Minnesota Studies in International Development - Senegal

  Senegal

Dakar

Term: Academic Year, Fall, Spring 
Dates: Fall: Sept 1-Dec 12; Academic Year: Sept 1-April 24; Spring: Jan 19-May 8

Description: Senegal has long been seen as a crossroads where black African, Islamic, and European civilizations have met, clashed, and blended. Today it is still seen as a bridge between Africa and the West; yet it is also a place where Senegalese people remain deeply attached to traditional values and cultures. This program is based in Dakar, Senegal's cosmopolitan capital, with internship sites scattered throughout the country. Heated by the African sun while surrounded on three sides by cool Atlantic waters, Dakar has a climate often described as 'eternal spring.'

Highlights: Learning from experience is the core of Minnesota Studies in International Development (MSID). The program aims to put students in direct contact with the social and economic realities of actual communities and of people working within them to address complex problems. Through classes, field trips, internships, and research, MSID strives to establish a continual dialogue linking experience with theory and critical analysis. Why are the rich richer and the poor poorer after decades of development efforts? Are there alternative development models that are more just, sustainable, and liberating? Students from a variety of disciplines, the social sciences, African studies, agriculture, forestry, enviromental studies, business, education, public health, health sciences, and many others find MSID an academically challenging and personally enriching experience.

The MSID curriculum explores the theoretical and practical implications of international development and intercultural issues. Field experience is an integral part of all courses. Pre-departure readings and assignments create a common knowledge base from which the courses and internships build. All of the curriculum except the language course can be taken for graduate level credit.

All four MSID program sites--Ecuador, Kenya, India, and Senegal--are offered for spring semester, fall semester, or academic year option.

Qualifications: Minnesota Studies in International Development (MSID) is a community-based learning program sponsored by the Learning Abroad Center at the University of Minnesota. It offers options in Ecuador, India, Kenya, and Senegal to students from any college or university who will be juniors, seniors, or graduate students, as well as to college graduates not currently enrolled in an institution of higher learning. The equivalent of four semesters of French language study is also required for the Senegal program.

Fall or spring semester consists of five phases:

1) pre-departure assigned readings and writing projects;
2) in-country orientation;
3) approximately two months of predominantly classroom instruction, supplemented by structured field assignments;
4) a grassroots internship of about 6 weeks (spring and fall semester) with a development agency or project in a rural or urban setting; and
5) a week back in the headquarters city for the last contact hours of the courses plus a final semester.

For academic year students, in spring semester the internship continues along with a major research project. A highly interdisciplinary program, MSID invites applications from students in all fields of study. Past internships have been in such disparate areas as public health, micro business development, environmental protection, agriculture, housing, women in development, education, literacy, community development, and many others.

Applications are considered on a rolling basis, and early application is encouraged. Priority deadline for fall or academic year is February 15, final deadline April 1; priority deadline for spring is June 1, final deadline October 1.

Cost in US$: See website for more info.

Experience Required: no