Studying abroad with Honors is more than just visiting another country; it’s engaging in global citizenship through interdisciplinary immersion. International engagement operates on a continuum with possibilities that range from fully-structured programs with other UW students to direct exchanges with partner universities and from open-ended independent research to work with internationally-focused organizations based in the Seattle area. All students are welcome and encouraged to participate in Honors study abroad! We support our undocumented students by working closely with the UW Study Abroad Office and Leadership Without Borders to provide step by step guidance. Learn more about resources for DACA students to engage in study abroad opportunities here.
Study-abroad programs meet Honors experiential learning requirements while fulfilling general education and degree credits across arts, sciences and humanities in vibrant locations across many continents. Honors prefix courses fulfill the “W” additional writing requirements, and many of these programs also fulfill “DIV” diversity requirements. Note: Honors students must complete an Honors experiential learning application in order to obtain experiential learning credits.
And remember, we are here to help! Don’t assume you can’t afford to study outside of the U.S. On each program site below you will find financial resources to help you get started on your global adventures!
Summer & Early Fall Start/Exploration Seminar Programs
Summer A — 2023
Rome: Mediterranean Crossings (Honors/Jackson School of International Studies) DEADLINE EXTENDED TO FEB. 16
Dates: June 20 – July 19, 2023 | 12 credits
For much of our recorded history the Mediterranean Sea functioned to unite the lands that surrounded it. People, cultures, and empires in southern Europe, western Asia, and North Africa crossed this sea continuously in many directions; interacted with, borrowed from, and strengthened each other. In this program, we explore the causes and consequences of these movements across the Mediterranean. Through readings, discussions, films, guest lecturers, and field trips students will learn about the diverse types of migration present in Italy today and in history (refugees, asylum seekers, and labor migrants from all over the world). Immigrant integration and multiculturalism, with particular attention to art and architecture and ethnic, national, gender, and religious differences, will be discussed, as will increasing efforts to control migration into Italy and the EU.
Japan – Tokyo & Okinawa: Identity, Memory, and Art Activism
Dates: June 18 – July 18, 2023 | 12 credits
This interdisciplinary study abroad program in Tokyo and Okinawa explores the complex and evolving web of narratives surrounding Japanese national identity and social memory. Although Japan is often described as an ethnically homogeneous country, its national identity was formed through centuries of migration, political consolidation and, in some cases, forced assimilation. These legacies were further complicated by the experience of World War II, which led to a further questioning of Japanese identity and new forms of trauma that exacerbated existing inequalities. Traces of this history are visible both in Tokyo, the center of the Japanese political world, and in Okinawa, a political periphery where residents have borne the burden of hosting US bases to support their country’s national security. This study abroad program explores these dynamics and more from a variety of perspectives, including history, politics, economics, sociology, anthropology, media studies, race, gender, culture, literature and art.
Dutch Designs: Innovation in Library, Museum and Information Services in the Netherlands (iSchool/Honors)
Dates: June 20 – July 19, 2023 | 10 credits
This program will be held in collaboration with faculty and professionals from several Dutch academic, research, and cultural organizations, including DANS (Data Archiving and Network Services), the Dutch national eHumanities platform, the Vrije Universiteit, the Delft Public Library (DOK), and the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. It will be based in Amsterdam, the political and cultural capital of the Netherlands;. It will provide us with a set of outstanding case study in how libraries, museums, and information services engage with diverse populations both in their everyday functioning and in their attempts at creating innovative programs and resources.
The Arts of Politics: Cultural Agency and Social Movements in Contemporary Peru (Comparative History of Ideas/Honors)
Dates: June 20 – July 19, 2023 | 12 credits
What can art teach us about colonialism, political violence, and human rights? This summer program makes the case that art is a powerful way to understand the world and change it! Directed by anthropologist María Elena García (CHID) and political scientist José Antonio Lucero (JSIS/CHID), this CHID/Honors program offers students an interdisciplinary examination of the intersections of art, culture, Indigeneity and politics in contemporary Peru. Examining the ways in which artists, activists, and the state have used culture as a terrain for political struggle, students will have the opportunity to explore how art can provide tools for understanding the workings of colonialism, political violence, and community resilience. Through a mix of lectures, small-group activities, and a public art project (no artistic experience required!!), students will learn with Peruvian scholars, artists, human rights activists in the cities of Lima and Ayacucho, Peru.
Early Fall Start Programs 2023
Denmark: Colonialism, Culture, and Public Art Activism — March 15 application deadline!
Dates: August 19- September 14 | 5 credits
This program is based in Copenhagen and addresses the interplay of public art and activism, as well as their roles in making visible the history of colonialism and colonized identities in Denmark, past and present. Students will gain a grounding in Danish history, cultures, and national narratives to explore how public art installations such as I AM QUEEN MARY (currently virtual) have consciously brought together artists, cultural heritage institutions, government, and communities to engage in the complex process of social justice activism through public art.
India: Social Entrepreneurship and Population Health in India — March 15 application deadline!
Dates: August 19-September 9 (approximate dates, 3 week program) | 5 credits
This program is a 3-week immersive program examining social entrepreneurship in population health in India. The program will foster an exploration of concepts related to population health, specifically learning that health and well-being is impacted by multiple overlapping and intersecting factors that include poverty, education, governance, racism, the environment, and many more. Through it all, students will explore how social innovation/entrepreneurship can have a positive societal impact by addressing the social determinants of health.
