Savings and opportunities abroad
The program brings a myriad of financial, academic and professional benefits, Luce said.
“There’s actually a financial savings for our students,” Luce said, explaining that bachelor’s degrees can be completed in three years at universities in the United Kingdom. “With the tuition and even estimating their housing expenses, it’ll still be cheaper for them to go to Wales and study than to complete their degree at Temple, for example. So there is a potential cost savings for them and a time savings.”
According to a 2025 survey, U.S. students’ interest in study abroad overall is increasing, and amid the Trump administration’s federal funding cuts to higher education institutions stateside, some students are applying to colleges overseas.
Luce said studying abroad also gives students a “huge advantage” when it comes to finding jobs after graduation, and that Wrexham University in particular has strong relationships with employers in both the U.K. and the U.S.
Bucks County Community College President & CEO Patrick M. Jones, Ph.D., left, and Dr. Robert Leigh, principal lecturer in business at Wrexham University in Wales, right, engaged in discussions in May on the Newtown Campus about the first international transfer partnership in BCCC’s history. (Courtesy of Bucks County Community College)
Timby said just living and studying in another country and in a different cultural context can contribute to students’ professional growth.
“It gives the students a chance to develop those soft skills that employers are looking for, their ability to problem solve, think critically, work in groups with strangers, navigate territory that they aren’t familiar with,” she said. “I think from a social and intellectual maturity standpoint, it really will be very beneficial for our students, not to mention confidence. I mean, if you can navigate a year abroad, you’ve got to feel pretty good about yourself.”
BCCC said the partnership could evolve to include shorter exchanges of faculty and students, virtual collaboration on joint course projects and more.
“An exchange is high on the list to figure out how we can make that work, because not every student can commit to living a year in Wales, but a week or two of an exchange is a lot more manageable,” Luce said.
