Study Abroad and Summer Programs

Study Abroad Programs

College Year in Athens
The department regularly sends undergraduate students to attend semester- or year-long programs at the College Year in Athens (CYA) in Greece. CYA offers a variety of courses in Greek and Latin; Classics; archaeology; Aegean prehistory; Greek and Mediterranean history; Greek anthropology, architecture, religion, ancient art; and modern Greek language and literature. The year-long and fall and spring semester programs consist of numerous trips to sites around mainland Greece, Crete and the Aegean, as well as a number of regular courses actually taught on site or in Greek museums. The program is open to qualified undergraduates in Classics, Archaeology, Art History, and History. For further information please consult the University’s Study Abroad Office, or the College Year in Athens website.

The American School of Classical Studies at Athens
Undergraduates are eligible to apply for summer sessions of travel study in Greece. Two six-week sessions open to undergraduate and graduate students emphasize the topography and antiquities of Greece. The approximately $2,750 fee covers room and partial board. Five scholarships are available. For information consult the American School of Classical Studies at Athens website.

Classical Semester in Rome
The Department of Classics is a founding member of the Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies in Rome (ICCS Rome; the “Centro”) and regularly sends students there for a semester or a year. The center offers courses in Latin, Roman archaeology and history, Greek, Italian, and Art History. The program is open to qualified undergraduates in Art History, Ancient History, and Classical Studies. Interested students should consult the Director of Undergraduate Studies or the Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies in Rome website.

Archaeological Field Projects
Classics majors regularly participate in archaeological surveys and excavations throughout the Mediterranean. Involvement in fieldwork is a regular feature and indeed an important component of undergraduate training in Classical Archaeology, providing a perspective on the topography and the material culture of the classical world not easily attained through coursework alone. It is recommended for students in other Classics major concentrations as well.  In the past our students have joined excavations — as volunteers or trench supervisors — at Carthage in Tunisia, Aqaba on the Red Sea in Jordan, Caesarea in Israel, the Athenian Agora, and Pompeii.

Faculty members currently conducting excavations and other field work are Donald Haggis, director of the Azoria Project on Crete and Jodi Magness, professor of Religious Studies and adjunct professor of Classics, director of excavations at Huqoq, Israel.  UNC undergraduates are not limited, however, to field projects direct by UNC faculty, but have the option of participating in others as well.  Students interested in participating in a field project should consult with the Chair of the Archaeology Committee or another member of the classical archaeology faculty.

King’s College London Exchange Program
The King’s College London Exchange Program provides an opportunity to undergraduates majoring in Classics, typically in their junior year, to spend a full academic year in London, based in the prestigious King’s College. The Exchange Program ensures full recognition of the courses taken during the year. The Department of Classics at King’s College London is very strong, and through King’s College, students have access to the University of London’s Institute of Classical Studies and to the University College’s Institute of Archaeology, two world-class research centers in our discipline. The Exchange Program is administered through the University’s Study Abroad Office.  For more information about the King’s College Exchange Program, contact the Director of Undergraduate Studies or the Department’s King’s College Liaison.

Summer Language Programs

A useful resource for locating summer programs is Summer Classics, which in theory provides a comprehensive listing of all summer courses in Latin, Greek, and other Classics subjects.  On the top left are two menus that allow you to search by school/program name or by subject offered.  The subject menu, however, will yield only those programs that have updated their information on the site for that year, which may be only five or so.  It is more effective to search by school/program, see the results, and, if necessary, use the links to the program’s website to learn about current offerings.

The following are a few recommended programs.

• The closest and easiest option is Duke University, which regularly offers intensive elementary Greek during the summer, although the course is subject to cancellation if it fails to get sufficient enrollments.  The Interinstitutional Agreement between UNC and Duke makes it simple for students to enroll and receive transfer credit.  Interested students should check the Duke Summer Session website to see whether the course will be offered in the coming summer and may contact the Department of Classical Studies for further information.
• Another relatively close option is the University of Virginia’s Summer Language Institute, which offers a two-course sequence in Latin that provides the equivalent of a year of elementary and a year of intermediate Latin.
• Two of the most well-established summer programs are the Latin/Greek Institute at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York and the Latin and Greek Workshops at the University of California at Berkeley; both have excellent track records.
• Another well-established program is that at the University of Texas, whose Summer Intensive Greek course covers the first three semesters of Greek in ten weeks; they also offer intensive elementary and intermediate Latin.
• The following universities currently offer both Latin and Greek, each at both the elementary and the intermediate levels: Catholic University, Columbia University, and the University of Pennsylvania.
• Harvard University offers elementary Latin and Greek; search the course catalogue for ‘Latin’ and ‘Greek’.
• Ohio State University offers an Intensive Latin Workshop that covers both elementary and intermediate Latin.
• There are also options for online courses.  The University of Colorado at Boulder offers a two-part introductory online Greek course for credit; see further on the UC Boulder Courses page.
• The Paideia Institute offers intensive beginning Latin and Greek courses, as well as a variety of other courses, through its Telepaideia program, but students should determine in advance whether they can take these courses for credit; see further on The Paideia Institute website.