University students in study abroad programs take what they’ve learned in their local context and apply it globally. To promote a positive academic and culturally-inclusive study abroad experience, one recommendation is to focus on strengthening digital literacies (Kinginger, 2011). The authors of this current research are interested to learn how they can effectively develop their student’s digital literacies prior to a one-year study abroad in Australia. As poor digital literacies among freshman Japanese students have been reported (see Lockley 2011; Murray & Blyth, 2011), this project aims to establish digital literacy levels and identify whether a lack of digital literacies limits students from accessing educational and social opportunities while studying abroad. This presentation reports on a three-stage investigation of student’s digital literacies and their study abroad experience: (1) An initial screening of 73 returnee students (2) a digital literacies evaluation of 112 freshman students, and (3) a survey of returnee student’s digital usage in the study abroad context.
