Students usually travel, work or study during the summer break, and the International Center is making it possible to do all three on a different continent.
The center has organized seven new Study Abroad Program sites for the 2006 Summer Semester: Ghana, Costa Rica, Argentina, France, Switzerland, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Egypt.
“You ?can get a lot of credits in a short amount of time, and you don’t have to be away too long,” said Sara Demko, assistant director of the International Center.
Students interested in public health and learning about other cultures can gain hands-on experience in programs in Ghana and Costa Rica, Demko said.
Another new program, “Writing in Paris,” combines traveling in France with non-fiction writing courses. Morning classes earn three transferable credit hours, and the itinerary focuses on places such as the Muse d’Orsay, the Louvre and famous cathedrals.
An extensive program has been designed for students to receive credit through the department of parks, recreation and tourism while hiking through the mountains of Switzerland.
For those who prefer warmer weather, an Arabic language program is now available in Alexandria, Egypt.
Students study modern ?standard and Egyptian colloquial Arabic while exploring the country’s second-largest city, founded by Alexander the Great.
For history majors, the program in Buenos Aires, Argentina, can broaden knowledge concerning Latin American history and give an excellent opportunity to visit the “Paris of South America.”
The seventh new summer program is the study of social work in Eastern Europe. The group leaves in mid-May after finals and flies to Sofia, Bulgaria, and Prague, Czech Republic, for 11 days, earning three credit hours.
Students who have traveled abroad say the experience is life changing.
“It was challenging, undeniably worth it and ?beautiful,” said Matthew Barney, a senior in philosophy.
Chaz Moder, junior in business, said his favorite part of living in Spain as part of the Study Abroad Program was the history in everything.
“Everything was really compact and hundreds of years old,” he said.
The cost of the trips averages between $1,500 and $3,800 and includes tuition, room and board and required international insurance.
For ?more information about the new Summer 2006 opportunities and other programs available through the International Center and other agencies, visit the Study Abroad ?Fair this Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Union Ballroom.