FIU and the Office of Education Abroad (OEA) take the health and safety of FIU students abroad very seriously. We strive to provide students studying abroad with information about health and safety concerns that they may face in a foreign country. However, the student must also follow these precautions
At the mandatory pre-departure for OEA students studying abroad, the Office of Education Abroad reviews important information for students as they prepare to travel abroad. We discuss travel, finances, health, safety, enrollment, and use of insurance.
At this meeting, the students receive their pre-departure folder with the consular notes from the US Department of State and the notes from the Centers for Disease Control for the particular country for the program. It is critically important that the student read all this information and follow the recommendations. If there are questions, these should be raised as quickly as possible.
For each program, we send an email prior to departure to each faculty member and each student detailing the areas of concern in a particular country, if there are any. Again, we stress that everyone on the program needs to read these documents and follow any recommendations.
Information regarding health and safety for a particular country can be found at travel.state.gov.
At this website, you can enter the country and learn about travel to that country for US citizens. These consular notes are written by US Embassy staff in each country.
At this website, you can learn about particular health concerns from the Centers for Disease Control including the required and recommended immunizations and health precautions you should take in this country.
Through our Education Abroad Portal, students upload documents required for their study abroad program: copy of passport, medical form completed by a US licensed physician, emergency contact information, and special needs form.
All FIU students studying abroad are enrolled through the Office of Education Abroad in our comprehensive medical insurance abroad. Students receive their insurance card before traveling abroad. In addition, students may download a copy of their insurance card from our Insurance Page.
If students pay out-of-pocket for medical expenses abroad, they should file a claim with the insurance when they return to the United States.
The Office of Education Abroad has an emergency line and email set up specifically for students studying abroad who need immediate assistance. The emergency phone number is 001-+1-305-348-4288 and the emergency email is studyabroadhelp@fiu.edu.
The Office of Education Abroad contacts FIU students and faculty directors if and when there is an incident to provide available support and resources.
The Office of Education Abroad has an updated emergency plan addressing various situations that may come up abroad.
The Office of Education Abroad holds an annual Emergency Procedures meeting with faculty leading education abroad programs. In this meeting, the faculty and the education abroad team discuss scenarios and cases and how to respond to them. This program serves as a method of highlighting safety concerns that might arise and how faculty might respond.
The International Travel Committee reviews petitions from students and programs for academic travel to a country under US Department of State travel warning.
The committee also works with the Office of Education Abroad in case of any emergency abroad.
The committee has representation from the following Offices: Office of Education Abroad: FIU Global; Office of the General Counsel; University Compliance and Integrity; Department of Emergency Management; Office of Analysis, Assessment, and Risk Management; Office of International Student and Scholar Services; Research & Economic Development (ORED); Human Resources; and FIU Police.