Rome: Staging the City: Performance, Power, and Identity in Rome from Empire to Mussolini – Contact Director for application deadline
Dates: August 23 – September 15 (approximate dates)| 5 credits
Using the city of Rome and 2000 years of performance traditions, literature, painting, and architecture, this interactive, inter-disciplinary humanities course considers a single site: Rome, and how Rome fashioned and re-fashioned its own charismatic image of imperial and cultural power first as the heart of the Roman Empire, then as the capital of Christiandom, later as a city of Papal Princes, the epicenter of high culture on any European tour, and finally Mussolini’s restoration of Empire. How Rome created its unique, charismatic position in European history is largely a product of its own self-promotion. Rome the city invented Rome the idea, and those acts of invention can be read as a powerful performance of civic identity. Combining tours of the city’s own treasury of art and architecture with readings about its past, we explore Rome as the center of power and culture across the ages. To study the city, we stand at the sites of power, feet in the present, the past at our reach.
Winter Quarter 2024
Global Refugee Crisis: From Devastation to Diaspora
Dates: January 3 – March 8, 2024 | 12-15 credits
Using Italy and the U.S. as case studies in refugee resettlement, the connecting thread of this course is the lived experience of refugees and asylum seekers as they traverse the extensive journey from their home country to the country of final asylum.
The perspective of migration for specific streams from Ukraine, East Africa, and the Middle East to Southern Europe and the U.S. will be reviewed in detail, and contrasted with legacy migrations from Southeast Asia. This will include the lived experience and layers of loss as refugees move through countries of first and second asylum, including refugee camp life, and detention. We will discuss prevalent mental health sequelae, common infections, and the many challenges faced from language and culture, to racism, class, and poverty in host countries.
Other Faculty Led Study Abroad Programs of Interest
Spring Quarter 2023
Music León: the music of Spain and its diaspora
Dates: Quarter long program, spring 2023 / 16 credits (5 credits of Honors 240 with other Honors credits available via Honor ad hoc)
The musical traditions of Spain are one of the principal roots of music in the Americas, where they merged with African and indigenous traditions to produce new forms, including son, merengue, salsa, tango, cumbia, tango, corrido, marinera and countless other genres. This program offers students the opportunity to learn about the musics of the Americas and Spain as they have developed in relationship to one another, focusing both on shared histories that connect them, and also on the local histories and innovations that distinguish them.
Students in Music 445 will learn about Spanish and Latin American music from an ethnomusicological perspective, studying music not only as an art form but also as a practice that is related to larger cultural and historical processes. In Honors 240 they will focus on the impact of Latino musicians on the popular music of the United States. The program will include a week of study with master musician and educator Paco Diéz, guest lectures by several Spanish ethnomusicologists, and Spanish language study at a beginning, intermediate or advanced level, depending on each student’s experience.
León is a cosmopolitan city of about 137,000, located in the Northwestern part of Spain. It is known for its 13th century Gothic Cathedral and monumental buildings, as well as for its fiestas. Every year people from all over the world visit León to see and participate in its many processions and colorful traditions. The region of Castile and Leon is the birthplace of the Spanish language, and will provide students with unlimited opportunities to practice their oral, aural and written skills in Spanish, as they will be living in Spain and staying with Spanish families that will not speak English to them. The program also provides all interested students with the opportunity to volunteer in a local organization in a field that interests them.
Direct Exchange Programs
Global Leadership Fellows Program, Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan-FULL YEAR EXCHANGE
University of Washington Honors Program students are invited to apply for this interdisciplinary leadership program which runs autumn 2023-early summer 2024 in Tokyo, Japan.
Students will receive UW credit (Honors or other credits per pre-approval). Dorm housing is provided by Waseda. Accepted students will cover tuition (equivalent to UW tuition), airfare, food, and personal expenses.
Other Useful Resources and Opportunities
Study Abroad Ad Hoc Honors
Students may receive Honors core credit for work completed on a non-Honors study abroad program by creating and completing an additional ad hoc Honors project designed to supplement the regular study abroad experience. It is assumed that any Honors student who exercises this option is interested in pursuing the subject to a greater depth and with more intensity and is prepared to undertake the extra work. More About Ad Hoc Honors Credit
Independent International Study
In addition to the study abroad courses, students may also embark on an international study project of their own choosing for Honors credit. This option is for motivated students prepared to show initiative and invest a great deal of time and energy. Students must have a faculty adviser to do independent study. Be sure to consult with an Honors adviser before pursuing this option! More About Honors Independent International Study
The Bonderman Travel Fellowship
Bonderman Fellowships enable students to undertake independent international travel to explore, be open to the unexpected, and come to know the world in new ways. Available to UW graduate students (including those in the Law and Business Schools and other graduate and professional programs) and undergraduate students in the University Honors Program (Interdisciplinary, Departmental or College Honors) and in UW Tacoma’s Global Honors Program, this fellowship gives students the opportunity to travel independently for at least eight months, to at least six countries, in at least two regions of the world. These are no credit fellowships and fellows are not allowed to study or do research. More About the Bonderman Travel Fellowship
Travel Logs
Whether you’re a student, faculty member, or potential international partner, please take a moment to check out the experiences of past Honors students on our Blogs and Profiles pages.
UW Study Abroad
The UW Study Abroad website hosts a wealth of information for students interested in studying abroad, including:
- hundreds of study abroad opportunities
- mandatory travel insurance
- funding and financial aid options
Center for Experiential Learning and Diversity (EXPD)
EXPD is home to the UW Global Opportunities Scholarships, which are scholarships for students studying abroad. Application dates change on a quarterly basis, so be sure to check their website for the latest deadlines.
The Gilman Scholarship Program
The Gilman Scholarship Program offers awards for undergraduate study abroad and was established by the International Academic Opportunity Act of 2000. This scholarship provides awards for U.S. undergraduate students who are receiving Federal Pell Grant funding at a two-year or four-year college or university to participate in study abroad programs worldwide. More About the Gilman Scholarship
Other UW Resources
Try these other departments for even more study abroad information and opportunities: