Yeseul Heo – European Union Study Abroad Program

This ten-week study program organized by Dr. Vicki Birchfield, Co-Director of the Center for European and Transatlantic Studies and Professor at the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, Georgia Institute of Technology and Georgia Tech Lorraine is designed to give students an in-depth and dynamic introduction to the history of European integration, the institutions and decision making processes of the EU, current issues and debates as well as the EU’s developing role as a global actor and its relationship with the United States.

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The program begins at the GTL campus in Metz, France, which is an ideal location from which to study European integration as the Lorraine region represents the very heart of French-German historical rivalry and reconciliation, cornerstones of the postwar European project.

Spending time in this region will make the two weeks spent in the capital cities of Paris and Berlin all the richer. Later, students will be plunged into the institutional heart of the EU spending nearly a month in Brussels, the ‘capital’ of the EU. Here students reside with host families and engage in interactive learning visiting all of the key EU institutions as well as NATO and SHAPE headquarters, the US Mission to the EU and many other site visits to think tanks such as Bruegel and CEPS and companies like Coca Cola’s International Headquarters and Google Europe.

The program is also interspersed with visits to other European cities and sites of decision-making power such as Strasbourg, Luxembourg City, and The Hague. Throughout the program, students have the unique opportunity to engage in dialogue with elected officials, policy makers, diplomats and other practitioners making the program a veritable case study of world politics in real time!

Key issues to be examined this summer include the important elections in France and Germany and their impact on the direction of EU affairs, the official debates on the future of the EU launched by Commission President Junker, the on-going migration and refugee crisis, efforts to confront radicalization and the problem of terrorism, tensions with Russia, growing euroscepticism and the Brexit negotiations.

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Click here for 2018 program flyer.

Itinerary

Trip Dates:

4 Weeks: Stay in Metz, France

Lecture-style classes are held Monday-Thursday at Georgia Tech Lorraine
Day trips to surrounding areas such as Strasbourg, Verdun, Luxembourg, and Bastogne
Three day weekends for independent travel

1 Week: Stay in Paris, France

Visits to sites such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Assemblée Nationale, and le Sénat
Opportunities to meet professionals within the French government and think tanks
Day trip to Normandy with visits to Bayeux and Omaha Beach Museum and Memorial
Free time to explore all that Paris has to offer

3 Weeks: Home Stay in Brussels, Belgium

Visits to the EU Parliament, EU Commission, Council of EU, the European External Action Service, think tanks, as well as the headquarters of NATO and SHAPE
Students stay with host families that provide breakfast and dinner each night
Lectures from a NATO General on European security

3 Days: Stay in The Hague, The Netherlands

Visit to the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court
Free time to explore the Hague or neighboring cities such as Amsterdam

1 Week: Stay in Berlin, Germany

Visits to the German Parliament, Foreign Ministry, Wannsee, and more
Free time to explore Berlin
Trips to museums on World War II and the Berlin Wall

Sample 2017 Full Program Itinerary

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