T2 programs 20-21

Students will be billed Wellesley College tuition for the Fall Semester plus a program fee of $4,443 (50% of Wellesley’s Fall Semester room and board fees). The program fee will cover housing, meals, and reimbursement for round-trip transportation to the program site up to $1000, onsite orientation, excursions and cultural activities, and 24/7 access to local staff for emergency assistance. Financial Aid applies. 

Students may submit applications to multiple programs. 

Priority consideration will be given to students in good standing who:

1. Have a current or archived Proposal to Study Away on file for fall 2020

2. Have a current or archived Proposal to Study Away on file for spring 2021

3. Returning International Students with senior, junior or sophomore status who may not be able to travel to the US but can travel to the study abroad program site and submit a new Proposal to Study Away by July 10

4. Seniors who have not already studied abroad or whose Spring 2020 study abroad plans were interrupted and submit a new Proposal to Study Away by July 10

5. Other juniors who submit a new Proposal to Study Away by July 10

6. Sophomores who submit a new Proposal to Study Away by July 10

Please complete the preliminary application by July 10. 

Note: 

Students applying for programs with an internship component will need to submit a cover letter, resume and letter of recommendation from a faculty member or employer, by July 20. 

Students applying for the Bath program, which includes a tutorial with Oxford University tutor, will need to submit a statement of purpose that outlines relevant courses or extra-curricular activities that you have previously undertaken, what you hope to gain from pursuing the tutorial option, and any specific topics that you would like to focus on, as well as a sample of your work (e.g. an original essay, paper, or piece of creative writing) by July 20.

Cross Cultural Psychology

Psychology is a fascinating area of human studies and its knowledge helps people around the world. But can we simply take the psychological knowledge gained in one country and apply it in another country? Cross-cultural psychology examines how cultural differences in developmental, social and educational areas affect individual behavior and critically compares psychological research from specific countries. The theoretical section of the course introduces major theories and the latest research on cross-cultural psychology. In the practical section, critical thinking and intercultural competence will be developed through discussions, role play and self-experience techniques. Cross-cultural psychology explores a wide range of topics, so students who have an interest in psychology in general, or in specific psychology topics, may choose this course. 

European Economies in Transition

This course develops students’ understanding of European economies with an emphasis on the economics of transition. Within the frame of the European Union and the context of other national economic systems, the course focuses on the particular economic history of the Czech Republic and Central/Eastern Europe, with a view to implications for policy-making and business activities in post-transition countries. In particular, the course focuses on applying economic analysis to the comparison of different economic systems and understanding of functioning of those systems with an emphasis on transition economies. It also aims to introduce contemporary challenges within the European Union and Central European political and business environments. A significant component of the course will be spent testing theories against context-specific case studies, and students are therefore encouraged to actively participate in facilitated, hands-on discussions, presentations, and field visits.

History of Copenhagen: Structure, Plan, Design

The question underlying this course is a simple one: Why does Copenhagen look the way it does? The answer is less simple, though. Cities are human artifacts whose structure, plan, and design have evolved over the centuries in response to ever-changing needs and ideas. Therefore, to grasp current Copenhagen, we embark on an exciting journey into European intellectual, artistic, religious, political, economic, social, technological, and military history.

Danish Politics and Society

Myths & Legends of Britain & Ireland

Britain and Ireland have a rich heritage of myths and legend that merit comparison with the better-known Greek and Norse cycles. This course will begin by analysing early Celtic myths and legends, exemplified by the Irish epic The Táin and the Welsh Mabinogion. We will examine the cultural practices and values that the texts reflect, and consider the relationship between myth and history in these tales of romance, spells, shape-shifting, and battle. We will read the earliest tales of King Arthur, along with adaptations ranging from the medieval period to the nineteenth century, and compare this aristocratic figure with Robin Hood, a hero of the people. We will explore legends of fairies, giants, dragons, and boggarts, myth revisions by modern poets such as Yeats and Eliot, and examples of contemporary mythmaking.

The Vikings

The image of the pillaging Viking raider is a mainstay of popular culture, but behind that image lies a much more complex reality.  From its base in Scandinavia, the Viking world stretched from the Arabic caliphates in the east, across the whole of Europe, and out to North America in the west. It was diverse, culturally complicated and politically influential. This course will explore the history of the Vikings through their own primary source material, their art and technology, their vibrant literature, and the myths that they created. We will also look at Viking society through an examination of gender roles, and their cultural interactions with a wide variety of other peoples: from the Saami in the Arctic Circle, and the Anglo-Saxons and Celts in the British Isles, to people in the Slavic countries, the Byzantine empire, and beyond. Students will engage with a wide variety of primary source material, both documentary and archaeological, produced by the Vikings and by their opponents, as well as with the vibrant secondary literature.

Writing Character Driven Prose

The novelist John Gardner observed that a character’s ‘subtle emotional signals […] show where the action must go next.’ A hand gesture, a snippet of dialogue, even a pause can reveal much about a character’s experience, personality and motivation, so that any writer listening closely to what their character has to say will inevitably write a truthful story. In this module, we will analyse a range of character types from both fiction and nonfiction, exploring the complex relationships among writer, character and reader. We’ll also consider the dynamic between character, plot and structure, and how these relate to form in the writing of prose. Through various study activities and assignments, students will expand their understanding and use of technique, as well as experimenting in whichever form or genre of prose interests them most. They will participate in regular workshops and receive feedback on their writing, as well as formulating constructive responses to the work of others. This will enable them to develop the clarity and dexterity of their prose, with the aim of redrafting and polishing one or more of the writing assignments to a publishable standard.

