Program Title: Direct Student Exchange
Location Abroad: Puebla, Mexico
Program Description: A direct exchange originally developed for anthropology and Spanish majors, this program offers Spanish immersion opportunities to students of many other disciplines, such as international relations, art, and business. Fluency in Spanish is desired, although many of the faculty are bilingual and are able to provide assistance to students not fully proficient in Spanish. Foreign students attending UDLA may also enroll in Spanish as a second language and a seminar on Mexican civilization, offered in both Spanish and English (numbers permitting). Intermediate level students may take the Spanish immersion program. Students may enroll in regular UDLA courses if their level of proficiency in Spanish allows it.
UDLA is an institution of some 5500 students, located between the cities of Cholula and Puebla, Mexico. It enrolls students from 30 foreign countries. The campus is close to a number of significant archaeological sites such as the Tlachihualtepetl pyramid, as well as a score of museums, historic sites and gems of colonial architecture. UDLA is two hours from Mexico City, and ten minutes from Puebla, the fourth largest city in Mexico. There are field trips and social events to orient visiting students to Mexican culture. The school of Social Sciences and Humanities has departments in Anthropology, Graphic Arts and Design, Education, languages, Humanities, International Relations and History, Communications, and Psychology. The School of Economics and Administrative Sciences includes the departments of Business Administration, Economics, and Accounting and Finance. There is also a School of Engineering, and a Division of Graduate Studies offering master's degrees in a number of fields. UDLA is accredited in the United States.
Host Institution: Universidad de las Americas Puebla (UDLA)
Fields of Study: Anthropology, Archaeology, Business and Economics, Latin American Studies and International Relations, Internships, Spanish Language, and Literature.
Dates: This program is for Spring, Summer, Fall, or academic year. Schedule: SPRING: early January to Mid-May; SUMMER: June & July; FALL: early August to end of December.
Admission Criteria: Students should have a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 2.75. Junior and Senior standing at the time of the exchange is recommended, although qualified Sophomores will be considered. A minimum of one semester is required for the beginning Spanish immersion program.
Language of Instruction: Spanish, some courses in English, subject to enrollment.
Costs: This is a direct-exchange program in which the outgoing student pays tuition to SUNY Potsdam, and the incoming exchange partner covers tuition in Mexico. SUNY students pay tuition to their home campus; non-SUNY students pay tuition directly to SUNY Potsdam. Room and board is paid in Mexico.
Application Deadline:
- Fall semester and Academic year: March 1
- Spring semester: September 01
- Summer term: March 15.
Program Title: Summer Spanish Immersion Program
Location Abroad: Puebla, Mexico.
Program Description: This is a six-week program. For the basic and intermediate levels, two academic courses of Spanish language are offered. The objective is to learn how to use grammatical structures and vocabulary to improve the use of Spanish in real contexts. For advanced and superior levels, one language course and one content course is required. The content courses include: Business Spanish; Panoramic Overview of Mexico (the current economic, political and social situations in Mexico); Mexican Civilization (a cultural and historical analysis from pre-Hispanic times to the present); Mexican Architecture; Mexican Literature; History of Mexico; NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement).
- A minimum of 10 students is required in order to run the above courses.
- The academic courses are "mandatory" and run from Monday to Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 12:10 p.m. Each course lasts 1 hour 50 minutes.
Host Institution: The Centro Internacional de Lengua y Cultura (International Center for Language and Culture) at UDLA - Puebla offers a Spanish Immersion Program for foreign students, in which students are given the opportunity to use the language in real contexts while learning. The program combines instruction in linguistic structures that are needed for successful communication with opportunities to practice Spanish outside the classroom in real life situations. This will better enable them to master the Spanish Language in more practical ways. http://www.udlap.mx/studyabroad/spanishprogram.html
Costs: This is a direct-exchange program in which the outgoing student pays tuition to SUNY Potsdam, and the incoming exchange partner covers tuition in Mexico. SUNY students pay tuition to their home campus; non-SUNY students pay tuition directly to SUNY Potsdam. Room and board is paid in Mexico.
Admissions Criteria: Admission Criteria: Students should have a minimum cumulative grade-
point average of 2.75. Sophomore, Junior and Senior standing at the time of the exchange is recommended, although exceptional Freshmen will be considered.
Application Deadline: Please see deadline dates above.
Completed applications materials should be sent to:
SUNY Potsdam
International Education & Programs
Lougheed Center for Applied Learning
Lougheed Learning Commons, Suite 107
44 Pierrepont Avenue
Potsdam, NY 13676-2294
Telephone: (315) 267-2507
Email: international@potsdam.edu
Passports: Students are responsible for obtaining their own passports. Since passports take some time to receive, you should begin this process early. If you have any questions about this program or for more information, please contact the respective International Education Office.