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"I tell students that it is one thing to travel abroad for a few weeks, but quite another to actually live in a foreign country and really begin to know its people and assimilate to its culture. I tell them that it will be an invaluable but often humbling experience that will leave them and their view of their own country forever changed. When biology majors tell me there is not time in their schedule to spend a quarter or two or three abroad, I ask them "what's your rush?" That job opening in biotech, or that slot in medical school or graduate school will always be there next year, but the opportunity to live and study in a foreign country will not!" --Robert Schmidt, Professor of Biology, UCSD "This program truly changed the direction of my career as a biologist and my everyday view of the world. I am constantly referring to events in my life as either Before Costa Rica or After Costa Rica." --Biology major, '03 |
Why study abroad?
The Division supports study abroad because we recognize that it provides substantial tangible as well as intangible benefits for the student. Tangible benefits include ability to integrate study abroad with their short term and long range educational goals. Students may be able to satisfy course requirements for the different majors. They may also choose to take courses not part of our curriculum and which would complement Division offerings. Many students, for example, have participated in special focus programs in fields such as marine and tropical biology in Costa Rica and Australia. In addition, students can satisfy college or other general education requirements for graduation. Perhaps equally important are the intangible benefits that follow from study abroad. Many study abroad returnees have commented on the personal growth and maturation that marked their period abroad, such as the expansion of their intellectual and cultural horizons that came from the immersion in a foreign society. Other benefits include the development of an awareness of and sensitivity to international and global concerns; increased self-confidence in learning to adapt to a different academic structure and style of education; development of skills and knowledge to operate in an international arena; improvement in the command of a foreign language; and development of friendships with students and faculty at the host university that may form the basis for future research and teaching.Consider your value to an employer or a graduate program if you’ve:
When should I study abroad? While it is possible for Biology majors to go abroad at almost any point in their academic careers, the particular quarter, semester, summer, or year that you study abroad depends on your individual progress in your major and what courses you plan to take while abroad. Where should I study abroad?
Here are just a few of the programs and universities where Biology majors have studied:
What will it cost?
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What are my first steps?
Requirements Depending on the major, students can potentially take up to five courses, 20 quarter units, towards their major requirements. For exact course substitution, the course needs to be equivalent. It may be easier to apply study abroad courses to the upper-division elective courses within the major. What classes should I take?
What happens when I return? Once the study abroad courses have posted to your UCSD academic record, submit an undergraduate student petition along with pertinent course information (course syllabi, description and papers/exams submitted and received back) to Biology Student Affairs, Pacific Hall 1128. The faculty advisor for your major will review the petitions and make final approval on coursework. Yeah, but ...
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