Individual Tutorial

Le Déconfinement: France, Feminisms and Post-Pandemic Futures

Before the COVID-19 pandemic struck France, the country was embroiled in debates between pro and anti- #MeToo defenders, polemics surrounding France’s unconditional support of artists accused of sex crimes (e.g., Roman Polanski, Woody Allen, and Gabriel Matzneff), and calls for the government to respond to the country’s high rates of domestic abuse. While discussions paralleled North America debates, the rhetoric, responses, and proposals put forward took a distinctly French turn, as, for example, with #balancetonporc (denounce your pig) and efforts to situate sexual harassment within the history of French galanterie and libertinage against what some viewed as the encroachment of American puritanical thinking. As in the United States, confinement has only exacerbated gender inequalities, making clear that while women represent a large percentage of “essential workers,” they are also disproportionately working the “second shift” in their homes as they are tasked with providing a larger share of child care and performing more household chores than their male counterparts. This course will familiarize students with past and present feminist movements in France, the land of “liberté, égalité, fraternité” and birthplace of Simone de Beauvoir. Students will engage analytically and experientially with post-confinement French efforts and obstacles to creating a more gender equal society.

European Healthcare and Welfare

Course description forthcoming. 

Intercultural Communication

Course description forthcoming.

Aegean & Ancient Greek Art & Archaeology

A survey course, with extensive on-site teaching, covering the art and archaeology of Greece from prehistoric times to the end of the Classical period. Its purpose is to introduce the student, using whenever possible the primary sources (monuments, art and artifacts) of the ancient civilizations of the Aegean and Greece: Minoan, Mycenaean, and Classical Greek. The schedule of class visits to sites, monuments and museums is coordinated as much as possible with school field trips. Classroom lectures and the readings provide the historical context for the monuments and artifacts students are instructed on.

Immigrants, Citizenship and Nationalism in Europe

Global IT and Ethics

We all live in an age of computing. Whether through apps, web commerce or social networking, it appears computing has become an essential part of modern society, and terms such as ubiquitous and pervasive seem reasonable. However, when we step behind all the technicalities of computer applications and usage what is their effect on society as a whole? Can they be a source of problems as well as benefits? This course will explore the evolution of the relationship between the concepts of technology and ethics. Ethics is the study of the values and customs of a person or group and covers the analysis and employment of concepts such as right and wrong, good and evil, and responsibility. In a nutshell, we will investigate the way we use information technology and how it can really serve individuals, groups and society as a whole.

The Global Condition

Sustainable Food Production in Italy

There are more than six billion humans on the planet, each of whom needs to eat every day: ever-higher food production is contributing to faster use of non-renewable fossil fuels and environmental degradation. What modes of food production and consumption may be viable, sustainable responses to this problem? What are some alternative models of food production? How are people responding to increasing inequalities relating to food availability? What can we learn from Italian food cultures in terms of sustainability? This course focuses on the radical increase in food production over the last 70 years and the ecological and social problems it has created, as well as on some possible solutions: the organic movement, Slow Food, and the shift towards local food. A critical eye on these movements and analysis of their ability to change the trajectory of the global food production system, which is rapidly heading for collapse, will be casted. 

The History and Culture of Food in Italy

The Refugee Crisis in Jordan and Its Impact on Youth

The refugee crisis in the Middle East has assumed momentous proportions with the escalation and persistence of the Syrian conflict, and shows few signs of abating. Jordan, a relative oasis of stability in the region, has taken on over 600,000 refugees from Syria since 2011. Indeed, Jordan has long served as a place of refuge in the region, with approximately 2.8 million refugees—1 million of them children—crossing its borders since 1948. This course focuses on the refugee crisis in Jordan through the lens of its impact on youth. It considers the repercussions of conflict and forced migration on the most vulnerable populations, and the attempts of both Jordan and the international community to mitigate them. In particular, the course examines the central role of education—among a constellation of social, political, and economic factors—in the resettlement of refugee children. Lectures are supplemented by guest speakers and field visits to the many NGOs, international agencies, and government ministries at the center of this crisis. 

Globalization and Governance in International Relations

Course description forthcoming.

Civil Society and Democracy in Taiwan

Visualizing Southeast Asia

This course investigates and problematizes the visual portrayals of history, culture and contemporary societies in Southeast Asia, with a focus on Vietnam. Through photography, filmography, new media, and other visual representations, we consider the interweaving of cultural identities, historical processes of development, and many socio-political issues in Southeast Asian societies. The course also introduces students to important visual works that have shaped discussions on Vietnam’s development, and which have contributed to a more multifaceted, nuanced “Vietnamese identity”. These visual works are supplemented by key texts on Vietnamese identity, and course participants confront and supplement these texts further with their own practical fieldwork, street photography, and visual and ethnographic encounters in Vietnam.