Camps Conference and Exchange Programs
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CEEPUS Network
CIII-AT-0503-09-1920 Inter-American Studies
CEEPUS is short for"Central European Exchange Program for University Studies".
Current program member states are: Albania, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia. Prishtina/Kosovo is also participating in the program.
Within the CEEPUS network, educational institutions in the university sector have the opportunity to participate in thematic networks. Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz and its partners have been organizing one of these networks in the field of Inter-American Studies since the 2010/11 academic year.
Program description
The founding of the Center for Inter-American Studies at the University of Graz has opened up new perspectives for the development of regional and international partnerships beyond the boundaries of nationally oriented research areas. Seizing this opportunity and with a view to a possible CEEPUS network and the future development of a joint degree, the Center for Inter-American Studies approached partners in Europe and aroused their interest.
Coordinating organization
University of Graz, Austria
Center for Inter-American Studies
Partner institutions
| St. Kiril and Methodius University of Veliko Turnovo, Bulgaria | Faculty of Modern Languages, Department of English Ludmilla Kostova |
|---|---|
| Paisii Helendarski University of Plovdiv, Bulgaria | Department of English and American Studies Valentin Petroussenko |
| Palacký University Olomouc, Czech Republic | Philosophical Faculty Matthew Sweney |
| University of Zagreb, Croatia | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Department of English Sven Cvek |
| Károli Gáspár University of the Hungarian Reformed Church, Hungary | Department of General Humanities Miklos Vassanyi |
| University of Pécs, Hungary | Faculty of Humanities, Institute for English Studies Gabriella Vöo |
| Jagiellonian University Cracow, Poland | Institute of American Studies and Polish Diaspora Adam Walaszek Administration: Anna Bartnik |
| Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi, Romania | Faculty of Letters, English Department Dana-Janeta Badulescu |
| Belgrade University, Serbia | Faculty of Philology, Department of Iberian Studies Zoran Paunovic |
| University of Novi Sad, Serbia | Department of English Language and Literature Ivana Djuric Paunovic |
| Comenius University, Slovakia | Faculty of Arts, Department of British and American Studies Peter Barrer |
| University of Ljubljana, Slovenia | Faculty of Education Beatriz Tomšic Cerkez |
Goals
The aim of the network is to establish the research field of Inter-American Studies as an internationally attractive study program. A solid academic basis for understanding the interconnectedness of North, Central and South America should form the foundation for further multidisciplinary research work. Students are taught skills in the field of Inter-American Studies. Furthermore, they will have the opportunity to gain practical experience that will provide them with skills in various aspects of language, literature, culture as well as social, political and regional contexts. After completing their studies, students should benefit from a broad range of knowledge that will make it easier for them to enter the world of work. Furthermore, a sound education in Inter-American Studies enables students to participate in a wide variety of doctoral programs. One of the main features of the joint program is the importance of international mobility as part of the studies, which not only promotes the international and personal skills of the students, but is also relevant for entering the international job market.
Planned mobility
In preparation for the Inter-American Studies Joint Degree, the network's mobilities include student mobility and teaching staff mobility between the partners in Central Europe. The development of the curriculum is being planned and a number of discussions have already taken place.
Teacher mobility is promoted above all in the area of jointly organized courses. International cooperation between teaching staff is the cornerstone of a functioning joint degree. A good example of this is the course series Topics in Inter-American Studies.
The already established summer school in the field of Inter-American Studies is an important part of teaching in the department, and it is therefore planned to incorporate it into the joint degree in its existing form.
Contribution of the individual partners
Each of the partner universities in the consortium contributes to the curriculum with its own special focus (North American Studies, Canadian Studies, Latin American Studies, Inter-American Studies, etc.). As the coordinating organization, the University of Graz also offers the introductory courses and the theoretical foundations of Inter-American Studies. The participating partners will offer the courses at institutes of Romance Studies and English/American Studies. In addition, partners in the Americas will make their expertise available. Language training in the languages of the consortium partners (Hungarian, German, Polish, Bulgarian, Romanian, Czech, Croatian, Serbian and Slovenian) will complement the program. The University Graz provides the expertise for the establishment of joint degrees.