Safety abroad
USAC is guided by the fundamental principle that the safety and well-being of USAC students is of the highest importance. We adhere to the highest standards in safety and security at all our program locations.
We continuously monitor our program sites and proactively seek out international safety and security information. We obtain safety, security, and health information from a range of sources including these standard publicly available resources that we encourage students to read:
- U.S. State Department: Travel.State.Gov and Studentsabroad.State.Gov.
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control
We obtain additional expert information through the following, among other resources:
- International SOS (ISOS): USAC’s assistance company, is a provider of expert safety and security information and analysis. In the event of a natural disaster or security event, International SOS will aid USAC and its participants with security intelligence and advice.
- U.S. State Department’s Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC): USAC’s Health and Safety staff are members of the OSAC Regional Councils, Country Councils, and the Academic Sector Committee. Through OSAC, we are connected to academic institutions, private companies and agencies operating around the world, and thus, we are able to obtain current on-the-ground safety and security information.
- USAC works with leading study abroad professional organizations such as the Forum on Education Abroad, NAFSA: Association of International Educators, and PULSE, a working group of safety and security professionals serving in academia.
Student safety
We strive to educate students about safety strategies to empower them to become safe, smart, and savvy travelers for life. USAC encourages all students to be familiar with the U.S. Department of State Travel Advisories for their host country and all countries where they plan to travel. Please pay particular attention to the Safety and Security section information.
We strongly recommend that all students enroll in the U.S. Department of State Smart Traveler Enrollment Program to receive local embassy alerts.
