Surfing the waves of Nicaragua, spending a week in Aspen learning about stress management or getting first hand experience in policy making in Washington D.C. might not seem like your normal four-credit courses, but DU’s upcoming Summer Interterm courses offer an alternative to the conventional classes for students.

The three Summer Interterm courses this year will be from June 9-16. The deadline to register for the International course “Nicaragua: Developmental Dilemmas” is April 14, while the deadline for “Getting Results Inside the Beltway: Power & Policy in Washington, D.C.” is May 1 and “Stress Management” course in Aspen has a deadline of May 11.

With different Interterm courses offered every Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer quarter, DU’s Interterm program allows students to participate in unconventional classes and travel the world while getting academic credit. DU offers numerous interterm courses in cities within the U.S. as well as across the world and can be applied to majors, minors or as elective credits.

Previous interterms have included courses in Austria, Belize, China, France, Peru and Nicaragua as well as San Francisco, New York, Aspen and Hawaii. These courses have focused on everything from leadership, management, photography, geography and finance.

The majority of the Interterm courses are taught by professors who have years of experience in that region. Take, for example, Associate Professor of Geography and the Environment Matthew Taylor, who has been teaching an interterm course in Nicaragua since 2007. After doing research in both Guatemala and Nicaragua, Taylor decided he wanted to share that with his students.

Taylor’s course, “Nicaragua: Developmental Dilemmas” looks at the effects of tourism on Nicaragua and its overall effects on its development.

“I really think these types of classes are beneficial because if you go with somebody who knows a place like the back of their hand you can cut really deep in a short amount of time,” said Taylor.

Although he has taught the course for over six years, Taylor continues to learn something each time he teaches it.
“For me, I change certain elements of the course each time I teach it so I continue to learn as well,” said Taylor.

Junior Anthropology major Jackie Berger took an interterm course in December 2011 in Peru. The course, “Andean Landscapes: Inca Trail and Lake Titicaca” taught by Department of Geography Professor Erika Trigoso focused on the geography, history, archaeology, biology and ecology within the Andean Region of Peru.

“Through their very nature, interterm courses demand interaction on the part of the student,” said Berger. “Immersed in the course material, literally and figuratively, you can approach learning and class as supplement or component to your travel experience, as opposed to a drag or a bother.”

Students looking to get a preview for study abroad can experience the Interterm course to help see other cultures and experience parts of the world they may have never thought of traveling to.

Berger, who studied abroad in Fall 2012 in Rome, Italy, felt that her interterm course in Peru let her experience another culture outside of her study abroad experience.

“While study abroad offered many interesting experiences, the full-immersive nature of interterm courses is truly unique,” said Berger. “Traveling with Professor Trigoso, who is a native Peruvian, allowed me to gain an insider’s perspective and understand Peruvian culture in a way not available to the casual traveler. Without a doubt, hiking the Inca Trail, which culminated in our visit to Machu Picchu was the highlight of my trip.”

Professor Taylor also agrees that the interterm courses provide a preview of study abroad and can be specifically beneficial to first and second year students.

“There’s also the benefit of opening up students’ eyes,” said Taylor. “Students get that with study abroad but this way, I think, you can push the boundaries a little bit further with someone who has experience.”

Although the interterm courses are not the most affordable, loans and scholarships are available for certain students. The cost of each course is the same as DU tuition, along with the specific travel expenses for each location, which can get expensive with airfare.

“Given the amazing experience I had on interterm, I think DU should encourage more students to take advantage of Interterm courses and provide financial aid so that more students can participate, regardless of financial situation,” said Berger.

The majority of these courses have a wide range of students who have lots of different interests. According to Berger, nearly every person on the trip had a different major.

“I really like having a wide mix of majors because if it is all just geography and environmental science majors, for me, everybody sees things through the same lens but if there are other majors it is much more exciting and they can expand their social capital as well,” said Taylor.

As for the day-to-day routines, students are not getting lectured inside a classroom, but rather taking part in cultural activities and learning outside the box. For anyone looking to get credit outside the classroom and to see other parts of the world, interterm courses may be the best option.

“Years down the line I’ll have students email me and say ‘that class really opened my eyes and showed me how to travel on my own and in the future,’” said Taylor. “It gives people the courage and the knowledge to say ‘wow there are some amazing places in the world.’”

Registration for the Summer Interterm courses can be found online.