SIT Study Abroad: International Programs for Graduate Credit this Summer (April 1 2008 deadline)

SIT Study Abroad  is a sister program to the SIT Graduate Institute, and is also headquartered in Brattleboro, Vermont.  SIT Study Abroad, a Program of World Learning, long a leader in undergraduate study abroad programs, is now offering graduate-level credit through three summer programs.  At SIT PIM Admissions, we wanted to alert you to the possibilities available through SIT Study Abroad, which could be appealing in particular to those of you interested in gathering some international experience prior to starting classes at SIT Graduate Institute. 

If you are interested in learning more about SIT Study Abroad, see the contact information at the bottom of this blog entry, and apply soon!  Applications for summer programs are due April 1, 2008.

SIT Study Abroad offers a wide variety of programs throughout the world, with each program’s curriculum designed around a theme. This theme, examined in an interdisciplinary manner, provides a central focus for classroom studies and independent study projects.

Starting in the Summer 2008, graduate-level credit will be available for three of SIT Study Abroad programs, based in the South Balkans, India and Switzerland.  Please find outlined below information about each of these programs, for your information.
 

Balkans:  State Building and Human Rights in the South Balkans

Witness the emergence of new states in the south Balkans and the challenges they confront, especially in ensuring minority human rights. In Montenegro, an independent state since 2006, meet government officials building their new country and citizen groups playing a watchdog role against corruption and for Muslim and Roma rights. In Kosovo, a UN supervised territory since 1999, hear debates on future status, institution-building, and how to ensure human rights for Serb, Roma and other minorities. In Macedonia, examine power-sharing between majority Macedonian Slavs and minority ethnic Albanians, as well as efforts to integrate the largest settled Roma community in Europe. Throughout the South Balkans, the impact of international involvement will be considered, particularly UN peacekeeping, NATO humanitarian intervention, development assistance, and possibilities of European Union accession.

Emphasis is placed on the concept of reciprocity through a community action project in the Roma community in Skopje, Macedonia.
 

India:  Himalayan Buddhist Art and Architecture

Spiti, Ladakh, and Zanskar are among the most remote and beautiful areas of Indic Asia. Despite their political inclusion within the modern state of India, these areas are considered to be within the Tibetan cultural sphere. However, unlike Tibet itself, Spiti and Ladakh are still culturally vibrant and relatively unspoiled by modern tourism or the imposition of foreign social norms. Many ancient Vajrayana Buddhist monasteries in the region provide awe-inspiring examples of the intricate religious systems of Western Himalayan Buddhism and its rich artistic institutions.

Vajrayana (Tibetan) Buddhism is the most complex form of Buddhism, not only in its philosophical foundations, but also in its visual expression. Buddhist monasteries use distinctive styles of architecture, painting, and sculpture to support, explain, and illustrate the elaborate systems of Vajrayana cosmography with its vast pantheon of Buddhas, bodhisattvas, gods, goddesses, godlings, saints, demons, ghouls, and spirits.
 

Switzerland:  International Studies, Organizations, and Social Justice

Since the onset of conflict in Iraq, the role of international organizations in maintaining world peace and promoting development of countries in the global South has become increasingly controversial. This program enables students to increase their understanding of the multifaceted United Nations system, while also examining the extraordinarily large number of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) based in Geneva.

In the first part of the program, students attend seminars and complete field-based assignments. Later, each student will engage in interactive research to develop in-depth competence in an area of particular interest.
 

For more information:

If you have already earned an undergraduate degree or the equivalent from a college or university and are interested in earning graduate-level credit for one of the following summer programs, please contact a SIT Study Abroad coordinator at studyabroad@sit.edu or 888.272.7881.  More information about SIT Study Abroad can be found on our website at http://www.worldlearning.org/323.htm.    And finally, to see an online catalog of all of SIT Study Abroad’s programs, see http://www.worldlearning.org/SSA_Other_documents/ssa_catalog2008.pdf

Tags: - World Learning, SIT Study Abroad