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SIT Study Abroad

9.15 (231)Verified74 Programs

Why choose SIT Study Abroad?

SIT Study Abroad offers semester and summer undergraduate programs in Africa, Europe, Latin America, Asia and the Pacific, and the Middle East. Programs tackle the complexities of critical issues, including global health, sustainable development, human rights, peace-building, and biodiversity, in specific cultural and geographical contexts or comparatively across different countries. Students gain...

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SIT Study Abroad Reviews

Hear what past participants have to say about the programs

Overall Rating

9.15

Total Reviews

231
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Trekking Through Science and Culture in Madagascar

by: Maddie Jeffery - United StatesProgram: SIT Study Abroad: Madagascar: Biodiversity & Ntrl. Resource
8

Studying abroad in Madagascar was a transformative experience that blended field research, cultural immersion, and personal growth. I conducted an independent research project on chameleon thermoregulation in Marojejy National Park, designing my methodology, collecting data in remote rainforest environments, and presenting my findings at a symposium. This hands-on approach to learning deepened my understanding of conservation science and ecological research. Beyond academics, living with a host family allowed me to engage with Malagasy culture, improve my French language skills, and gain perspective on the challenges of conservation in a developing country. I adapted to a new way of life, from navigating bustling markets to taking bucket showers, and built lasting relationships along the way. This program pushed me outside my comfort zone, strengthened my resilience and adaptability, and reinforced my passion for environmental research and global engagement. Madagascar’s beauty, biodiversity, and people made a lasting impact on me, and I highly recommend this program to students interested in field-based learning, conservation, and cultural exchange.

View from climbing to the summit of Marojejy National Park, where I did my independent research project.

Jordan has a portion of my heart

by: Megan Gentry - United StatesProgram: SIT Study Abroad: Jordan: Counseling & Humanitarian Action
10

I absolutely loved my time in Jordan and my experience with SIT. The program director is one of the most accomplished and wise people I have ever met. He was a pleasure to work with. I was able to intern with IFH, an organization that helps refugee families with health services of all kinds. I learned a bit of arabic. I saw many different historical and natural sites and rode a camel. I also integrated myself into the culture and community every day. I stayed with a host family, who helped me learn the local ways in Amman, as well as went to festivals, explored town and many coffee shops, bought from local vendors, joined a running club, met international students, played pickleball, and attended multiple worship services. Perhaps my favorite part of this study abroad was learning about different cultures and religions. I had a lovely view into the Muslim faith and learned the Arab history of the middle east area in a new way. I grew as an individual and as a citizen of earth and of the United States. I am forever grateful for the people I acquainted and the things I experienced.

Walking through Amman is a great way to get to know the city!The King Hussein Institute for Family HealthRiding through Wadi Rum was a dream.

Experience of a lifetime: educational, fun, satisfying, fulfilling

by: Evan Yurko - United StatesProgram: SIT Study Abroad: Tanzania: Zanzibar Coastal Ecology
10

I seriously cannot recommend this program more. From this experience, you will be better equipped for the world, the job market, applying to grad school, or whatever else lies ahead more than anyone else who didn't do this program. This program is extremely intense, not only the time commitment but it is long hours during the hot tropical days. Some will appreciate the academic rigor in this program, but if you're looking for a vacation (despite it being in one of the most beautiful vacation spots in the world!) this program might not be for you. That being said, anyone doing this program will get the absolute most out of it. The academics were interactive, field based, usually based on doing hands on research that you're physically doing, then writing reports, having discussions, presenting, and doing analysis with the data. You learn through field trips, snorkeling, learning Swahili interactively, working with animals, people, doing interviews, and all the while you don't even know how much everything has built up piece by piece so that you can finally do a month long research project, speaking a language you didn't know when starting the program: A project that means something to the people of Zanzibar. And you can walk away knowing that you can ask better questions, you can know what its really like doing a field based research project and what's not included in every scientific methods section, how ingenuitive people in the developing world when managing resources with little economic means to do so can be, as well as doing it through an amazing cultural learning process in one of the most beautiful countries on Earth.

Fall 2024 program studying the fishing village of Nungwi and its shift towards a tourist market. We visited a marine sea turtle conservation park, interviewed fishermen drying sardines (dagaa, in Swahili), visited one of the largest fish markets in ZWhile in Zanzibar, you will get familiar with Sykes and Red Colobus Monkeys. One of the research projects in the class Research Methods and Ethics involves a behavioral survey of Red Colobus Monkeys in Jozani National Park. They look cute but they wiMy homestay family in Pemba and I. Living with a Swahili homestay family is the best experience. They are loving, sentimental, help you in any way you need, cook delicious food, and teach you their amazing culture (including how to cook their food!)
Evan Yurko video

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Interviews

Read interviews from alumni or staff

Joosje Grevers

Participated in 2015

Alumni

I decided to apply to an international program so that I could gain a perspective totally different from what I had grown up with. The world is so vast and has limitless opportunities so I knew that I needed to dip my toe into this pool of opportunity. Gettysburg College, along with different schools across the nation, offer the incredible opportunity to go beyond your personal borders and live in a place that most people only dream of going to.

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Sydney McSharry

Participated in 2016

Alumni

I have always loved traveling. Once I saw that this program was an option for me, there was no way I could pass it up. I had never been overseas before, and this was a chance to study a topic I'm passionate about. I knew that this would be an amazing and life changing experience that would be a crime to let go to waste.

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Emma Fortmiller

Participated in 2016

Alumni

I was inspired to go abroad because I was seeking a life-changing experience that would somehow enlighten me with new career aspirations. Naively enough, I was fully expecting that at some point in my time abroad the lightbulb above my head would light up and tell me what my path should be in life. While this didn't necessarily happen, I was hopeful nonetheless. 

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Awards

Check out awards and recognitions SIT Study Abroad has received

GoAbroad Innovation Awards 2024 Winner - Marketing & Digital MediaInnovation in Marketing & Digital Media Winner 2022