Concerned about the situation in Greece? GlobaLinks Learning Abroad prides itself of its exceptional support services regarding health and safety abroad. We take our role in the health and safety of our students seriously and consistently strive to provide up-to-date and relevant information to ensure students, parents, and advisors are as informed and prepared as possible for studying abroad. We have compiled a Q& A and additional correspondence from our partner university in Greece, feedback from students currently studying abroad, and included a link to our health and safety information. We hope these help answer some of your questions on the safety of Thessaloniki and our programs there. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us at 1-800-980-0033 or at studyabroad@globalinksabroad.org. We are here to help! Q & A with American College of Thessaloniki on the Greece Situation Q: Why is Greece in the news? A: Following two years of a debt crisis, Greece secured a second bailout loan package that provides significant medium-term relief to the Greek economy and a chance for its economy to stabilize and rebound, within the safe environment of the Eurozone. Q: Is it safe? Are students are risk if protesting occurs? A: Thessaloniki is a university city of 100,000 students and it continues to be a very safe, friendly and lively city (one of the safest in Europe). We would like to put worries to rest and explain why no student studying at American College of Thessaloniki (ACT) is or will be in any protest-related danger in Thessaloniki. The media usually focuses on incidents caused by no more than 500 extremist protesters in front of the Greek Parliament and surrounding streets in Athens. Similar protests in Thessaloniki are mostly peaceful, with some sporadic incidents in the downtown area, far away from either our campus or the students’ place of residence. These protests are infrequent, very contained, and they are scheduled for certain dates, times and locations. Our students have never been in any danger, since they are always informed and directed to stay clear of any possible unrest of the slightest kind. ACT has had a long-standing crisis management system in place with a round the clock phone answering alert. The ACT crisis management team is continuously monitoring the situation locally and nationally and provides updates as needed via e-mail and via direct contact by on- and off-campus staff. Q: What would the impact be to students if the economic situation worsens? A: No immediate direct impact is expected for students from a possible worsening of the economic situation. Actually, the recent loan agreement shields Greece financially at least for the next three years as it guarantees a flow of funds to stabilize the economy. In addition, the question of a messy default and the danger of Greece leaving the Eurozone have been put to rest at least for the short to medium run. Within this general framework, ACT and its parent institution Anatolia College have a solid financial situation with a history of 125 years, spanning three centuries and two continents. So far ACT and Anatolia have been mostly isolated from the severe economic crisis exhibiting a stable financial profile and projecting a promising future. Q: How will the economic situation impact the quality of the student experience? Will protesting and financial matters reduce their ability to travel and/or experience Greek history? A: Protests are infrequent, non-random and affect specific areas, mostly in downtown Athens and to a much lesser extent 2-3 other large cities. Overall the visitor is not hindered from traveling around Greece and enjoying its history and sights. During 2011 a total of 16 million foreign tourists visited Greece. ACT welcomed on its campus close to 300 U.S. study abroad students, with about 50% of its student body being international students. None of them were ever or felt to be in an unsafe environment and the school never experienced any disruptions in its operations. Q: How do U.S. Study Abroad students feel about their ACT experience? A testimonial: “Taking a microeconomics class (Econ 102) in Greece while studying abroad has been such a unique experience for me. I am learning the perspectives of students from Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia, and several other countries, perspectives that I would not be exposed to at my home university. Particularly during the current economic crisis, we are able to relate topics back to the crisis, and the students ask questions regarding the crisis because it is directly affecting them right now. It's so interesting and enlightening to get to see all these diverse perspectives that I would not see at my home university in a class of mostly American students. I am so grateful for the exposure to the different views, and I am so lucky to be studying in Greece during such a fascinating time. The crisis has not really impacted me very much as a student in Greece. Sometimes, the buses go on strike, but when that happens, I just take the ACT shuttle or a taxi if I need to go somewhere that's not within walking distance. Also, ACT keeps us informed and aware about when and where protests are happening so we can avoid them. I feel very comfortable in Thessaloniki and don't feel threatened or worried about my safety”. Evan Campbell (GlobaLinks Learning Abroad Spring 2012 student from the University of South Carolina, Major International Studies/Relations, Minor Business and Commerce)
