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International Resources

Links of Interest

On the following pages, you'll find a variety of information related to international education and study abroad. You'll find infomation on scholarships, internships, service learning and research opportunities abroad.

You'll also find regional items of interest, U.S. govenment travel warnings, passport information, and a library of international publications.

Airports and Flights

  • www.fly.faa.gov — Link up to the Federal Aviation Administration's air-traffic command center and you'll be able to click onto your destination airport in the US, and to learn general conditions on the runways.

  • www.flytecomm.com/cgi-bin/trackflight — The easy-to-use real-time flight tracker tells you how many minutes until landing for any commercial flight in Canada or the US - and you don't even need the flight number.

  • www.quickaid.com — For international airports in the US, you'll find airport codes, links to individual airport sites, and parking and airport hotel information. For international airports out of the country, it's not as complete, but still very good.

  • http://www.airlinetollfree.info — This site is called "Airline Toll-Free Numbers and Websites," which explains it all.

Budget Airfare

US and International:

Within US, Europe, Asia and Africa only:

Center for Disease Control

  • www.cdc.gov/travel You can get recorded information on vaccinations, food and water and current health problems.

Communicating with Anyone

  • www.the-acr.com/codes/cntrycd.htm — Figuring out the right digits to get your phone call into a small town in a remote country can be daunting, and finding the correct numerical string to reach Paris also takes some work. This is the Big Mama of all international calling code directories, whether you want Cluj, Romania (city code 64) or any phone in Qatar (city code 974).

  • www.allareacodes.com — Here are all the area codes in North America, in numerical order or by place name.

  • http://frequentflyer.oag.com — This is an impressive toll-free-number site for travelers, with hotels, car-rental agencies, airlines and airline loyalty-club phones around the world. If you want to find carry-on luggage restrictions for an airline, under "Traveler Services" click on "Carry-on Guide".

Customs

Cyber Cafes

Destination Information (Sights, History, Culture, Travel Advice, Lodging, Restaurants, etc.)

Academic and other non-tourism country/region resources.

Electrical Appliances

Electrical Systems

  • www.kropla.com/electric.htm — Will your hair dryer blow in Bologna? Will your computer recharge in Rio? Plug in with the correct plug or connection - on this site.

Foreign Language

  • www.babelfish.altavista.com — How do you say "How do you say?" Get useful words and phrases down before you leave home by entering them on this Website. They'll turn up in the language you choose from a drop-down box.

Getting Directions

  • www.mapquest.com — The vernerable direction site still reigns, although we wish it were updated a little more frequently. Click on the "Directions" to enter the place you'll be traveling to, and you'll be traveling to, and you'll get a plan for arriving there by car, truck or RV.

  • www.randmcnally.com — Maps and directions galore from the great mapmaker - plus a feature we especially like: When searching for directions, you can click on the words "use an airport" so you don't have to enter an airport address, which would be hard to find.

Hostelling Card

  • www.iyhf.org — Year-long memberships are available from Hostelling International that enable you to stay in member hostels for reduced rates. Most of these hostels are clean, offer kitchen facilities and one or more meals a day, and a great opportunity to meet fellow travelers. But beware - these hostels vary greatly and usually close completely for several hours each day. If you choose, you can purchase these cards upon arrival at many hostels.

Immigration/Visa Issues

ISIC Card

  • http://myisic.com — The International Student ID Card is sufficient for identification purposes to obtain admission into museums, theaters, cinemas, expositions, and many other attractions.

Metric

  • www.sciencemadesimple.com/conversions.html — Americans, unable to learn to think in groups of 10, are not metric people. But much of the rest of the world measures distances in kilometers, temperatures in Celsius, weight in kilos, and gasoline in liters. Ifmetric confuses you, this site's your converter.

Money

On the Ground

  • www.amtrak.com — All abroad on Amtrak's easy-to-use site that has anything you need to understand train travel in the United States.

  • www.aaa.com — Traveling by car, truck, or RV? The American Automobile Association is your authority. It has a very good mapping site, an Internet version of the venerable AAA Trip Tik.

  • www.subwaynavigator.com — Get the lay of the underground anywhere in the world; and the overland too, because this site includes commuter trains as well as subways.

Passports

Rail passes

  • www.eurail.com — These passes can be purchased through many travel agencies in the US and select locations abroad, however, not that the prices will be higher if you buy your rail pass overseas.

Recommendations to Parents/Guardians/Families

  • http://travel.state.gov/travel/living/studying/studying_1238.html — In study abroad programs, as in other settings, parents, guardians, and families can play an important role in the health and safety of participants by helping them make decisions and by influencing their behavior overseas. The U.S. Department of State is an excellent resource for students planning to study abroad. All students are strongly encouraged to access this website.

Safety

STA Travel

  • www.statravel.com — When researching travel agencies and airlines, keep in mind that it is not acceptable to arrive after the starting date of your program as a means of trying to save money on airline tickets. Any expenses you incur because of early arrival are your own responsibility. With your ISIC, you can contact STA Travel and may find considerable savings.

Taxes

  • www.irs.gov — You may need to arrange to have tax forms sent to you (they are also usually available at a U.S. consulate or embassy) or have taxes paid for you by your power of attorney while you are out of the country. It is also possible to ask for an extension. Be sure to know what your tax responsibilities are and how to comply before you leave. The IRS website may be a helpful resource.

Telephone

Time and Date

  • www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/full.html — If it's noon, this must be Pago Pago. To be sure, consult this site. We've given you the Web address for its fullest list of cities. Once you see the city and the current time, click on the city name for more info, including user-semi-friendly telephone dailing codes.

  • www.worldtimeserver.com/time.aspx — If it's only the current time you're looking for, and your place is not among the most popular destinations, use this time machine. The scroll-down box on the left-hand side of the screen holds an enormous database of cities.

Tourism Information

  • www.towd.com — The Tourism Offices Worldwide Directory, at last glance, contained 1,421 entries - toll free numbers, faxes, addresses and Websites for every state tourism office, plus government-supported offices around the world.

Travel Insurance

  • www.insuremytrip.com — This site explains (and also offers) 63 travel insurance plans from 14 companies.

Weather

  • www.worldclimate.com — Worldclimate.com lists average highs and lows and rainfall for each month of the year, plus longitude, latitude and altitude.

 

Alma College has phenomenal 90 percent placement rates into medical and law schools, compared to a national average of 46.6 percent for medical school placement. More than 90 percent of all Alma graduates report working in full-time positions or attending graduate school within six months of graduation.

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Student Profile

Jason Latz

Jason Latz
Graduation: 2008
Major: Education
From: Elsie, Michigan
Interests: Sports, Habitat for Humanity

Spring Term courses offer students opportunities to break out of the “Alma Bubble.” Off-campus study, especially in a foreign country, shows you how you relate to the rest of the world and how the rest of the world views American people, politics and policies. You can then integrate your real world experiences into your academic programs and your future career.

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