Types of Study Abroad Programs

Study abroad programs come in many shapes and sizes; each type of program offers students a wonderful experience, but you might find that you are more comfortable with one type than with another.

IWU Programs

IWU London and IWU Madrid:  An “island” program is a program designed by an American institution, directed by that home institution’s faculty, taught by faculty paid by that institution, consisting of courses approved by that school, and offered to students from that home school.  IWU’s London and Madrid programs are island programs.

Pembroke College, Oxford University: IWU is among a selective group of U.S. colleges and universities able to send students to Oxford's Pembroke College as Visiting Students for the year.  Pembroke has approximately 400 students, and each year accepts 40 American students for a junior year of study.

Affiliated Programs

Hybrid Program:  IWU offers several hybrid programs through our affiliates.  In a hybrid program, a student will take at least one course at the program provider’s study center and at least one course at a local university.  Courses at the study center will be taken with other American study abroad students and will be taught by faculty who work for the program provider; courses at the university will be taken with host national students and will be taught by regular faculty from that university.  Examples of hybrid programs are IES’s Study London Program and CIEE’s program in Dakar, Senegal.

Direct Enrollment Program:  Students participating in a direct enrollment program directly enroll in classes at a local university.  All courses are taken at the university with host national students.  AustraLearn programs are direct enrollment programs.

Experiential Program:  Experiential programs forego the familiar campus- or center-based model and instead seek to immerse students in the culture.  Such programs will often have a “base” of study but will take students to different locations throughout the country for extended periods.  Students in such programs generally take all their courses with a cohort of American students from different universities.  SIT offers experientially based programs.

Exchange Programs

Keio University: IWU has an exchange agreement with Keio University in Tokyo.  In a traditional exchange program, students from the partner institutions "exchange" places, each paying the tuition and fees of the home school.