International Study Tours
The School of Social Work encourages students to pursue an international experience. We offer May Intersession classes that visit various places around the world. M.S.W. students also have the opportunity to spend their second field placement in an international setting.
Below is information about past Intersession tours.
2010 - Northern Ireland
Assistant Professor Ross Velure Roholt traveled with undergraduate and graduate students to learn about working with youth in divided societies. Read the trip blog.
2010 - Namibia
Associate Professor Liz Lightfoot led a group of graduate students to Namibia, where Lightfoot had spent a year as a Fulbright visiting professor. The trip focused on the social development approach to social work. Read the trip blog.
2009 - Amsterdam, the Netherlands and Cape Town, South Africa
Assistant Professors Colleen Fisher and Ross Velure Roholt led a group of students to Amsterdam and Cape Town. The 15-day trip looked at social policy and programs with a focus on AIDS and youth.
2008 - Chile, South America
Professors David Hollister and Dario Mentaneau-Horta, a native of Chile, led this trip.
2007 - Peru, South America
Megan Morrissey and Jim Reinardy led this study tour, which focused on learning to understand the needs of the Peruvian people through dialog with social service providers and community workers. Also included were travel to cultural and historic sites, such as Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley of Incas.
2006 - Vietnam
Peter Dimock and Dave Hollister led a group to Vietnam. Students studied that nation's present state of social development, policy, and services.
2005 - Ghana, West Africa
Faculty members Priscilla Gibson, Lisa Albrecht and Megan Morrissey led a group of 12 students through Ghana, West Africa. For 15 days, they learned about the rich culture and diversity in this English-speaking country that has more than 44 other languages. They toured social service agencies, community centers, educational institutions, cultural centers, and museums, and tested their mettle by walking on the exhilarating Canopy Walk in Kakum Nature Park. They learned how cultural context influences issues such as domestic violence and HIV/AIDS as well as what it means sociologically and culturally to be educated in the United States.
2004 - England, Northern Ireland, and Ireland
An 11-day trip to London, Belfast, and Dublin involved visits to social service, educational, and community development sites in the three cities as well as sites of historical and cultural interest. In Belfast the group focused on understanding peace work and inter-community building efforts in divided and contested societies.
2003 - Peru, South America
During their 10-day stay in Peru, South America, students visited social service and economic development sites in the capitol city of Lima, visit Ayacucho, the cultural center of Peru's highland, and Cuzco the central city of Inca Peru, as well as historic sites such as Machu Picchu.
2001 - Norway
Students learned about the Norwegian social welfare system and services,
with particular emphasis on social services for children and elderly.
Norwegian social work faculty, policy makers, social work practitioners
and child care workers in Oslo, Trondheim, Stavanger and Bergen met with
students for a discussion about the Norwegian system. Students visited
organizations and agencies engaged in policy development and service
provision.