Part of studying abroad involves getting acquainted with a culture and all of the new experiences in that country, but some students only stay on the surface rather than dive deep and immerse themselves. As a way to encourage students to take full advantage of life abroad and embrace the intercultural interactions, DU is offering two new preparatory courses.
The courses, INTZ 2501: Preparing for Study Abroad and INTZ 2502: Living Study Abroad, are each one-credit and will be part of a two-credit sequence. The INTZ 2501 will be offered this spring, where students will meet every other Friday for two hours on campus and complete some reading and writing assignments. The 2502 course will be online and will have more flexibility to accommodate the different students that may be in different time zones or have limited access to the Internet, according to Sarah Schmidt, experimental learning program manager at the Office of International Education and a member of the committee responsible for designing the new courses.
“The goal of the course [INTZ 2501] is that students really take what we talk about in the course and that they use the concepts as a way to stretch themselves in their new environments and to really make the most of their experiences so that their not just going and touching the surface, but that they are diving in and delving deeper,” said Schmidt.
The courses are required for students studying on unaffiliated programs but are optional and encouraged for any other students going abroad.
“Some students are on programs where they are already getting that guidance through this process of figuring out the culture they are in and someone that has already helped them, but some of the programs don’t already have that embedded in the program,” said Schmidt.
Schmidt believes the course will help students connect to their cultures before they even go to their countries and help make their transition easier.
“The act of just being abroad doesn’t necessarily always provide that [cultural connection] for students,” said Schmidt.
In order to get a better understanding of the cultural connections, the INTZ 2501 course will cover concepts of identity, globalization and culture. The second course will help students develop practical applications in their own cities or countries through online blogs and discussion forums.
The courses were spearheaded by a committee of 10 different faculty and staff from various departments around campus who will be responsible for teaching the courses.
While Schmidt and the faculty are excited about the new opportunity to have students partake in these courses, other students who recently returned from abroad feel differently.
“It is great to have the support system [from DU] but I think that sometimes it can be overdone,” said Keegan Kienzle, a junior international studies and Spanish major from Whittier, Calif. Kienzle, who recently returned from studying abroad in Spain feels students need to make the most of their experience without any assistance.
“I’m sure some students will benefit but I think it is just another form of being overly accessible. When you are abroad, it can’t always be sunshine and rainbows and you need to experience it on your own,” said Kienzle.
Schmidt hopes the program will be successful enough so it will become a requirement for every student prior to studying abroad.
“We would love to have as many students take the course because that will provide us the feedback and help us make it as useful as possible for the future,” said Schmidt.
