In November, the Institute of International Education, or IIE, released a report on international educational exchange. The IIE’s yearly Open Doors report is created with help from the U.S. Department of State. It examines the number of foreign college students entering the U.S. and the number of American college students who study abroad. This year’s report shows that the number of Americans studying abroad increased by 2.3 percent from the school year before. More than 330,000 American students studied in foreign countries for college credit during the 2016 to 2017 school year. The number of Americans studying abroad has been growing since the early 1990s. Peggy Blumenthal is an advisor with the IIE. She said that the rate of growth shrank after the U.S. recession in 2008. But even problems like political unrest in a host-country effect only the number of students going to that country. The overall growth in Americans studying abroad continues, Blumenthal said. Blumenthal notes that educators have long seen the value in international student exchanges. She said that most Americans do not travel far from home to attend a college or university. For that reason, they are not often put in situations that are unfamiliar. A study abroad program can teach students independence and important life skills.