CHESTNUT HILL, MASS. (February 26, 2025) — Alessandra Veveiros, a senator in the Undergraduate Government of Boston College (UGBC), shared plans at Tuesday’s Senate meeting for an online module aimed at helping students prepare for the study abroad application process. In collaboration with the Office of Global Education (OGE), Veveiros explained that the module will be available to students before their sophomore year.
“The module will streamline the process and prevent students from feeling overwhelmed by information at the first study abroad info meeting,” said Veveiros, an MCAS ’27 student.
The module is designed to be completed before students attend the mandatory Study Abroad 101 meetings, which are required to begin the application process. According to Veveiros, the goal is to add a reflective element, helping students think about what they hope to gain from studying abroad.
“They want to make the experience academic, professional, and career-focused,” Veveiros said. “It’s important that students choose the best program for their personal and academic development.”
The module will include videos from students who have already studied abroad, allowing prospective study abroad participants to hear firsthand experiences and gain insight into what worked well and what could have been improved.
Later in the meeting, Danny Wise, chair of the student life committee, shared that the Senate plans to meet with Boston College’s Information Technology Services (ITS) to discuss digitizing BC Eagle IDs. Wise said the Senate hopes to discuss the possibility of integrating digital IDs for campus use.
“We have some strong evidence of how digital IDs work across different platforms,” Wise said.
Cece Mase, a student senator with experience using digital IDs at Clemson University, explained how Clemson successfully implemented digital IDs, which are now used for accessing buildings, paying for services, and making purchases across campus.
“Clemson’s system works across all platforms,” Mase said. “They were able to address security concerns by ensuring IDs can only be used when actively tapped and protected with a password.”
At the meeting’s start, the Senate approved two amendments to its constitution. The first amendment reclassified the Messina College seat from a special interest seat to a class representative seat, allowing Messina students to vote for their class senator in the upcoming UGBC elections.
The second amendment added a second Messina College seat, with incoming students voting for a class senator when they arrive on campus in the fall.
“This makes us feel like we’re part of Boston College, not just Messina College,” said Maaz Shaikh, student senator and Messina ’26. “It’s a big step toward inclusion, and I really appreciate it.”
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