Off-Campus Programs

Off campus programs are available to all Albion College students who maintain a sufficient grade point average.  Many of these programs provide opportunities for students in the Institute for the Study of the Environment to broaden their experience in ways impossible on campus. Whether it be to study the marine, urban or tropical environment first hand; to appreciate a different culture's perspective on American policies; or to take environmental courses at a European or Australian University, off campus opportunities can be an invaluable experience.  Below we list a sampling of opportunities.  More information on off campus programs is available at the Albion Center for International Education site.  

Urban programs allow students an opportunity to become engaged in the environmental problems that beset urban areas.  Each of the programs listed below includes experiential components that will fulfill an Environmental Institute Internship requirement.

The Chicago Center  Earn credits while studying the cultural arts, politics, economics and social issues in Chicago. The Chicago Center (formally Urban Life Center) is a non-traditional academic program with experience-based seminars that take you out of the classroom and into the heart of the city's neighborhoods and professional internships in every field of study. Housing is provided in apartments with other Chicago Center students, in a beautiful lakefront neighborhood (Hyde Park).

The Washington Center for Learning Alternatives offers an internship program with opportunities in a wide variety of environmental organizations.  The internships are supplemented with weekly class meetings.  

The Philadelphia Center combines coursework with internships and experiential learning.  A wide range of internship opportunities, many appropriate for Environmental Institute students, is available.  Classes and seminars enrich the experience.

The Washington Semester Program is hosted by American University in Washington  D.C. The semester combines study of policy in Washington D.C. with travel, to Costa Rica in the spring semester or to Zimbabwe in the fall.  Internships with a wide range of environmental agencies and organizations in the Washington area are also available through this program.

 

Marine programs allow students opportunities to work with environmental issues related to the world's oceans in a coastal or ship-board setting.

The Duke University Marine Laboratory is located on Pivers Island, in North Carolina's Outer Banks.   The laboratory is rich in natural, physical and faculty resources for students interested in the environment.  Semester and summer programs are available.  Courses in marine biology, ecology policy and geology are offered.  Independent research projects are encouraged.  This program is strongly recommended for students considering graduate work in marine biology.

Sea Education Association offers the SEA semester, a program which combines course work with an experience aboard a sailing research vessel.  All students take classes in oceanography, nautical science and maritime studies.  All students participate in a six-week cruise on one of the associations two sailing vessels.  On the cruise, students complete two courses in Practical Oceanography.

International and Tropical Programs allow students opportunities to address global environmental issues.

The School for Field Studies is a highly recommended program that offers opportunities for classes and internships in Turk and Caicos, Kenya, Costa Rica and Baja Mexico.  The program has a strong environmental emphasis, and integrates class work with internships addressing local environmental issues. Some Spanish is required for Costa Rica and Baja Mexico. 

ACM Tropical Field Research in Costa Rica  is available in the spring semester.  Students spend two months in the field in Costa Rica, working on a research project designed in consultation with program staff.  Projects are possible in the natural sciences, social sciences,  archeology, and literature and the arts.  The last month of the program is spent in San Jose writing up and presenting their research to the others in the group. Students spend some time living with host families in Costa Rica.  At least one year of Spanish language is required.

Domestic Field Studies are available through several programs.

Southwest Field Studies, Earlham College is a field program conducted in the American Southwest.  Offered in the spring semester, courses include Natural History of the Colorado River Watershed, Outdoor Education, Environmental Issues in the Arid Southwest, and Cultures of the Southwest. The program includes visits to many natural and cultural sites in the region.

The Border Studies Program The Border Studies Program, located in El Paso and Ciudad Juárez, is devoted to exploring the cultures, histories, and cross-boundary relationships which are now shaping the identity of the borderlands. International trade and economic development, conflict and cooperation, health and the environment, and human rights and social justice are crucial issues telescoped and compressed into a small geographical area. Students enroll in three courses and complete an internship in an area of interest.

Environmental courses taken abroad can enrich students' experience in ways not possible on campus.  Several of the Universities approved for off-campus study for Albion College students are listed below.  These offer English language instruction, so students may enroll in advanced and  technical courses.  Students spending time at these Universities should check their programs of study with the Director of the Institute for the Study of the Environment as well as the Director of Off Campus Programs.

Aberdeen, Scotland

University of Newcastle, Australia

University of Queensland, Australia

James Cook University, Australia

University College Cork, Ireland

University of Cape Town, South Africa