a city more than 3000 years old and a sacred religious centre for India, studying in Varanasi exposes students to the rich arts, culture and languages of this South Asian country.  The program is broken up into various tutorials taught by world-renowned instructors and individualized field work experience. Students are given the freedom and responsibility to develop their own research project ranging from analyzing the economics of ceramic chai cups to creating a film about the Islamic

festival of Muharram.  Students are integrated not only into life in Varanasi but also the surrounding area; the program takes a two week language retreat into the Himalayas and travel as a group to Sarnath, the park where Gautama Buddha first taught the Dharma. The single longest running study abroad program at UW-Madison, the College Year in India program is a great introduction to the field of South Asian Studies.

The Peru and Chile Latin American Program offers a unique experience for students to study a semester in two South American countries.  In both countries students directly enroll at local universities with local students.  Studying in Lima and Santiago, two major Latin American cities with very different feels to them, provides students with an array of Spanish dialects, as well as two different educational, political and economic systems. A few of the past program-led excursions have included a visit to Valparaíso, a seaport city in central Chile, Cajón del Maipo; a canyon near the Andes and a trip to Concha y Toro Winery; a wine vinery in Chile. This year-long program allows students the opportunity to not only improve their Spanish but reflect upon the varying social customs, economic realities and political atmospheres across border-lines.

Feng Shui, the ancient Chinese system of aesthetics is not only practiced in Asia, but has become embedded in western design. Beijing makes an ideal laboratory for students interested in studying art, design, and its impact on human development and behavior, a city where many of the imperial palaces, modern-day architecture and public and private spaces have been influenced by Feng Shui.  This four-week summer program centralizes on comparing and contrasting Feng Shui with western environment and behavior studies and how humans respond to their physical surroundings. Students are taught the techniques and concepts behind Feng Shui, as well as venture into the city to view this art in practice. As a group students will also visit sites in Beijing like Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, Confucious Temple, Ming Tombs, and the Great Wall, as well as local markets and neighborhoods. This program offers students a unique opportunity for immersion in a rich cultural art design heritage.

Freiburg, located at the foot of the Black Forest in Southern Germany, is an opportune place for students to practice their German and study other disciplines in one of Madison’s sister cities.  This German city is known for its festivals, musical scene, young vibe and bicycling, hiking, and ski trails. The year-long program consists of a month of intensive German language training, as well as the opportunity for an internship in business, technology, and the arts during the second semester.  Freiburg is in an ideal location for exploring the rest of Europe and interacting with both German and other international students.

While currently there are only two programs in the Middle East; Cairo and Jerusalem, the the IAP Middle East Study  Abroad Advisory board is looking into creating additional program in the region. Students in Jerusalem are directly enrolled in the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and students in Cairo are enrolled at the American University in Cairo, in both cases students are enrolled with local students. Both Programs provide students with insight on the cultural heritages of the region as well as the complexities of the regional politics, Cairo, Egypt allows students to practice Arabic, one of the most globally strategic languages in one of the Arab world’s most dynamic and historical cities.

Senegal, a haven for beautiful beaches and wildlife, provides students with an ideal location to explore economic and social development in an African context, as well as explore the dance, arts and languages of the region. UW students live in St. Louis, an old colonial city located on a narrow island in the Senegal River.  Central to the year-long program is a research project on an aspect of Senegalese life, culture, and the environment.  Students live with home stays for the first month and then live in dormitories with other students from the Universite Gaston Berger (UGB). The program has a very large language component; classes are taught in French, and participants are given Wolof instruction, the most widely spoken language in Senegal.

By guest contributor Sara Jerving

Office of International Academic Programs