Editor's note: This is one of a series of stories from the College of Education and Health Professions celebrating International Education Week at the University of Arkansas.

Sweden, Ireland, Ghana, England, Scotland, Finland, New Zealand, Israel — the number of study abroad programs open to students in the College of Education and Health Professions has grown significantly in the past decade.

Having more options means more students are studying abroad. In 2007, University of Arkansas faculty created Health Teams Abroad to Sweden, the first study abroad program specifically for College of Education and Health Professions students, although it is a joint project with the J. William College of Arts and Sciences. That year, the Office of Study Abroad and International Exchange reported the College of Education and Health Professions had 18 students participate in study abroad. Ten years later, the study abroad office reported that number was 102 students, an increase of 467 percent.

The college has three new study abroad trips planned for this summer: adventure therapy and leadership in New Zealand, education policy in Israel, and STEM education in Finland and Sweden. Information about all of these faculty-led trips can be found on the Study Abroad and International Exchange website.

Fran Hagstrom, assistant dean for the college and health professions, led the faculty team that created Health Teams Abroad in cooperation with Jönköping University in Sweden. Students majoring in health-related fields such as nursing, kinesiology and communication disorders in the College of Education and Health Professions and students in the pre-medical program in the Fulbright College attend pre-trip lectures in the spring to prepare themselves for the summer experience.

The program is designed as a way to bring students interested in health careers together so they can better understand other professions that they will work with as future health-care providers, Hagstrom said.

"The interdisciplinary faculty who travel to Sweden are just as excited as the students each year as health-care delivery is changing in both Sweden and the United States," Hagstrom said. "An important part of the trip is exposing students to and having them reflect on the values and beliefs that lead to decisions about well-being and health care. Day trips to cultural hubs such as Gothenburg and Uppsala are part of this."

The trip also includes a five-day stay in the capital city of Stockholm and visits to research labs at the Karolinska Institute located there.

Jake Smith graduated from the U of A with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology last spring and is attending the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. He plans to become an orthopedic surgeon. Study abroad opens up a world of possibilities for students such as Smith, who grew up in Paragould.

"While at the U of A, I studied abroad in Sweden," Smith said. "This was the first time I compared different types of health-care systems and experienced health-care policy. I wish to not only influence health policy in the U.S., but across the globe."

The agreement between the U of A and Jönköping University led to faculty exchanges and an opportunity for teacher-education students to complete a teaching internship in Sweden.

"I chose Sweden because of their high standards for education, the different approach to education, as well as the opportunity of experiencing different cultures," said Isela Mercado-Ulloa. She was a student studying foreign language education when she did a teaching internship in Sweden in 2014. "What makes any person successful is their ability to adapt and thrive in environments that push the limits of their abilities."

The Office of Teacher Education in the College of Education and Health Professions also offers students the opportunity to do a teaching internship in Peru.

Since Health Teams Abroad was launched, Hagstrom has helped guide other faculty members in developing study abroad proposals, making plans and carrying them out. The Eleanor Mann Nursing School now has two options, a United Kingdom trip to London and Glasgow that focuses on global and historical perspectives of health and a trip to Ghana that focuses on community health nursing.

The London-Glasgow trip is planned to be every other year and will take place again in 2018. The Ghana trip already has double the number of applicants compared to last year.

Natalie Gohman is a senior nursing student who went on the trip to Ghana.

"We all learned a lot about ourselves," Gohman said. "We've grown up in America, where our health-care system is one of the best. This area doesn't have that, yet we learned about different procedures and everyday tasks they do in a much simpler way using the resources they have. This was the takeaway from the trip: America's way is not the only way."

Teacher-education students and faculty have made two trips to Ireland with the third scheduled for next summer. Students learn about the education system there and teach a lesson in three schools throughout the southern part of Ireland.

Study abroad also helps students grow in other ways. Emily Floyd is a senior who went on the trip to Ireland last summer.

"After this trip, I am much more comfortable to travel," Floyd said. "I can go by myself, and I don't mind living alone."

According to the Graduate School and International Education, International Education Week is an opportunity to celebrate the benefits of international education and exchange worldwide. This joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education is part of the University of Arkansas' efforts to promote programs that prepare students for a global environment and to attract future leaders from abroad to study, learn and exchange experiences in the United States. The week is observed Nov. 13-17 this year. A calendar of events is available online.