Return to Top Correspondence from American College of Thessaloniki February 13, 2012 Dear Partners, We are all concerned by the recent disturbing images from Athens as a result of protests against the imposed austerity measures. We would like to put worries to rest and explain why no student studying at ACT is or will be in any protest-related danger in Thessaloniki. The 48-hour general strike and the accompanying protests which ended on Sunday, were called in anticipation of a controversial bill which was voted in to law the same day and introduced further fiscal and labor market austerity measures, a pre-requisite for a second bail-out package. While the media recently focused on incidents caused by no more than 500 extremist protesters in front of the Greek Parliament and surrounding streets, there were tens of thousands of citizens marching peacefully in well-defined blocks of central Athens. Similar protests in Thessaloniki were mostly peaceful, with some sporadic incidents in the down-town area, far away from either our campus or the students’ place of residence. Thessaloniki is a university city of 100,000 students and it continues to be a very safe, friendly and lively city (one of the safest in Europe). In our democratic traditions, planned demonstrations are very much the accepted way of protesting against perceived unfair measures and a way of protecting civil rights. While it cannot be ruled out that more protests will take place in the future, these demonstrations are often very contained and they are scheduled for certain dates, times and locations. Our students may be somewhat inconvenienced by strikes but they have never been in any danger, since they are always informed and directed to stay clear of any possible unrest of the slightest kind. The ACT crisis management team is continuously monitoring the situation locally and nationally and will be updating all of you. Please feel free to contact me with any of your concerns regarding our study abroad programs. Sincerely,
Arian Kotsi
Director of International Programs Office
American College of Thessaloniki
Return to Top Feedback from North American students studying at American College of Thessaloniki | 
Photos courtesy of C. Rousseau | E. Campbell, University of South Carolina-Columbia "About the economic situation and riots... There have been protests in Thessaloniki as well, but ACT keeps us well informed with where and when they are going to be so we can avoid the areas. There were some bus strikes one day, but that just meant we had to take the ACT shuttle so it didn't really effect us either. The protests haven't affected travel plans so far. Also, I'd like to say that for any future students interested in International Studies or Business or Economics, Greece is definitely an incredible place to be right now! I'm taking a microeconomics class right now, and almost daily we discuss economic principles and how they relate directly to the current crisis and I just love it and find it extremely fascinating." E. Neldon, University of Tulsa "Greece is awesome, I am having so much fun meeting all these new people and experiencing eveything. As to the economic situation, I think it affects you as much as you let it affect you. Some of us were actually downtown the day of the big riot, but all the protectors were just standing around and we didn't stay long enough to see things get crazy. If you wanted to participate and be in the middle of things you definitely could, but for all of us who don't want to be involved in protests, we hardly see anything. I think the media really focuses on the few making trouble rather than the thousands who are marching peacefully. The most annoying thing that has happened to me personally is the bus drivers going on strike. But that is simply an inconvenience solved by a cheap taxi ride. Our housing is very far away from the center of town, so I have no worries about my safety.” C. Rousseau, University of Massachusetts - Dartmouth "To be honest, the political unrest does not really effect my day to day life, because the Greeks don't seem to let it get to them. I've heard that they go out a little less, but besides that they seem to be living normally. The only thing that gets in the way is the strikes, but they usually plan them out so you can arrange around them ahead of time. It has not affected my plans, I still plan on going to London, Paris, and Rome :) But one of the girls here had to rearrange her flight to Dublin yesterday because of the air patrol strike. Although their have been protests, I haven't felt unsafe or anything at all. Of course this is a very anxious time for Greece, but day to day it hasn't effected me much." N. Biblis, Towson University "Greece has been nothing short of amazing. I am having a great time and meeting a lot of great people. As far as the economic situation goes, its hard for me to see as an outsider. The economic turmoil is much more present in the lives of Greek citizens. I have only witnessed one protest while in Thessaloniki and it was on the day I got here at the International Trade Fair. But other than that I haven't seen anything. The only thing that has affected me or any of the other students I know are the general strikes. There have been a few days when the taxi cabs went on strike, but when this happens the buses still operate (sometimes free). Other than those few inconveniences there hasn't been any issues. If given the choice I would choose to study in Greece again, or maybe stay for another semester!" E. Coan, Rowan University "Compared to what the media in the States has reported about Greece, it’s been pretty calm in Thessaloniki. There have only been two small marches since I have been here and they haven’t gotten out of hand. I know in Athens they have gotten bad at times and that’s what is getting reported back to the States. Thessaloniki and Athens are about 8 hrs away by bus, so anything happening in Athens is not necessarily happening here. I have never felt scared or nervous for my safety here because of demonstrations. Also ACT has kept us very informed with when demonstrations and strikes are taking place, so we are able to plan ahead in advance.
Even with all of the issues going on in Greece and all over Europe, I still am looking forward to all of my planned trips. Because of these issues though, I have become more aware of difficulties I could experience when traveling. With strikes a common occurrence in Greece and other European countries, I am nervous at times that my flight might be cancelled because the air traffic controllers are on strike or that I am going to need to find a different way to get somewhere because the taxis are not running for the day. As a stated above though, ACT has been helpful with keeping up updated on when the strikes are being planned for and giving us alternate routes if needed. It really hasn't been that bad in Thessaloniki and I hope all of the news that is being reported in the States isn't deterring kids from studying here!"
Return to Top Article: Is Greece Safe for Tourists? Click here to read article. Return to Top Health and safety information from GlobaLinks Learning Abroad Click here to go to the GlobaLinks Learning Abroad health and safety announcement page.
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