Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS) Seminar/ Field Trip

 

The Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS) Seminar and Field Trip Program celebrates its 50th trip in 2023! Since 1972, the program has provided more than 550 students a unique educational and cross-cultural immersion experience.

This intensive, two-part program incorporates a cross-cultural homestay with individualized field study. The program is open to undergraduates of any major at the University of Pittsburgh with sufficient Spanish language proficiency and an interest in Latin American culture. The 15-20 students selected for the program will enroll in a preparatory seminar on campus during the spring of 2023, and then travel to the host country where they will study, live with a host family, and carry out an independent field project during the summer.

 

What You'll Accomplish: 

As an engaged and active participant in this program, you will have the opportunity to develop:

  • Individual field investigations, collecting data and information for evaluation
  • A research paper based on the field investigations, observation and data collection
  • A better understanding of cross-cultural communication and the challenges and rewards of the international living experience
 
 
What You'll Study: 

You'll earn a total of 9 credits on the Center for Latin American Studies Seminar and Field program.  You will use the city to conduct your research. You will seek out information through interviews and observations that will allow you to carry out your individual field investiations. You will continue to refine your research skills and techniques that you developed during the spring semester course prior to departure. 

 In this course you will study:

  • Research methods
  • Data collection
  • Evaluation
  • Professional writing
     

If you are seeking to count these courses towards a major, minor or certificate, please meet with your academic advisor to discuss this program and what the courses will fulfill for you. Information about how the courses on this program count towards general education requirements for different schools and campuses can be found here.
 

CLAS Fieldtrip (6-Credits) (ARTSC1991)

While living with a host family, you will carry out individual field investigations, collecting data and information for evaluation.  The project director will be present throughout the program to provide guidance and direction.  Final written project reports will be completed upon return to the US and submitted at a deadline set by the director of the program.

CLAS Spring Term Seminar (3-credits) (ARTSC1990)

This interdisciplinary seminar is designed to prepare students for their in-country residence experience. Students will examine the history, culture, politics and geography of Manizales and Colombia and their place within Latin American. Issues dealing with cross-cultural communication and the challenges and rewards of the international living experience will be examined. Students will also be guided through the design of individual field projects that they will carry out during their residence experience in May and June.

Your Pitt Study Abroad Contacts: 

Oksana Stalczynski

Privet! I'm Oksana Stalczynski and I'm an Assistant Director of Study Abroad at the Global Experiences Office. I was born and raised in St. Petersburg, Russia, was an exchange student and Russian Language Scholar at Reed College in Portland, OR and did a summer language program in Dresden, Germany. Global experiences broaden your horizon, grow your circle of friends and improve your career opportunities. That’s why I think everyone should do one!

Feel free to contact me to find out more about global experiences programs at Pitt, and/or to learn/practice some Russian.

 

E-mail: 
Oksana.stalczynski@pitt.edu

Schedule an appointment

  • Click here to schedule an appointment with me through Pathways.
  • Log into Pathways with your Pitt username and password.
  • Select Find Available Time.
  • Select the time that works for you.
  • Click the schedule button
  • You will see a confirms message on the screen. You will also receive a confirmation in your Pitt email.

Don't see a time that works for you? Just send me an email.
 

Your In-Country Contacts: 

Ana Paula Carvalho

Ana Paula Carvalho is the faculty director for the CLAS program. Born in Fortaleza, Brazil, Ana Paula Carvalho studied Portuguese and Spanish Languages and Literatures at the Universidade Estadual do Ceará, where she received her BA.  She earned her MA in Applied Linguistics from the Department of Hispanic Languages and Literatures, University of Pittsburgh.  She currently teaches Portuguese language and works as the Portuguese Language Coordinator and Portuguese Minor advisor.   Ana Paula has led many study abroad programs and taught an interdisciplinary undergraduate seminar in order to prepare students to conduct a pilot field research projects in Brazil and Colombia.

 

 

Dolores Lima

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Dolores Lima earned her M.A. and Ph.D. in Latin American Literature from University of Maryland under the direction of Prof. Jorge Aguilar Mora. She has taught Spanish language, culture and literature courses at Southern Connecticut State University, Montgomery College, University of Maryland, and Catholic University of America. She has been teaching at Middlebury College Summer School since 2009. She was appointed Spanish Language Program Coordinator at the Department of Hispanic Languages and Literatures at the University of Pittsburgh in August 2015.

 

Her teaching and research interests focus on Latin American literature and culture, with an emphasis on literary theory. Her doctoral dissertation, entitled “Disruption to Representation: Affect in Macedonio Fernández, Antonio Di Benedetto and César Aira”, proposes the concept of “affective writing” as a paradigm in analyzing different types of disruptions to narrative representation. She is currently working on laughter and the narrative of the body in Virgilio Piñera’s work.

E-mail: 
dlima@pitt.edu

 

 

Items Billed by Pitt
  In-State Out-of-State
Program Cost $4,938 $5,138
Study Abroad Fee $300 $300
Total Billed by Pitt $5,238 $5,438
     

 

Remember that your lifestyle and spending choices can greatly affect the amount of money you'll need while abroad.  Visit our Budgeting page for more information.

What's Included: 

As a part of your program fee, the following are included:

  • 6-credits of tuition (summer field program)
  • Room and Board in hotel
  • Roundtrip airfare to and from US
  • Health Insurance
  • Some cultural activities & excursions ** (subject to COVID-19 rules and regulations in country)

 
Remember that your lifestyle and spending choices can greatly affect the amount of money you'll need while abroad.  Visit our Budgeting page for more information.
 

When You'll Go: 

May 13, 2022 - June 24, 2022

What Else You Need to Know: 

The CLAS Scholarship Field Program is significantly underwritten by the Center For Latin America Studies (CLAS) .Participants will be responsible for tuition cost and associated fees.Candidates are required to be full time, degree seeking undergraduates (from any discipline) maintaining a minimum of a 2.75 grade point average.  Freshmen, sophomores, juniors or seniors who possess the necessary skills and disposition are welcome to apply.
 
By the time the field component begins, applicants must possess sufficient Spanish language proficiency to communicate effectively with their host families, travel independently and carry out their individual projects.
 
Most importantly, interested applicants must demonstrate a willingness to be flexible, assimilate to a new culture, and welcome cross-cultural interaction.  Selected candidates must be initiative taking, self-directed and comfortable functioning with little supervision. 
 
Airfare is included in the program fee and includes roundtrip airfare to your host country departing from and arriving at Pittsburgh on the scheduled departure and return dates. All CLAS Seminar & Field students will depart from their host country together, although students may elect to make changes to the location of their domestic (U.S.) return city. Additional changes to the return flight itinerary, including change fees and differences in airfare, are the sole responsibility of the student.

You're seeing student-submitted photos from Valladolid. There may be photos that do not necessarily represent this program or it's inclusions, but we hope you enjoy seeing what Panthers around the world are doing!