Multidisciplinary Studies in New Delhi, India

Location:
New Delhi, India

Sponsor:
Michigan State University

Program:
This 12-week multidisciplinary program set in New Delhi will allow you to live, work, and absorb the unique cultures of the subcontinent of India and experience a once-in-a-lifetime journey into the heart of the mysterious East. You will be immersed in the daily lives of the people. The program will challenge your mind and spirit and support your growing awareness of the world as a global community. You will learn about cultures and traditions dating back thousands of years, yet accommodating to the latest in modern technology and communications. You will observe diversity in its most extreme forms - wealth vs. poverty, crowding vs. rural isolation, illiteracy and educational excellence, religions of every form, and freedom of expression as never before appreciated!

Program Objectives:

  • To develop sensitivities to different cultural, political, religious, and value systems
  • To increase competence in analyzing social, educational, and health needs and responses
  • To recognize the basis and transferability of various approaches to social, economic, environmental, and educational interventions
  • To apply critical thinking skills
  • To challenge students to learn from and grow from their engagement in alternative cultures and lifestyles

Course Offerings:
The focus and centerpiece of this program is a field placement experience. Each student will be matched with an agency or organization working in an area of his or her professional interest. For six weeks students will serve as interns, working alongside agency staff in delivering services to people. A wide variety of settings are potential sites - educational institutions, hospital and health care services, child development centers, organizations providing micro-credit and income-generating skills, sustainable agriculture and environmental groups, marketing and media agencies, etc. In addition to learning about the complexities of service delivery, interns will gain firsthand knowledge of the administrative challenges of operating non-governmental organizations (NGOs), a major institutional force in international development.

Surrounding the field placement will be a set of classes and small-group learning activities. This coursework will include a common set of topics covering the arts, humanities, history, social institutions, religions, cultures, economics, and political systems of the subcontinent. Within this range of topics, students will select an issue to research and present it as a special project. Issues such as women's rights, population, child labor, food security, nuclear proliferation, and global trade can be chosen.

Students will be required to enroll for a minimum of 12, a maximum of 14, semester credits.

For additional information regarding eligibility, application deadlines, cost, and further program components, contact the Michigan State University Office of Study Abroad at studyabroad@osa.msu.edu.

Contact Information:
Mary Andrews
College of Human Ecology - MSU Extension
71 Agriculture Hall
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824 USA
Phone: 517-432-3322
E-mail: mandrews@msu.edu
http://www.studyabroad.msu.edu/programs/indiamulti.html