A Different Kind of Classroom: Putting the Education in Education Abroad

When you are conceptualizing your faculty-taught program, it can be helpful to know what other UMass programs are doing. Typically, UMass faculty-taught programs have an overseas component that lasts from 10 days to six weeks. Programs that are shorter in length (spring break, winter session, some May term programs) often are embedded in an on-campus, semester-long course that meets prior to departure in order to fulfill minimum contact hour requirements. Programs that are stand-alone – normally summer programs that are a minimum of three weeks – usually have all of their academic requirements taking place abroad. 

Credits: Faculty-taught programs should include the same number of contact hours per credit as courses taught on campus, i.e. a three-credit lecture course generally carries 45 hours of academic content delivery. Although faculty and students will spend a significant amount of time each day with one another while abroad, it is not appropriate to count every hour spent together as academic credit. Programs normally carry between three and nine credits, depending on the program type and length of time spent abroad. For stand-alone wintersession, spring break or summer programs, Continuing and Professional Education (CPE) at UMass will register students and issue credits upon program completion.

**Programs of four weeks or greater, and six credits or more, allow students to compete for more scholarships and in the case of summer programs, be eligible for UMass financial aid. Your program's viability will be assessed on these criteria, among others**

Dates: When selecting the dates of your program, you should consider the UMass academic calendar (including but not limited to winter, spring and summer vacations, commencement, grade submission deadlines, US holidays etc.) as well as the climate, holidays and high versus low travel seasons (and related costs) for your overseas destination(s).

A Different Kind of Classroom: Incorporating the local culture and host community into the academic structure of your program in thoughtful, meaningful ways is key to a successful faculty-led program. Consider setting intercultural and global learning goals that align with the AACU rubrics (found here and here, and also in the Documents Center) and preparing your students for what they will be experiencing in-country by pre-departure meetings, assigning readings, and working with IPO to customize their required pre-departure orientation. 

Cultural experiences, living arrangements and other activities should be carefully planned with reputable organizations, both on the ground in the US. IPO will connect you with an ideal International Education Organization (IEO) to handle most of the day-to-day arrangements, such as housing, meals, guest lectures, site visits, and in-country transportation.

Things to consider when conceptualizing your in-country “classroom”, that should include a combination of special events and everyday activities, plus exercises to help students understand why such activities are meaningful.

• Daily activities: using public transportation, grocery shopping, meetings and gatherings with local students, dining out
• Special events: religious services, sporting matches, theater or musical performances, etc.
• Accommodations: homestays (for maximum cultural and linguistic integration, requires substantial vetting), student residences (sharing space with local and/or international students), hostels or hotels (for multi-city itineraries where only a few days are being spent in each location).

Creating an Itinerary: Your in-country itinerary should logically complement your academic plan and goals for your program. A SMART itinerary is:

• Specific – a visit to a museum in Madrid? No. A visit to the Reina Sofia to discuss implications of the Spanish Civil War in artistic movements of the 1930s and 40s? Yes!
• Measurable – each activity or visit should serve an academic or intercultural learning goal.
• Achievable – five business visits in one day in London with 35 students? Impossible. A visit to a bank in the morning and a walking tour of the financial district in the afternoon? Achievable.
• Realistic – remember, you are traveling with young, usually inexperienced travelers. Incorporating “down time” into your itinerary is not a waste of time, it can actually help students process and reflect on everything they are seeing!
• Time-oriented – just because you can spend 4 hours in a museum, doesn’t mean you have to. Consider your students and how you design classroom activities for them on campus when designing an overseas itinerary that will provoke maximum reflection and interest. 

Once you, your chair and IPO have decided that your proposed program will fill an international need for your target student group, you will work with the Academic Initiatives Coordinator to discuss the above academic and logistical issues, partner with an International Education Organization (IEO), and fill out the preliminary program proposal for COPE. Please visit the “Document Center” on the sidebar menu to access the following documents:

• COPE Preliminary Proposal Worksheet (actual proposals will be submitted on CMS website)
• Budget Workbook (Excel template)
• Sample Syllabi and Itineraries

Remember: It is not necessary to complete these items on your own; the Academic Initiatives Coordinator will be more than happy to answer questions and provide logistical support and guidance throughout the entire program proposal process. This is particularly applicable to the financial planning and budgeting aspect of your proposal. 

Also in the “Document Center” is a diagram of the COPE/ISC Workflow process that contains additional detailed information about the approval process and timeframe from first IPO meeting to the program start date. Please consult the Document Center for a number of helpful supporting documents. 

Please consult the sidebar menu for more helpful information and handouts on student recruitment and acceptance, as well as health and safety abroad.