With the recent announcement of a University of Houston partnership with the Mexican government, the university has further strengthened its commitment to providing opportunities for students to study, research, and live in international settings.

The College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences provides several options for students to ‘earn a stamp in their passports’ through faculty-led trips abroad. Below are some of the upcoming opportunities:

France

Hosted by Modern and Classical Languages

May 27-June 25, 2017

The French program will be held at the Université Catholique de l’Ouest, in Angers. Students will receive classroom instruction at the intermediate and advanced levels of French, in a “total immersion” linguistic environment. They will experience the French family life during their homestay and discover the regions of France through their visit of places, structures and monuments studied in their courses. Excursions to the Loire Renaissance castles, the medieval island of Mont-Saint Michel, cathedrals, art museums, Anjou vineyards, troglodyte villages and local artisans, will enhance their understanding of the art, history and culture of France. Weekend trips to Paris will be offered. Click here for more information.

Spain

Hosted by Hispanic Studies

May 30-June 30, 2017

Participants will spend four days visiting Madrid before heading south to the coastal city of Cádiz. In Cádiz the students live with Spanish families and attend classes from 9:30 - 2:00 at the University of Cádiz. A wide range of courses are available, from third semester intermediate language courses, to 4000 level courses on Spanish literature and the visual arts. After many years traveling with groups to students to Cádiz, the biggest complaint the department receives is that the Spanish "mamás" feed them too much food! Click here for more information.

Greece

Hosted by Comparative Cultural Studies

June-July 2017

This course, Globalization and Health in Greece, will examine effects of economic and political globalization in Greece, with a particular focus on trauma, stress and mental health. Experiential learning of yoga designed to reduce stress and burnout in international relief workers will be a featured activity of the course. The syllabus will address role of IGOs, reginal NGOs, sub regional and local governance in relation to health-related policy issues such as emergency management, migration, refugee crises and individual mental health. Students will have the opportunity to experience Greek and Eastern Mediterranean culture and learn via applied, field work on the island of Lesvos and Athens.  Click here for more information.

Malawi

Hosted by Liberal Studies

July 6 – August 8

Liberal Studies introduced a new adventure-oriented learning abroad experience with its 2016 sailing in the North Atlantic on an historic tall ship, the Wylde Swan.  Headed to Malawi this year, students will trek Mount Mulanje, camp in Liwonde National Park, kayak on Lake Malawi while also having hands-on service learning experiences with three different global development organizations, in sustainable healthcare, agriculture, and business.  In Winter Sessions, Liberal Studies offers its European Cultural Tour, Paris to Venice, December 26-January 10.  Click here for more information.

Russia

Hosted by Psychology

Spring Break 2018

Studying abroad and trying to make new friends? Working on a business agreement with an international partner? Promoting public health in a remote rural area in a low-income country? Going to an international competition and trying to learn how to behave appropriately in public places? These and many other related situations will be discussed in this course on Cultural Psychology. The course’s didactic part will take place at the University of Houston and will cover the main principles of cultural psychology—a study into how behavior is shaped by and expressive of culture. Being a blend of many disciplines—psychology, anthropology, philosophy, linguistics, entrepreneurship and others, cultural psychology blurs the borders between various areas of study; correspondingly, this class is suitable for many majors and minors. The course’s applied part will take place in the cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg of Russia during the spring break. This part’s main task is to illustrate selected concepts of cultural psychology in action. For more information, please contact Ms. Mei Tan at mei.tan@times.uh.edu.

In addition to the CLASS faculty-led study abroad opportunities listed above, the university also offers a number of faculty-led as well as exchange programs, many of which are ideal opportunities for CLASS students. For more information, visit http://www.uh.edu/learningabroad/find-a-program/