From Ghana to the Moon: How Study Abroad Shapes Global Citizens

By Mivheal Tetteh, M.S. and Hilary Landorf, Ph.D., Florida International University ​

As Artemis II renews humanity’s push beyond Earth, one astronaut’s journey from a Ghanaian classroom underscores why global learning remains central to higher education’s ultimate mission. 
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At a time when global learning activities like study abroad and international service learning are being questioned on grounds of cost, equity, and environmental impact, higher education faces a critical choice: Should global learning be scaled back, or reimagined? As the world grows from interconnectedness to interdependence, the answer is increasingly clear. The need for graduates who can think across cultures and operate in unfamiliar environments is greater now than ever before. 
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Few examples illustrate the power of global learning more than Christina Koch’s journey from a study abroad experience in Ghana to participating as one of the four astronauts on a recent voyage to the far side of the moon as part of the mission of Artemis II. 

The importance of study abroad as a central global learning activity is well established in the literature on global learning. Hilary Landorf and Stephanie Doscher (2023) define global learning as the ongoing process of diverse people working together to analyze and address complex problems that transcend borders of all kinds and take action that promotes individual and collective well-being. Philip Altbach and Jane Knight conceptualize student mobility as central to global learning (2007), and Hans de Wit (2011) distinguishes between internationalization at home and abroad, arguing that physical mobility remains the most immersive form of global learning. 

Despite this strong foundation, study abroad faces renewed critique. Participation often reflects existing inequalities, and environmental concerns are increasingly urgent. Short-term study abroad programs are also criticized for lacking depth. Yet the literature does not support abandoning student mobility. Instead, it calls for a redesign. Programs that prioritize immersion, community engagement, and structured reflection produce significantly stronger outcomes. Evidence shows that well-designed study abroad enhances intercultural competence and critical thinking (Vande Berg et al., 2012). 

The case of Christina Koch brings these arguments into sharp focus. According to her official biography from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (2022), Koch studied abroad at the University of Ghana during her undergraduate years at North Carolina State University. ​

During the 1999-2000 academic year, she engaged deeply with Ghanaian society through courses in History of Ghana, African History, Rural Sociology, Music, and Introductory Twi, a widely spoken Ghanaian Language. This interdisciplinary immersion complemented her primary studies in engineering and physics at her home institution. 

Koch herself offers the clearest articulation of the impact of her global learning experience on Instagram. Reflecting on her time in Ghana in a recent Instagram post (2026), she says, “My study abroad program in Ghana… was by far the most perspective gaining and life-changing experience in my life, right up there with going to space.” 

​This reflection directly links early intercultural immersion to later professional experience in space. It demonstrates how study abroad shapes not only knowledge but also an individual’s long-term worldview. 

The significance of Koch’s experience as one of the astronauts on Artemis II has been recognized at the national level. The current president of Ghana, H.E. John Dramani Mahama, publicly acknowledged Koch’s connection to Ghana following her selection for Artemis II (2026), highlighting the broader symbolic value of global learning. 

Koch’s career trajectory underscores the lasting influence of study abroad as a primary global learning activity. She spent 328 days aboard the International Space Station, setting a record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman, and her recent participation on Artemis II marked the first time a woman has ever travelled around the moon. 

The competencies required for such missions extend beyond technical expertise. They include adaptability, cross-cultural communication, close collaboration, and the ability to operate effectively in unfamiliar environments. These are precisely the capabilities that immersive global learning activities are designed to cultivate. 

Christina Koch’s comparison of the transformational experience she had studying abroad in Ghana to the perspective shifts she felt in space point to a broader institutional lesson. Global learning activities are essential for all students in higher education. Whether these activities consist of study abroad, international service learning, or internationalization at home, when designed intentionally, they foster the flexibility, global awareness, and shape shifting global perspective required in our complex, interdependent world. 
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From lecture halls in Accra to lunar orbit, Koch’s trajectory demonstrates the enduring power of global learning. These activities do more than broaden horizons. They transform them, and in doing so, they help produce the kind of global citizens capable of shaping our collective future in positive ways. ​

Editorial credit: Rawpixel.com / Shutterstock.com

​References 
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Altbach, P. G., & Knight, J. (2007). The internationalization of higher education: Motivations and realities. Journal of Studies in International Education, 11(3–4), 290–305. https://doi.org/10.1177/1028315307303542

de Wit, H. (2011). Globalisation and internationalisation of higher education. Revista de Universidad y Sociedad del Conocimiento (RUSC), 8(2), 241–248. https://doi.org/10.7238/rusc.v8i2.1247

Koch, C. H. (2026, April 26). My study abroad in Ghana was a life-changing experience. Vok Live. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNeJhjx63Fg

Landorf, H. & Doscher, S. (2023). What we mean by ‘Global Learning’: An updated definition. Liberal Education, October 5, 2023. Web Exclusive.

Mahama, J. D. (2026). Statement on Christina Koch and Artemis II mission [Post]. X. https://x.com/jdmahama/status/2042187286087864522

National Aeronautics and Space Administration. (2022). Christina H. Koch: NASA astronaut biography. https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/active

Vande Berg, M., Paige, R. M., & Lou, K. H. (2012). Student learning abroad: What our students are learning, what they’re not, and what we can do about it. Stylus Publishing.​