Academic Program
Drew University's European Semester offers you the tools and the knowledge to explore the implications of change for Europe's distinct economic, historic, political, social and cultural traditions. Those traditions now confront each other across centuries-old barriers and are in the process of defining a new concept of citizenship.
The European Semester's distinguished faculty share their expertise in economic integration, history and political science. Just as important, your colloquium course puts you in touch with European leaders who offer you insights only insiders possess. They challenge you to examine the positive aspects of European culture and to critique the unsettling implications of the rush to Europe's future.
Did you know that with an additional course taken on campus,
European Semester participants can complete a European Studies minor?
Interested students should visit the European Studies web page for details.
Program Calendar
The European Semester is offered every fall semester, beginning with an orientation program once you arrive in early September and ending in early December. A unique feature of the European Semester is its intensive and segmented structure. The program is comprised of approximately ten weeks in Brussels, and one to two weeks in a second European country.
2009 Resident Director: Professor William Messmer
Course Descriptions
Required Courses
EURSTUD 100: Colloquium on Europe (4 credits)
Taught by the resident director, a Drew faculty member, this course introduces students to political, social,and economic institutions that define contemporary Europe through course lectures, guest speakers, and field trips to EU institutions, museums, historic sites, and EU member countries. The course may also provide a forum in which students, through individual research, examine specific aspects of contemporary Europe in depth. With prior approval, this course may be counted toward other appropriate majors and minors.
HIST 196/ECON 185/PSCI 152/SOC 150: European Research Seminar (4 credits)
Each student conducts an independent investigation on a topic selected in conference with the Resident Director of the European Semester and approved by the appropriate department. The project stresses normal library research as well as personal interviews, field trips, and visits to EU member states.
Elective Courses (choose two of three)
ECON 63: The Economics of European Integration (4 credits)
A study of institutions, cases, processes, and competing theories of European economic integration in the era of the European Union. Special attention is focused on Europe’s product, labor, and capital markets, as well as EU policies related to these areas and the ‘social market’ economies of selected EU member states.
Prerequisite: ECON 5.
HIST 168/SOC 168: Brussels: A European Mosaic (4 credits)
Brussels offers a rich and diverse cultural mosaic. It is the historic center not only of Belgium’s French and Flemish communities, but also of the nation’s imperial past. As the capital city of today’s European Union, a wider cultural influence from other EU member states has been added to the already rich heritage of the city. Through selected themes or topics this course studies the history and/or society of Brussels and its developing European mosaic.
PSCI 163: Politics of European Integration (4 credits)
A study of the way in which policies are developed and decisions are made in the European Union today. Topics include the decision-making institutions of the EU; the division of authority between member states and the EU; the differing interests of the member states; the roles of bureaucracy and lobbyists; the process of enlargement; and the foreign and security policies of the EU.
Living Arrangements
Students are housed in apartments, which are conveniently located near the classroom space, receive a food stipend and cook their own meals. You commute to class by neighborhood tram..
Eligibility
The European Semester is open to juniors and seniors, regardless of major, with a minimum 3.0 GPA. Students must maintain good academic and disciplinary standing from the time of application throughout participation. Students who plan to enroll in the economics course must have completed Microeconomics.
Cost
The program fee includes tuition, housing, a food stipend and program-related cultural events and excursions. The cost of the program does not include international airfare or incidental expenses.
Financial Aid
Drew students will maintain the financial aid package to which they are normally entitled.
Application Deadline: March 15.
