International academics brought students to the Memorial Union on Thursday.

Over 600 students came to see the booths and learn about the variety of study abroad programs at the Study Abroad Fair in the Great Hall.

Stephanie Grebe and Karla Stout, both running the booth for the Consortium Institute for Management and Business Adminstration’s international programs, said that they were both very pleased with the turn out this year.

“Many students that came by will be graduating in 2014 or 2015, which is good. It means that they’re looking for programs early and planning ahead,” Stout said.

Everyone at the fair was an advocate for studying abroad and how it can make a huge impact on a student’s life: personally and professionally, socially and academically.

“It’s so beneficial in every aspect of life. There is academic benefit, professional benefit, and it’s just a wonderful experience and a great opportunity to grow all around,” Grebe said.

Chelsea Levine, representing the Institute for Study Abroad, said, “It allows [students] to explore different cultures while learning about themselves in a fun way.”

Iowa State’s Study Abroad Center has new programs this year developed for, but not limited to, freshman students. The programs range from a week over spring break to three weeks over the summer.

“We developed a number of study abroad programs that are short in length and designed for freshman in mind; 60 percent of freshman have interest in study abroad,” said Trevor Nelson, director of the Study Abroad Center. “In the last graduating class, 19 percent of students had studied abroad.”

It is the hope of the Study Abroad Center that the new short programs will encourage students to venture out of their comfort zone and get exposure to international culture. The goal is to raise the participation from 19 percent to 30 percent.

Ben Jacobson, a senior in industrial engineering, spent six weeks in Spain last summer through ISU Study Abroad.

“I met a lot of natives as well as a lot of Iowa State students from other disiplines that I otherwise wouldn’t haven’t have met,” Jacobson said. “I still keep in touch with a lot of friends I made in Spain. Going abroad really opened my eyes, and going as a freshman has helped me to experience the rest of college through a new perspective.”

The Study Abroad Center received a “Strategic Initiatives Grant” from the university, which means there are more scholarships available to students ths year than in previous years.