SSA Themes List
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Phone:
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802.258.3212
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802.258.3388
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802.258.3296
PO Box 676, 1 Kipling Road
Brattleboro, VT 05302 USA
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Coursework
SIT Study Abroad programs offer an interdisciplinary, field-based format and demands academic excellence from our students. Students do not select individual courses, but are enrolled in the full program of study on each SIT Study Abroad program. All programs are credit bearing, and students may not opt out of any portion of the coursework, nor may they elect to take pass-fail classes.
Semester programs offer 16 credits; summer programs range from 6-8 credits. Like the semester programs, summer programs are focused and intensive.
Based on SIT Study Abroad's experiential program model, each program consists of some combination of Intensive Language Study, Thematic Seminar, Field Study Seminar, and Independent Study Project. Intensive Language Study, Thematic Seminar and Field Study Seminar coursework occurs simultaneously in the first two-thirds of the program, while the Independent Study Project takes place in the last four weeks of a typical semester program.
Syllabi for individual programs are available on specific program pages.
Intensive Language Study
SIT language instruction is offered through qualified private teachers, language institutes, and universities. Most instructors are native speakers of the language. Students focus on oral, authentic communication during three to six hours of daily formal classroom instruction and discussion as well as field exercises.
SIT Study Abroad places students in small classes appropriate to language level based on in-country evaluation, including estimated ACTFL (American Council of the Teaching of Foreign Languages) oral proficiency testing.
Students who test above the level regularly offered can arrange for Guided Self Instruction (GSI). GSI involves independent language study and individual meetings with a language teacher based on specific objectives set by the student and the instructor. GSI may add an additional cost for the student.
SIT Study Abroad uses a variety of methods to evaluate and document communicative competence, including entry and exit oral proficiency testing. Final transcripts indicate the grade for the language course, as well as estimated entry and exit ACTFL ratings.
SIT Study Abroad currently offers more than 35 languages, including 26 less-commonly taught languages.
Thematic Seminar
This interdisciplinary course focuses on the program theme as listed in each program title, e.g., Multiculturalism and Social Change, Reconciliation and Development, Arts and Culture. Students explore all facets of the theme, in conjunction with professors, community leaders, experts, practitioners, and others who provide unique, diverse perspectives on key issues.
The Thematic Seminar includes typical classroom activities like lectures and reading assignments, but also incorporates excursions, visits to organizations, workshops, critical thinking exercises and field-based assignments. In addition to teaching about the local context of the theme, the seminar addresses theoretical and macro level concepts that can be applied to student work in the US or anywhere in the world.
In many cases, this seminar is taught in cooperation with a host-country university or institute. SIT Study Abroad students do not enroll full time in these institutions, but benefit from the expertise of professors and faculty there.
Field Study Seminar
The Field Study Seminar prepares students to conduct ethical, effective, and culturally appropriate fieldwork. Through Field Study methodology discussions and hands-on assignments, students are prepared to develop, implement, and present independent research, from budgeting to protecting informants. Students also learn to acknowledge the effect of informants' biases – and their own – on the design of field study projects and the interpretation of data.
Material includes cross-cultural adaptation and skills building; project selection and refinement; appropriate methodologies; field study ethics and IRB review; developing contacts and finding resources; developing skills in observation and interviewing; gathering, organizing and communicating data; and maintaining a work journal.
Environmental studies programs include an Environmental Field Studies Seminar, which emphasizes fieldwork in the natural sciences.
Independent Study Project (ISP)
Many programs include an ISP, a cornerstone of SIT’s distinctive program model. The engaged, active learning of the ISP is the culmination of most SIT Study Abroad semester programs and takes place in the last weeks of the program.
Students work with Academic Directors and ISP advisors to define a project, establish contacts, budget for the process, and determine appropriate living quarters. All aspects of the program prior to the ISP come into play as students challenge themselves to manage the dynamics of their research. Students will draw on their theoretical and broad knowledge of the subject, along with methodology, cross-cultural competency, and linguistic ability to successfully complete the program.
SIT Study Abroad alumni consider the ISP one of the most rewarding features of their experience - both academically and personally. Students delve into topics about which they are passionate, which may include cooperation with local research facilities, government agencies, schools, or other institutions.
Special attention is focused on the reciprocal nature of the ISP. Students should choose projects that contribute to the field, the community, and the people with whom they are working. In many cases, students may work on a topic at the suggestion of a local community organization, based on a need within that community.
The culmination of the project is typically a 20- to 40-page paper that students present to colleagues, Academic Directors, and often, their advisors and other interested host-country individuals. In the past, students have also presented works of fiction, photo journals, artwork and performances (with an additional written component) as alternative ISPs.
For many students, the ISP marks the beginning of an academic journey that affects their career choices and alters the way they interact with their world. SIT Study Abroad ISPs routinely form the basis for senior theses, successful grant proposals, graduate-level research, fellowships, or international career paths.
