Since the Fall of 2003, with funding from the U.S. Department of Education, Wayne State has been sending five to six undergraduates and graduate students per year from a wide range of departments and colleges at this university to three Brazilian universities for a semester of study: The Federal University in Santa Catarina (in Florianopolis), The Federal University in Minas Gerais (in Belo Horizonte) and The State University in Bahia (Salvador). There will be stipends available to accepted applicants, approximately $2,000-2,500.

Transfer of credits arrangements have been made with the Brazilian universities and students from Wayne, who continue to pay tuition at their home university, are not charged any tuition or fees at the Brazilian universities. Intensive language training in Brazilian Portuguese has been arranged—both at Wayne during the Winter and Spring semesters and in Brazil (through an intensive summer language course). Students with a background in Spanish or Italian should be able to pick up Portuguese at an accelerated pace.

Both Brazilian universities are highly selective schools with a wide variety of programs, situated in attractive and culturally rich environments. Given the differences in the Brazilian university calendars from the American ones, the best time for a semester abroad for American students is the Fall semester, which begins in August and ends in December. Since the American dollar is especially strong against the Brazilian real, living expenses (especially in the universities where the food services are subsidized by the government) are fairly low.

Students from all fields and all colleges are eligible to apply. Interested students will need to contact either Professor Wasserman or Professor Marotti for an interview, fill out an application, show that your GPA is 3.2 or higher and provide a letter of reference from at least one professor.

Professor Renata Wasserman (577-8627; email aa0902@wayne.edu)
or
Professor Arthur Marotti (577-3409; email a.marotti@wayne.edu)

Decisions about which students will receive the stipends will be made by mid-December.

Over twenty Wayne students have already participated in the program and benefited from the rich experience of close, prolonged contact with another culture. The exchange program, which also brings Brazilian students to Wayne State will continue beyond the period of the federal grant that initiated it, allowing more Wayne students to have access to this study abroad opportunity.

Students are encouraged to apply for WSU's Global Grant to offset some of their additional expenses. Applications should be available in November of 2007.

The Office of Study Abroad and Global Programs
5155 Gullen Mall
1600 Undergraduate Library
Detroit, MI 48202
Tel: 313-577-3207