International Study

Based on the belief that international experience is vital to successful leadership in all academic and professional fields, the Center for International Initiatives (CII) is dedicated to the promotion and development of international co-curricular opportunities for all members of the Millsaps community. International study typically takes place between the completion of a student's first and third year of study at Millsaps College. A student may arrange to study abroad for a semester, year, or summer. The timing of study is determined, in part, by a student's academic program and progress toward completion of their degree requirements.

Students interested in international study should contact the CII as much as a year in advance of their intended term of departure for assistance in planning and program selection. Programs are located in every corner of the world, cover virtually all interest areas, and typically have one or more of the following foci: academic, fine arts, service, internship, language and teaching. The Study Abroad office provides information on programs sponsored by Millsaps College, in addition to those sponsored by other organizations.

Among Millsaps students, the most popular program choices are those designed, directed, and taught by Millsaps faculty each summer. Millsaps programs are located in France, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Europe (Business or Liberal Arts). Participants receive full academic credit for select core and major requirements without having to worry about  transfer credit issues.

Financial Aid for Study Abroad
Students who receive or are eligible to receive federal financial aid may apply these funds toward the cost of study in an approved program. Unsubsidized federal loans for the purpose of study abroad are available for students who do not qualify for need-based aid. More information is located in the 'Financial Information' section of this publication. Millsaps academic scholarships may not be applied toward off-campus study. Students planning international study during the fall or spring semester must complete an official Leave of Absence petition in order to maintain eligibility to retain academic scholarships. However, it will be necessary to reapply for need-based aid.

Academic Credit for Study Abroad
To receive Millsaps academic credit in a non-Millsaps sponsored program, all courses must be pre-approved by the appropriate faculty members and submitted to the registrar's office prior to departure. Students seeking such credit should not make a final commitment to a program until such approval is received.

Summer Program in London, Paris, Munich and Florence
Millsaps College offers a summer European program based in London, Paris, Munich, and Florence, with opportunities for other European travel and cultural experiences built into the program. Students may choose courses offered by the Else School of Management, the Division of Arts and Letters, and  the Division of Sciences. Millsaps faculty design and teach the courses, integrating experiences, field trips, and guest speakers that highlight the world-wide classroom. The program is open to graduate and undergraduate students. Course listings vary each year.

Recent listings by the Else School of Management include History of Economic Thought; Issues in International Economic Policy; International Legal Environment; International Lessons in Leadership; History and Development of International Banking and Commerce; Marketing in a Global Environment and Emerging Issues in International Finance.

Recent listings by the Division of Arts and Letters and Division of Sciences include The Evolution of Evolutionary Thought; Power Struggle in the American Colonies: Bourbons versus British; The Eye/I of Discovery: American Travel Writing in Context; Expatriate Writers in London and Paris; The Roman Conquest of the Etruscans and the Germans: Archaeology on the Edge of the Empire; and Medieval Art and Architecture.

Millsaps Summer in Nice and Paris
Open to any student who has at least a year of French, the program is designed for students wishing to perfect their language skills and learn the Gallic way of life. The first three weeks of the program are based in Nice; the last week in Paris. Classes are taught by Millsaps faculty and the staff of France Langue. They include Intermediate French; Contemporary French Culture; Provencal Literature & Civilization; and Advanced Grammar. The schools in Nice and Paris are centrally located in the heart Nice, very close to shopping avenues and just a 15-minute walk from the famous avenue Promenade des Anglais that runs alongside the beach, and, in Paris, close to the Arc de Triomphe. Students live with middle-class families carefully selected for their friendliness, patience, and support of foreign students.

Living In Yucatan
An environmental citizenship field experience exploring cultural and resource issues from the height of the classic Maya civilization through current trends in tourism and commercial development. The course comprises three research and study modules: Maya culture and archaeology; tropical deciduous forest ecology; and the impact of development on the Great Maya Coral Reef. The Maya culture module explores current archaeological excavations and evaluates several major reconstructed sites. Additionally, students experience modern rural and urban culture from the Maya perspective.

Tropical deciduous ecology is studied on the grounds of the historic Rancho Kiuic, home to one of the oldest forests in the Puuc Region of Yucatan and an excellently preserved, as yet unstudied, major Maya city. Students collect data for a baseline species audit and collaborate with graduate students and faculty from Autonomous University of Yucatan (UADY).

The final module examines the impact of tourism on the shallow marine environment and sea turtle habitat from Cozumel and Cancun to the coast of Belize. Students collect field data on the reefs and retrieve sediments for chemical analysis. Participants live in a variety of cultural and ecological zones, including the capital city of Merida, major archaeological sites, the Caribbean, and a week at the reconstructed colonial hacienda Tabi, once the largest hacienda in the Yucatan.

Millsaps Summer Program in Costa Rica
Designed for students interested in Spanish, this program features courses taught by Millsaps professors and includes an excellent balance of cultural activities, educational tours, and recreational travel. Classes are held at the Instituto Centroamericano de Asuntos Internacionales (ICAI), an outstanding private academic institution located in San Jose', the capital of the most stable, progressive country in Latin America. Because participating students live with carefully selected middle-class families, they have an exceptional opportunity to experience Hispanic culture first-hand, as well as learn through on-site classes and field trips. The program is open to all students who have had at least a year of college Spanish or the equivalent.

Spring Break For Cross Cultural Understanding In Saltillo, Mexico
The Saltillo program enables  participants to experience a rich culture, serve the physical needs of the poor, and share in the profound faith of the Mexican people. Students help distribute food, clothing, toys and other items to the nomadic Indians living there, as well as participate in daily worship. Sponsored by the Catholic Campus Ministry.

Millsaps Institute of Central American Studies (MICAS)
MICAS administers a program of research and educational opportunity in Central America specifically focused on the undergraduate research experience. The Center's research projects and other educational opportunities are designed to help undergraduate students experience, through hands-on, research-based inquiry, the anthropology and archaeology, culture, environment, geology and marine science of Central America.

MICAS also provides opportunities for scholarly and cultural advancement to academic research groups and the cultures and societies of Central America. Field studies and research in various disciplines are supported by the laboratory, analytical and data processing facilities on the Millsaps campus.

Global Partners Project
The Global Partners Project is a collaboration of forty-one liberal arts colleges from three consortia: the Associated Colleges of the South, Associated Colleges of the Midwest and the Great Lakes Colleges Association. The goal of Global Partners is to reconceive existing study-abroad programs through collaboration among the 41 member institutions, increasing international opportunities for students and faculty. The project currently recognizes over 250 study abroad programs in 57 countries.

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