Study Abroad

Study Abroad

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Study abroad is one of the most effective ways of learning about the world. Hofstra students have many opportunities to earn credits while studying in other countries. Undergraduate students can choose from a number of programs that have been developed over the years by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, New College, and the School of Communication.

A brief description of Hofstra programs is listed below. All Hofstra undergraduates who meet the specific prerequisites of any program are eligible and welcome to apply. Information on these programs is available from the International Off-Campus Education Office in New College, Roosevelt Hall, Room 207, or from the individual Dean’s Office, indicated below.

Students who want to pursue programs not listed below can be advised by the International Off-Campus Education Office, 207 Roosevelt, about available programs elsewhere. To be eligible to receive credit toward a bachelor’s degree, students must have courses approved in advance on the Permission to Enroll at Another Institution Form, available from the International Off-Campus Education Office or the deans’ offices.

The Office of the Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs awards three full-tuition scholarships for a year of study in the University of Amsterdam’s program in European History and Culture. Students receive Hofstra credit for courses in European history, geography, economics, politics and Dutch language. (All courses are taught in English.) The program is recommended for students who have achieved junior status at Hofstra (a minimum of 58 credits), and have obtained better than a 3.5 grade point average. For more information, contact studyabroad@hofstra.edu. Dr. Peter Sherwood, Director of International Off-Campus Education, Roosevelt Hall, Room 207.

Each summer, Hofstra College of Liberal Arts and Sciences offers language and literature/culture programs in France, Spain, Italy, Latin America, Prague, Ireland, Japan, China, Germany and soon Russia. The program in France offers students four weeks in Paris, with the possibility of taking courses in French language, culture, and literature, or courses in English (typically French literature in translation, but occasionally other disciplines as well). Students also visit significant sites of culture, for example the Louvre and Versailles, as part of the program. The trip to Spain is based in Santiago de Compostela, and concludes with an excursion to Madrid. Courses offered typically include elementary, intermediate, and advanced language, literature, literature in translation, as well as courses in other disciplines. The program in Italy takes place in Sorrento; courses include all levels of language and literature, and occasionally courses in other disciplines are also offered. The program in Latin America is currently in Peru, where courses at all levels of language are offered as well as courses in Latin American and Caribbean Studies, and occasionally courses in other disciplines. The program in Prague and Central Europe affords students the opportunity to study history and political science at the Dartmore Institute, which hosts our students. The program in Japan visits Tokyo, the Fuji-Hakone region, Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara, as well as Hiroshima, where students visit the Peace Museum and other memorials to the 1945 atomic bombing. In addition, a side trip to Miyajima Island, the site of Itsukushima shrine, considered to be one of the most beautiful places in Japan, concludes the travel before returning to Tokyo for the final days. In Japan, students may elect to study political science, Asian literature, linguistics or Japanese language. The Ireland program takes place in Galway where students attend classes at the University there. Course offerings include: philosophy, religion, sociology and Gaelic language. This year two new programs will travel to China and Germany, offering stimulating cultural opportunities and courses. The program in China takes place in Shanghai, where students can study Chinese language and literature. The three-week August program in Germany is based in Munich and offers a comparative literature course on Munich.

Hofstra College of Liberal Arts and Sciences also offers three-week study-abroad programs during the January session. The London program offers courses in contemporary British theater and literary London. Class work is supplemented by theater performances and on-site excursions for both courses. The Venice Program gives students the opportunity to earn three credits in one of the following: comparative literature, art history and architecture, Italian language, and occasionally other disciplines. Side trips to Verona, Burano, Murano, and Torcello, and cultural tours within Venice supplement classroom work. The Athens Program affords students the opportunity to study comparative literature or history and enjoy all the cultural richness of Greece.

For further information about summer or January programs, please contact Maria Fixell, Coordinator of Study Abroad Program for HCLAS, 300 Calkins Hall, 107 Hofstra University, at (516) 463 4765 or Maria.L.Fixell@hofstra.edu.

International Off-Campus Education Office, Roosevelt Hall, Room 207. Dr. Peter W. Sherwood, Director. The International Off-Campus Education (OCE) program at New College offers all Hofstra students opportunities to earn credits toward their academic degree by enrolling in a study abroad program and/or participating in an internship abroad for a summer, semester or entire academic year. A member of the Hofstra faculty holds meetings and maintains contact with each student involved in the OCE program.

Study abroad programs with diverse course offerings are available in many cities, including Beijing, Berlin, Bonn, Brussels, Buenos Aires, Edinburgh, Madrid, Melbourne, Milan, Paris, Santiago, and Vienna. Students may also intern in a wide range of areas, such as the corporate world, education, health care, law, medical research, museums and art galleries, governmental and non-governmental organizations, public service, theater, or publishing.

Select New College students at Hofstra University are eligible to study for one semester or an academic year at Oxford’s St. Catherine’s College. Students will enjoy all the main privileges of studying at an Oxford college and participating in English university life.

New College’s Odyssey programs provide unique and exciting opportunities for students to discover both the world and themselves through study and travel abroad with Hofstra faculty. Since 1990 New College has been developing this signature Odyssey model, which recognizes that university learning is not only a educational journey but also a journey of self transformation.

An emphasis on experiential learning is central to the Odyssey programs. This model embodies the view that people often learn most effectively within small-scale communities that are intellectually challenging and that provide first-hand experience of the subject matter. These programs are designed to create an academic community in which ideas are seen as interconnected and where people explore the relevance of these ideas to the world. Recognizing the ways in which people are interrelated helps students learn how to solve problems and cooperate as team members. In this model, learning is not solely a means of undertaking coursework toward a degree but also a lifelong pursuit- an end in itself, a way of being, and a process of living.

Students who enroll in the Odyssey programs must be in good academic and financial standing. They must also have the maturity, adaptability, cultural curiosity and initiative to be able to travel, live and study in close quarters with others. With an attitude of respect and cooperation the group co-creates a mobile learning community that not only comes to know and appreciate other cultures, but also to foster the crucial skills and experiences that lie at the heart of a liberal arts education.

The European Odyssey is a semester-length interdisciplinary study abroad program open to all undergraduate students at Hofstra. Accompanied by New College faculty, students travel for ten weeks by minivan throughout western and eastern Europe. The focus and itinerary of the program vary each year in order to address events and issues of relevance in Europe. The courses examine both historical and contemporary topics in specific countries and regions as well as in Europe generally.

Students receive 16 credits for the program composed of 12 credits of course work and a four-credit independent project. The first aspect of the course work examines the ancient and medieval roots of European civilization, including the mythological, religious and sociopolitical foundations of Greece, Rome, and subsequent civilizations. Accordingly, participants visit archeological and historical sites of importance to complement the readings and other course material.

The second part of the program focuses on the contemporary political, economic, and sociological landscape of Europe. It explores current issues concerning European integration, including questions about the common currency, cultural identity and Europe’s relationship to the rest of the world. This component of the Odyssey includes visits to the European Union institutions such as the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France; the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg; and the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium.

The third aspect of the European Odyssey Program examines human values and human rights in the context of the history and culture of WW II and the post-war era in Europe. It focuses on thinkers such as Jean Paul Sartre, Elie Wiesel, Victor Frankl and Hannah Arendt and raises critical moral questions about human nature and history. It includes visits to sites such as Terezin and Dachau, concentration camps in the Czech Republic and Germany.

In addition to this course work students also do a supervised independent project focusing on topics of interest and relevance such as environmental policies, immigration issues, or current political or cultural developments in Europe. Students conduct interviews with scholars, politicians, and policy experts in order to deepen their research and analysis.

Course content is analyzed through a variety of formats including lectures, briefings, discussions, and presentations. In addition to regular exams, each student keeps a portfolio of reaction papers and a personal journal describing his/her experiences on the road.

The accommodations in youth hostels and inexpensive hotels are diverse, and program participants are expected to be flexible about housing arrangements.

Each January during the intersession New College offers the Mexican Odyssey which is entitled “Beyond the Borders: A Journey to the Heart of Mexico.” New College faculty lead a group of a dozen students on a three week learning adventure throughout south central Mexico including stops in Mexico City, Puebla, Oaxaca, Palenque, San Cristobal del as Casas and Puerto Angel. Students study Mexico’s diverse past including the major indigenous civilizations of the Aztecs, Maya, Olmecs and Zapotecs. Explorations of many of Mexico’s archeological treasures including the spectacular pre-Hispanic ruins of Teotihuacan, Cholula, Palenque, Yaxchilan, and Monte Alban complement the course work.

The program also focuses on contemporary Mexican political, economic and social issues with particular emphasis on the effects on Mexico of NAFTA and globalization. The group interviews scholars, politicians, journalists and citizens in order to understand current events such as the Zapatista uprising in the state of Chiapas and the complex electoral politics of Mexico. Additionally, students visit some of Mexico’s great museums exhibiting the work of painters such as Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, and Rufino Tamayo.

The Italian Odyssey explores the cultural and intellectual history of Italy in an exciting interdisciplinary program, which is held during June in Summer Session I. The learning adventure begins with two weeks in the picturesque town of Sorrento, Italy, located on western Italy’s Amalfi Coast at the southern tip of the Bay of Naples. The stay in Sorrento includes excursions to the Greek ruins at Paestum, the buried cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum (Ercolano), and the wondrous island of Capri. Next, the Italian Odyssey moves on to the Eternal City of Rome, where it explores the crossroads of the ancient, medieval and Renaissance ages, visiting the Coliseum, the Pantheon and Trevi Fountain, as well as St. Peter’s and the Vatican Museums. The Program concludes in Florence with an exploration of Renaissance ideas, art, and architecture. The Italian Odyssey Program also takes time to appreciate the beauty of the surrounding Tuscan countryside during several scheduled day trips.

The six-credit Italian Odyssey Program is composed of two three-credit Hofstra University courses (both taught in English): “From Rome to Renaissance: An Intellectual Odyssey” and “From Classical Forms to Renaissance Ideals: Dramatic Imagination in Italy.” The Italian Odyssey group flies to and from Rome, and then travels by private vans throughout to other locations. In Sorrento students are housed in lovely apartments with full kitchen facilities and double rooms. In Rome and Florence participants are housed in youth hostels where they have an opportunity to meet other students from around the world.

For more information on New College’s Odyssey programs, please contact Professor Linda Longmire at Nuclal@hofstra.edu or (516) 463-5828.

Students who wish to participate in these New College programs must submit detailed proposals in the semester prior to the start of their study abroad program. Written in consultation with the appropriate adviser, the proposal must make clear the student’s objectives and suitability for off-campus education. The proposal must also indicate that there is a sound educational relationship between the suggested course of study or internship and the student’s degree plan.

Writing requirements for internships are subject to New College guidelines or those established by the appropriate adviser.

For information about the unique requirements of the Odyssey programs, contact Professor Linda Longmire at Nuclal@hofstra.edu or (516) 463-5828.

Financial aid received by eligible Hofstra students may be used to pay for tuition, and room and board. Some programs may provide financial aid to eligible students.
For more information about the International Off-Campus Education program, please visit http://www.hofstra.edu/Academics/Colleges/NC/nc_oceint_page.html and/or contact Dr. Peter W. Sherwood, in Roosevelt 207, at (516) 463-5822.

The School encourages its students to participate in the University’s study-abroad programs whenever possible. On occasion, the School has offered a program in Israel focusing on that country’s mass media. Communication faculty have also participated in University programs in Montepulciano, Nice and Venice. Information about School involvement in this year’s international programs can be obtained in the Dean’s office.