These students are among 619 participants from throughout the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system to study abroad through the International Program (IP). IP provides students with an opportunity to study abroad at more than 45 universities in 17 countries.

"The CSU system is committed to providing students the opportunity to immerse themselves in another culture," said John Charles, assistant director of the university's international programs. "Its philosophy has always been that our future leaders need to be exposed to other people's languages, histories and cultures," he said.

Only three percent of American undergraduate students have studied abroad, Charles said. In a global economy, a semester abroad will set students apart from the average CSUN graduate. This experience has value on a resume, he said.

"To be honest, many students probably apply simply for the adventure," Charles said.

But students get more than that. By exposing participants to a different cultural perspective, IP allows students to learn and to appreciate their own country, culture, government, values, people and themselves, Charles said.

IP's popular programs include the study of art history in Italy, political science and history in England and humanities and social sciences in Spain.

The most frequented countries are Italy, Spain and England. The programs in Zimbabwe and Israel are temporarily suspended due to political and safety concerns.

The university's IP is accepting applications for the 2004-2005 IP until Feb. 1, 2004.

CSUN students currently studying abroad during the 2003-2004 academic year are:

Student:	Hometown:	Major:	Place of Study:
Jonathan Beloz	Tujunga	Radio-Television-Film	Australia
Jacqueline Bennett	Winnetka	Journalism	Spain
April Bernas	Sylmar	Accountancy	Spain
Clarissa Buitrago	Thousand Oaks	Liberal Studies	Spain
Ruben Burciaga	Chino	Spanish/Journalism	Spain
Pedro Cabrera	Oxnard	Spanish	Spain
Alonzo Campos	Chatsworth	Film	Italy
Juan Cervantes	Newbury Park	Spanish	Spain
Silvia Cervantes	North Hollywood	Spanish	Spain
Daniel D'Olio	Northridge	Art	Italy
Laura Gardner	Chatsworth	Business	Spain
Erika Gomez	Downey		Spain
Karen Gudelman	Burbank	Deaf Studies	Spain
Penina Haas	Woodland Hills	Child Development	Denmark
Kathleen Hearons	Palmdale	Political Science	Italy
Alondra Hernandez	Los Angeles	Art	Mexico
Jamie Holeman	Northridge	History	United Kingdom
Amie Hunter	Walnut	Accountancy	United Kingdom
Chad Johnson	Tarzana	Psychology	Germany
Yeon Kim	Glendale	Fashion	France
Rachelle Lee	Santa Rosa	Spanish	Spain
Nicholas Lee	Simi Valley	Computer Science	United Kingdom
Rebekah Lesher	McKinleyville	Deaf Studies	France
Ximena Llanos	Pasadena	Psychology	United Kingdom
Elise Martinet	Thousand Oaks	Political Science	Italy
Claudia Martinez	Los Angeles	Biology	Spain
Mark Mizrahi	Northridge	History	United Kingdom
Gabriel Monje	Granada Hills	Fine and Creative Arts	Italy
Carla Myers	Woodland Hills	Spanish	Spain
Amir Naghdali	Woodland Hills	Political Science	Italy
Keith Nolan	Silver Springs, Md.	Political Science	United Kingdom
Helen Orzel	Salinas	Piano Performance	Germany
Regina Paredes	Pacoima	Psychology	Italy
Anton Pereiaslavtsev	Canoga Park	Business	United Kingdom
Lilia Perez	Panorama City	Spanish	Spain
Romelia Ramirez	Paso Robles	Art	Mexico
Natalie Reyes	North Hills	Computer Science	Spain
Karin Sabo	Chatsworth	English	United Kingdom
Nanees Said	Northridge	Communications	Australia
Lizette Sanchez	Reseda	Criminal Justice	France
Sela Sandberg	Beverly Hills	Psychology	Spain
Songkrant Sanglimsuwan	Northridge	CTVA/Ath	China
Heather Schmerman	Glencoe, Ill.	Communications	Australia
Annabelle Sedano	Sun Valley	Journalism	Spain
James Simon	Canoga Park	German	France
Heather Sirota	Northridge	Liberal Studies	Mexico
Adam Tarris	Simi Valley	Kinesiology	Mexico
Dolly Tataje	Van Nuys	Spanish	Spain
Arevik Taymizyan	Los Angeles	Journalism	France
Arshaluys Taymizyan	Los Angeles	Political Science	Italy
Hethy Trujillo	Huntington Park	Spanish	Spain
James Valice	Sylmar	Art	Italy
Mario Velasco	Reseda	Business	Germany
Stephanie Zoet	Sylmar	Sociology	United Kingdom

"Education is about exploring the unknown," said Charles. "The students who leave what is secure: Ñfamily, friends, employment a comfortable apartmentÑ and venture off into the unknown truly embody what education is all about."

California State University, Northridge has 33,000 full- and part-time students and offers 61 bachelor's and 42 master's degrees as well as 28 education credential programs. Founded in 1958, it is the only four-year university in the San Fernando Valley and the fourth largest in the 23-campus CSU system. The university serves as the intellectual, economic and cultural heart of the Valley and beyond.