Notre Dame's Office of International Studies announced they will offer three new opportunities for students to study abroad this spring. The programs will take place in South Korea, Spain and Switzerland beginning in 2014.
Kathleen Opel, Director of the International Studies department, said these programs were chosen at new sites to offer opportunities in locations where Notre Dame did not previously have study abroad programs.
"Students are offered new opportunities in engineering, physics and a wide array programming at a top research university in Korea," she said. "Additionally, students on campus will benefit from the participation of international exchange students in their classes and residence halls.
A press release from the International Studies department stated that Notre Dame will partner with Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea to begin a bilateral exchange program. The program will be open to undergraduates in all majors.
In South Korea, students will be able to choose from a range of courses including Korean language, Korean studies, business economics, politics, sociology, engineering, sciences, and human ecology, the press release stated. The press release said the program does not require knowledge of the Korean language, since all courses will be taught in English.
"In [the] exchange program at Yonsei University in Seoul, several students from Yonsei will be able to study here while several of our students can take classes in the many disciplines offered at Yonsei," Opel said.
Notre Dame also partnered with the Polytechnic Institute of Valencia in Alcoy, Spain and will begin a bilateral exchange program in Spring 2014, the press release stated.
The program is designed for sophomore or junior engineering majors, specifically those in chemical, electrical and computer science engineering, it said.
"Polytechnic Institute of Valencia in Alcoy, Spain offers engineering study programs that complement engineering studies here on campus," Opel said. "As an exchange program, several students from Alcoy will study engineering here at ND while several of our students may study there."
The program is open to only those students who have completed at least two semesters of college-level Spanish or the equivalent.
In Spring 2014, students will also have the opportunity to study at the University of Geneva (UNIGE) and the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Switzerland, the press release said. The program is made possible through Boston University's Geneva-Physics program, it said.
Opel said the program in Geneva, Switzerland would provide students with the outstanding opportunity to study physics at the University of Geneva and work with some of the worlds leading physicists at CERN.
The program will combine coursework in quantum physics and electrodynamics at UNIGE and directed research at CERN, the press release stated. Students majoring in physics who have completed at least two semesters of college-level French or the equivalent are eligible for the program.
The press release said students would be required to complete a specifically designed French-language tutorial before studying in Geneva.
"All three programs are starting with relatively few competitively selected students," Opel said. "Our goal is to provide more opportunities in different disciplines and geographic areas."
