Sometimes, watching globalization from America isn’t the same as going overseas to see it at work. I recently returned from a semester teaching at Bahcesehir University in Istanbul. BAU was founded as an intentionally global university, growing hand-in-hand with the emerging global economy. It has campuses in nine different countries, and purposefully draws a student body from around the world. Working with its students gave me a chance to learn more about what drives students to study abroad. Below are four institutional and cultural dynamics driving overseas study.