This year's off-campus study application process has brought both students and Off-Campus Study staff surprise and frustration after 52 students applied for only 35 spots in the Grinnell-in-London program. This means that, for the first time since the 1980s, students will be rejected.

Some students felt the Off-Campus Study Office should have planned better for the amount of applicants.

But Richard Bright, director of the Office of Off-Campus Study, said that his office had no reason to expect such a significant increase in the applicants. "People have asked, 'Weren't there a lot of people at information sessions last fall? This wasn't a tip off?'" said Bright. "No, it wasn't, because there are always a lot of people at these meetings."

Josh Tetenbaum '10, who applied to the program, believes that part of the reason for such a large number of applicants this year was the way the program was advertised which, he said, "implied that everyone was going to get in." Many students were upset by this apparent discrepancy between the program's portrayal and the current reality of the application process.

Bright said that all qualified applicants were accepted in the past but that past years are not necessarily indicative of future ones. Student expectations were, according to Bright, "assumptions based on past experience and living memory."

The program also includes an overburdened internship program. Thirty-nine students applied for 15 internships. In response, the program "squeezed out" two new internship opportunities to help accommodate the large amount of applicants, according to Assistant Director of Off-Campus Study Neela Nandyal.

Bright said that students who are interested in the internship component of the program but do not receive one have been given other options for studying abroad. These options include the Grinnell-in-Washington or the Oberlin-in-London programs, both of which provide internships.

According to Bright, students who are approved by Grinnell to study abroad but not accepted to the Grinnell-in-London program will get help from the Off-Campus Study Office to find another program for the same semester that students find acceptable.

Tetenbaum said he would consider applying to other programs, but because their application deadlines are soon, he will have little time to find another program and complete an application.

Unique Bexley '10, who also applied to Grinnell-in-London, said that she had not yet made changes to her study abroad plans. Bexley said she may consider studying abroad her senior year, but because of her four-year plan, she may not be able to study abroad if she is not accepted to Grinnell-in-London.

Despite this year's number of applicants, the Off Campus Study Office is not expecting more than 35 applicants next year.

Bright said that the office does plan to address part of the problem by creating better communication with students that the program is competitive, so that students realize from the beginning that they may have to go on another program. "Whether this is just an anomaly or a trend we'll see," said Bright.