At times, even a learning environment so visually captivating and historically intriguing as the University may seem lacking. When discussing the creation of the Sistine Chapel or the fall of the Roman Empire, it is no surprise that students might want to see the places described to them.
There is no substitute for the real thing. For University students who traveled abroad during January Term, this saying rings true.
According to Dudley Doane, director of Summer and Special Academic Programs at the University, 157 students participated in this year's eight January term abroad programs. The students traveled in small groups staffed by one or two of 12 University professors and associate professors involved. Students' destinations included Belize, Germany, Ghana, Ireland, Italy, Nicaragua and Spain, where they completed a three-credit course from Jan. 2 to 11. After the 10-day semester ended, students and staff returned to the States to rest up and prepare for spring classes, which began Jan. 16.
According to the International Studies Office Web site, ISO's mission is to provide University students with "new courses that address topics of current interest, study abroad programs, undergraduate research seminars and interdisciplinary courses." Based on accounts from students who studied abroad during J-Term, the mission has been successful.
"Overall I would give [my] experience a 10," said third-year Engineering student Sonja Lilley, who traveled to Florence and Rome, Italy for J-Term. "Being in the E-School, it is nearly impossible to study [abroad] for a whole semester."
Third-year College student Alex Campbell, who traveled to Arezzo, Italy for J-Term, also had a positive experience.
"It may have been a little costly for such a short period of time, but the material, the teachers, the location, the culture, the other students and all the activities outside of the coursework were without a doubt worth it," he said.
Though Doane said need-based financial aid is available for all J-Term students from Student Financial Services, the programs requires each student to pay as much as $5,000 or $6,000. Of that total, tuition costs accounted for about $2,600 to about $4,000, depending on the student's destination of interest.
"Being from out of state it was only a few hundred more than taking a J-Term at U.Va would have been," Lilley said. "I love U.Va., however, for a few hundred more there was no question that taking a class in Italy was well worth it."
In addition to tuition fees, students had to cover the cost of airfare, most meals and personal expenses such as souvenirs and travel fees. For most students, this resulted in an additional $1,000 to $1,500 of costs.
Once students sorted out their expenses and selected their destinations, they had a large amount of information to learn in a short duration of time upon arrival at their programs' sites.
"The curriculum was rushed but what more can you do in two weeks?" said fourth-year College student Khandice Williams, who went to Florence and Rome. "For two weeks it was perfect."
Third year College student Ashley Wootton, who participated in the Bahamas program last year and the trip to Belize this winter, said she found the Belize curriculum at first overwhelming; however, she added, "professors always allowed for reviews before tests, so I never felt too over my head."
Wootton noted that everything students learned in the classroom was reemphasized in their experiences outside of the classroom.
"All of the work we had to do was fully related to the subject matter and seamlessly tied into what we were learning or researching," Wootton said. "If anything, our work helped consolidate key biological concepts. Cultural experiences were more secondary to the biology and observed mainly on special field trips, like to the churches and small towns in the Bahamas and the Mayan ruins in Belize and Guatemala."
According to Wootton, the setting was not a distraction for her. Lilley agreed. "Being on site, there is always things that could potentially distract you, but the professors do a fairly good job of trying to give you enough time to stand in awe before speaking so that we can focus and so they don't have to compete with cameras," she said.
Students attended most of their classes in the morning and had free time during afternoons and weekends to explore.
"Each day was a new adventure full of so many amazing, beautiful, historic masterpieces," Lilley said. "At times it was almost overwhelming to be standing in front of these works that before you had only read about."
While Lilley was moved by the beautiful man-made works of Florence and Rome, Wootton enjoyed the natural environment of Belize.
"My favorite part of the Belize trip was our hiking trip through the Belizean jungles in Cockscomb Basin," Wootton said. "We hiked up to the tops of the mountains to see Victoria's Peak and then climbed down to twin waterfalls, where we scaled the slippery rocks and went for a cold swim."
Associate Prof. Scot French, who taught the urban studies and service learning course in Ghana, said he and other J-Term instructors considered the fact that students would need time away from traditional homework assignments. He said the goal of his trip and the other programs abroad was to relate the course material to the students' new environments.
"To do our work we had to immerse ourselves in the culture," said third-year Architecture student Sarah Collins, who attended J-Term in Ghana.
While environmental interactions and traditional study may seem difficult to achieve in only 10 days, the J-Term programs received positive feedback from student participants.
"I would go again to both [Belize and the Bahamas] in a heartbeat," Wootton said.
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