While many colleges and universities offer study abroad programs, few provide international experiential learning opportunities to the extent Worcester Polytechnic Institute does. Among the nation’s leading doctoral universities, WPI has the fifth highest rate of undergraduate participation in study abroad programs.
According to the Open Doors 2025 Report on International Educational Exchange, 933 U.S. students at WPI participated in a study abroad program for credit during the 2023–24 academic year. The report estimates that 84.8% of U.S. undergraduate students at WPI study abroad. This is the second straight year that WPI has ranked fifth in this measurement.
While the Open Doors report tallies U.S. students who study outside the country, an even larger portion of all WPI students go off campus, abroad or in the U.S., for hands-on learning: 89% of WPI’s undergraduate class of 2025 participated in the university’s Global Projects Program, which offers students opportunities for long-term immersive learning experiences at more than 50 WPI project centers on six continents.
“Our students don’t just study the world—they go out and engage with it. Being recognized again as a top university for study abroad underscores WPI’s long-standing commitment to immersive, global, project-based learning,” said WPI President Grace Wang. “Through the Global Projects Program, our students apply their knowledge and skills in real-world settings, collaborate with community partners, and create solutions that truly matter to the society. These experiences shape resilient, empathetic, collaborative, and globally minded leaders and innovators who are exceptionally well prepared to deal with the complexity and ambiguity in our interconnected world.”
