New York

SU Abroad has more than 60 World Partner programs where students can enroll, pay tuition, receive grants, and retain scholarships and financial aid through Syracuse while abroad. These programs appeal to students interested in a specific school, country, or area of study, like attending film school in Prague or studying biodiversity in Madagascar.

Syracuse also has eight centers abroad that host SU students in five European countries as well as Turkey, China, and Chile.

Location: Northfield, Minnesota

Carleton College employs a faculty-led program model that extends "The Carleton Experience" off-campus. This year, the school is offering 18 study-abroad programs led by faculty and sponsored by a number of academic departments. Destinations include Ireland, France, and Russia.

Location: Lewiston, Maine

Bates College makes the option to study abroad easy for its students. Its short-term program — students are required to complete two extended courses offered after the spring semester — lets students learn about renaissance culture in England or study anthropology in Bali.

Bates also offers a faculty-led Fall Semester Abroad, which is open to all students who want to learn or enhance a language. The college offers a number of semester- or year-long programs as well.

Location: Carlisle, Pennsylvania

Education Abroad at Dickinson immerses students in the study of foreign language. Three categories of study abroad — Dickinson programs, partner programs, and non-Dickinson programs — all offer semester- or year-long courses abroad.

Nearly 70% of students who study abroad and 40% of Dickinson faculty participate in Dickinson programs in more than a dozen countries. Its Global Mosaics allow students to take semester-long courses on campus then travel abroad to partake in fieldwork or immersion work.

Location: Canton, New York

St. Lawrence invites students to apply for 28 different semester- or year-long programs as well as an additional nine programs which are operated by the university. St. Lawrence programs include domestic and international excursions from the Adirondacks to Kenya to London.

Location: San Diego, California

A huge percentage of USD students travel abroad to study, research, or intern through the university's 135 programs in 44 countries.

USD's Madrid Center is the school's first permanent international location. The center coordinates homestays and aids students participating in the Madrid semester program.

Location: Richmond, Virginia

At University of Richmond, students praise the "unparalleled resources" available at the school including, its study-abroad program: UR offers over 75 year- or semester-long programs. If students don't want to commit to those options, they can also choose a summer study abroad session in countries like Argentina, Australia, and Japan.

Location: Huntingdon, Pennsylvania

Juniata College makes studying abroad accessible to all students by offering a number of different programs all year round, even during the winter and summer terms. Students can choose from 59 programs in 24 different countries. Once students return from their study-abroad experiences, they can also participate in the school's Language in Motion program, in which Juniata students partner with K-12 classes to teach students about new cultures and languages.

Location: Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania

Students at Susquehanna are required to participate in the Global Opportunities (GO) program and have the option of a GO long semester, GO short semester, or GO Your Own Way program."I believe that every young adult should have access to a cross-cultural experience and I value Susquehanna for making such an experience a priority for its students," said one student about the requirement.

Location: Northfield, Minnesota

St. Olaf encourages its students to be "globally conscious citizens," which is why it offers over 80 different semester- or year-long programs in six continents. The college also offers study travels, which are programs centered on an educational theme such as opera in Italy or sacred sites in Turkey and led by faculty members.

Location: Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Gettysburg College encourages its students to spend at least one semester studying off-campus. By the time they graduate, more than half of the student body does. Over 95% of those students choose to participate in one of Gettysburg's Center for Global Education-affiliated programs, which partner with over 50 countries. Students can also apply to non-affiliated programs, research experiences, and internships abroad.

Location: Denver, Colorado

DU is committed to its comprehensive study abroad experiences, which is why students have the opportunity to become Cherrington Global Scholars — a scholarship program that off-sets study abroad costs for qualifying students. Other options for students interested in going abroad include applying to a DU partner program or unaffiliated international program.

Location: Geneva, New York

About 60% of students at Hobart and William Smith College choose to go abroad during their time in school, whether it be for a semester, short-term program, or an internship. Students can choose from about 60 programs offered in six continents. The school also offers summer and winter faculty-led programs in Wales, Siberia, Guatemala, and Bali.

Location: Schenectady, New York

Union offers more than 50 term and mini-term (three week) study-abroad opportunities, both domestically and overseas. Most of the programs are led by Union faculty, so student-teacher mentorships can move beyond the classroom. Kenya is a new destination offered this year.

Location: Baltimore, Maryland

Goucher College is the first liberal arts college to require students to study abroad at least once through a semester, year-long, three-week, summer, or internship program in one of 32 countries.

The school also provides a list of additional international fellowship and volunteer opportunities for returning students who have been "bit by the travel bug."

Location: Irving, Texas

The University of Dallas' flagship study-abroad program at its Rome campus has been in operation for over 45 years. Through the program, students spend a semester living in an Italian villa, studying Western tradition, and attending mass at The Vatican.

The school's Modern Language Program lets students immerse themselves in the culture and language in countries like France and Costa Rica.

Location: Elon, North Carolina

"Those trips were the best part about going to Elon," said one student about studying abroad at the university. Eighty percent of the class of 2016 participated in one of Elon's semester, winter, or summer programs facilitated by the Isabella Cannon Global Education Center. Elon's most popular destinations are Florence, London, Shanghai, and Costa Rica, where Elon operates its own centers abroad.

Elon is also expanding its Study USA programs at its domestic centers in Los Angeles, New York, Alaska, and Washington, DC.

Location: Danville, Kentucky

Centre College is No. 1 in the nation in terms of percentage of students (85%) who study abroad without requiring it, according to its website. Students can spend a semester in one of nine of its staff-run programs in China, Japan, Ireland, England, Mexico, Spain, Scotland, France, or Germany. Centre also offers short-term trips to countries in almost every continent during the winter and summer terms.

Location: Worcester, Massachusetts

More than 10,000 students have partaken in WPI's Global Projects Program since it started in 1970. Students can choose to participate in over 40 projects in over 25 countries. It's not a typical study abroad experience, though. Students call the projects "life-changing," whether they study the impacts of climate change in New Zealand or help with health awareness in Namibia.