Description

This program explores the multidimensional factors that have helped shape the “Chilean miracle” of democratic stability, governability, and macroeconomic success. It also looks at Chile’s lingering and persistent problems of unequal distribution of wealth and power, and low rates of political participation.

Students will experience and examine the profound changes achieved in Chile since the end of the military dictatorship in the early 1990s. They will learn about the effects of democratization and globalization on Chilean society, culture, and identity.

Topics of study include:

•The formation of the current Chilean political system
•The country’s export-driven economy and its integration into the global marketplace
•The unequal distribution of income in Chilean civil society
•The effects of modernization on Chile’s indigenous population

Students will get to know Chile through lectures, field study, and independent research. Program excursions will bring students into closer contact with Chile’s forestry, mining, agricultural, and tourist industries, and provide a firsthand view of the impact Chile’s modernization process has had on different segments of society, including workers, women, and indigenous communities.

Students will meet with Chilean social and political actors, union activists, and community leaders. They also will be closely integrated into Chilean culture through the program’s homestays and intensive Spanish instruction.

Highlights

Discover the social, economic, and political changes shaping Chile.

Analyze the ongoing process of modernization in Chile and its impact on the country's culture, identity, economy, and political system.

The program consists of three main components:

* An eight-week homestay with a Chilean family in Santiago and concurrent courses at the Universidad de Santiago
* A series of educational excursions to northern and southern Chile
* A four-week Independent Study Project (ISP) at the end of the semester

Each component highlights a different perspective on Chile's evolving national and global identity and deepens students' understanding of the social and political underpinnings of Chile's export-driven economy.

Santiago (program base) - Live in Chile's modern capital city and financial center
Santiago provides a vibrant and relevant context for the study of Chile's economic and political transformations. While in Santiago, students live with host families and attend lectures and seminars given by professors, politicians, and social leaders at the Universidad de Santiago and other locations.

Intensive instruction in Spanish
The program gives students the chance to improve their Spanish significantly while experiencing Chilean culture and studying the impact of recent economic and political changes. Intensive Spanish instruction incorporates classes and short excursions that contribute to students' immersion in Chilean culture. The language course also helps prepare students for the ISP period.

Students will also improve their speaking, writing, and cross-cultural field study skills through daily interactions with their host families.

Educational excursions and field studies
As part of their field study experience, students undertake group educational excursions throughout Chile that enable them to observe and interact with different communities.

Highlights include:

* Travelling to Antofagasta to visit one of the world's largest open-pit copper mines. While there, students will learn about the importance of copper mining to Chile’s history and economy.
* Visiting Valle de Elicura in the south of Chile to live among indigenous Mapuche communities and learn about their ongoing struggle to maintain their culture and identity in 21st-century Chile

Degree Level

Bachelors Degree (Undergraduate)

Subject Areas

Cost in US$:

Inquire for more info.

Experience Required

no

This Program is open to

Worldwide Participants.

Typical Living Arrangements

• Home-stays

Participants Travel

Independently or in Groups

Scholarships are Available

Application Process Involves

• Essay
• Letters of Reference
• Physical Exam/Health Records
• Written Application

Typically The Application Process Time is

3 weeks

Post Services Include

• Alumni Network
• Exit Debriefing Abroad
• Job and Internship Network

SIT Study Abroad's Mission Statement

A pioneer in experiential, field-based study abroad, SIT offers semester, summer, and academic year programs for undergraduate students in Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East, as well as comparative programs in multiple locations.

Programs focus on critical global issues in specific geographical and cultural contexts using an interdisciplinary approach. Studying with host country faculty and living with families, students gain a deep appreciation for local cultures and become immersed in diverse topics ranging from the politics of identity to post-conflict transformation, from global health to environmental policy. 

Year Founded

1932