Fall Semester Abroad Programs
St. Petersburg FSA 2009
The Fall Semester Abroad (FSA) programs provide an exceptional opportunity to teach and work with students overseas.
Two Bates faculty lead each program, often with one individual serving as a director with the other assisting. Typically each fall, there is one program or, if higher enrollments are probable, a maximum of two. The enrollment goal is 25 students with all classes represented, including entering students. One goal of the FSA program is to enhance the foreign language curriculum at Bates so the faculty member who serves as director must be competent in one of the languages taught at Bates. However, s/he need not be from a language department since local adjunct faculty teach the two language courses.
Directing an FSA program is a major undertaking since the faculty are entirely responsible for all aspects of the program: conceptualizing and teaching the two thematic courses; making travel and local arrangements, including housing and classroom space; hiring and supervising the adjunct faculty; recruiting students; budgeting; arranging field trips; monitoring student life abroad; and coping with unanticipated events. This long list is incomplete, but even so, the faculty who participate on this program find it a tremendously rewarding and rejuvenating undertaking – as well as exhausting. A key to managing the burden is for the two faculty members to share the various tasks, to recruit students early and often, and to work with a host organization abroad that is experienced in providing many of the services needed. A “Fall Semester Abroad Program Planning Handbook” is available in the Off-Campus Study Office to help with the planning process. This Handbook also outlines the application process and the basic administrative procedures and safety requirements.
The Off-Campus Study Committee selects these programs in consultation with the Dean of Faculty and has established a multi-year planning framework. Programs in the “less commonly studied” languages – Chinese, German, Japanese, and Russian – are given a preference since a goal is to highlight and provide intensive instruction in these languages. The Background on the Bates Fall Semester Abroad Program web page reviews the objectives for the program along with additional criteria developed by the faculty and used by the Off-Campus Study Committee to evaluate proposals. The Committee is responsible for approving programs in consultation with the Dean of the Faculty
Faculty interested in proposing an FSA program should first consult with Stephen Sawyer, Director of Off-Campus Study programs, in Roger Williams 124. Faculty who have led similar programs in the past are also available to provide advice. Faculty should submit the FSA Proposal Form to the Off-Campus Study Office, 124 Roger Williams Hall.