Geneva Study Group

Director Fall 2013: Professor R.M. Douglas, Department of History

Colgate University’s Geneva Study Group is a fall semester program in Geneva, Switzerland that allows a small group of students, in the main majors in political science or international relations, to explore contemporary international organizations; European politics, life, culture, history, and thought; and the history and development of international law and courts.

Students will take a month long intensive French course in France itself during the month of August 2013; two semester-long courses in Geneva; complete an internship with a Swiss-based international governmental organization (IGO) or non-governmental organization (NGO); and will undertake two group field trips each a week or longer in Western and Central Europe (including a visit to the Auschwitz extermination camp).

Course work in Geneva will begin in early September and end shortly before Christmas. Each of the seminar-style courses will meet one day per week. One will be held at the Cité Universitaire de Genève and the other at the Graduate Institute of International Studies (IHEID) in Geneva. Students will be housed in single rooms at the Cité. While in residence in Geneva, an integral part of the curriculum will be group visits to international organizations in and around the city.

Courses

FREN 102Y, FREN 200, OR FREN 300 (TBD)
In August, each student will take part in a month-long intensive French language programme. Students will be housed, in most cases in doubles, in home-stays with French families. During this month, students will be able to improve their French language skills while immersing themselves in French culture as they come to understand the rhythms and norms of their host French family, and get to know other European students. Students will be enrolled, graded, and given credit for a course in keeping with their level of competence in French: either FREN 102Y, FREN 200, or FREN 300 (for Advanced students).

POSC 357Y: International Organizations (Prof. Douglas)
In this course, you’ll explore the theoretical literature on international and non-governmental organizations before taking advantage of being in Geneva to study and visit some of the world’s premier IGOs and INGOs including, but not limited to, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the World Trade Organization, the American Mission to the United Nations, Médecins sans Frontières, and the United Nations in Geneva and some of its agencies, including the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the Human Rights Council. POSC 369Y: Contemporary European Security (Professors Krause and Hofmann of the Graduate Institute)
This course focuses on contemporary European security problems and the “European” perspective on new security issues. It deals with topics such as NATO enlargement, European security institutions and “societal security” in Europe, as well as with broader issues such as intervention and democracy promotion, state formation, foreign aid and development issues, and human rights of refugees and others.

POSC 413Y: Geneva Internships (arranged by internship coordinator)
Semester-long part-time internships in Geneva in international governmental organizations (IGO’s) and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) will be arranged in advance. Upon successful completion of this course, students will receive graduation credit but NOT Political Science major credit.

Field Trips

Two long group trips will complement and build upon the course work pursued in Geneva. The shorter and more leisurely of the trips will be to Western Europe and include Strasbourg, Luxembourg, The Hague, and Brussels. We will visit the major international and European institutions headquartered in each of these cities. For example, among its many international organizations, Strasbourg is home to the Council of Europe, the European Parliament, the European Court and the Commission for Human Rights.

Our second, longer, and more demanding trip (including overnight train travel) will be to Central Europe: Berlin, Prague, Kraków and Auschwitz, Vienna, Budapest, and Munich. During this trip, our goal will be to understand better the major international organizations housed in these cities and, as well, to gain a sense of how “Westernisation,” after the fall of communism, is advancing in central Europe.

Students will take part in educational tours, occasional lectures, and institutional presentations on each trip, but there will also be some free time during each visit to explore cultural landmarks and enjoy recreational activities. Of course, being situated in Geneva, in the center of Europe, and having purchased rail passes, each member of the Study Group will also have an excellent opportunity to travel independently on weekends.

Library Facilities

Students will have access and borrowing privileges at the libraries of the IHEID and other universities in Geneva. Access can also be arranged to the various libraries housed in Geneva’s numerous international organizations, and the United Nations Library collection containing nearly two million volumes.

Selection Criteria and Prerequisites

It is expected that most applicants will be sophomores in the fall semester of 2012. First-year students will also be eligible to apply but are likely to be chosen only under exceptional circumstances. Applicants are welcomed from all academic disciplines; students need not be political science or international relations majors, but completion of POSC 152 or 232; POSC 151 or 260; and, at minimum, FREN 101 are required of all students. These courses, if needed, can be taken at the latest during the spring 2013 semester by a student provisionally accepted to the Study Group. Courses in modern European politics and history (e.g., HIST 271, 272 or 350) are highly recommended, and ECON 151 or 249 might also prove useful.

Non-Colgate students must be able to demonstrate competence in the prerequisite courses through courses taken at another institution that are specifically approved by the Director of the Geneva Study Group. As well, they must have achieved a grade point average of at least 3.3 and must enroll as visiting students at Colgate while abroad with the Geneva Study Group.

Costs

For details of student expenses on this study group, please see Student Cost Estimate Sheet.

Calendar and Deadlines

The deadline for applications to the Fall 2013 Geneva Study Group has already passed.

Passports and Visas

You must confirm that your passport is valid through December 2014. All students participating on the Geneva Study Group will be required to obtain long-stay student visas. With participation on this study group comes the responsibility of understanding and complying with Swiss government visa requirements. If you will not be traveling on a U.S. passport it is imperative that you contact an adviser in Off-Campus Study/International Programs, 101 Lathrop, and International Student Services, 103C Lathrop Hall, to learn as much as you can about the regulations. For some students there are significant visa requirements to be met that take time, advance planning, and incur extra costs.