4 cities, 5 weeks, 6 credits The Catalyst: Europe's Most Moving Classroom Honors Study Abroad is a unique study abroad program designed around the concept of portable learning. Be prepared to move yourself from city to city, and to be moved by what you see, do and learn along the way. Your journey starts in London, with Paris, Berlin and Prague as the next “classrooms” on your itinerary. As you use your Eur-Rail pass to travel between cities, you’ll experience what The Catalyst calls “Authentication Travel.” it’s about you making your own plans. Booking your own lodging. Charting a course that gets you where you need to go, learning and exploring every step of the way. Until you reconvene in another new city to continue the work of The Catalyst, learning and living each day with a gusto that will drive your five week journey and influence you long after you’re home. Academics Ever have a semester when your classes all seem to work together? When what you read in your literature class actually helps you follow your history professor better? That’s everyday life on The Catalyst. Your courses share themes and a chronology, and are designed to be enmeshed. Your professors will push each other as much as they push you. Together you’ll search deeply into the heart of a continent whose people and beliefs utterly changed the world. Students will take 2 courses: Catalyst Core for 3 credits and the Catalyst Elective of their choice. Final Exams for all courses will be taken in Prague. Students will take the Catalyst and Culture —a three-credit interdisciplinary course required of all students—to follow the gloried and horrific paths of the European idea of progress, from the Renaissance through the Holocaust. Catalyst and Culture will meet for 2 days in each city. You’ll also choose a Catalyst elective course on adopting its discipline specific tools to help you navigate through a topography that is simultaneously mad and civilized, beautiful and horrible, warring and peaceful, criminal and just. Catalyst Electives will meet for 3 days in each city. Students choose one Catalyst Elective: Sex in the Cities - Literature Madness - Psychology Shutter/Speed - Photography Battleground - History Spysight - Political Science Housing and Meals While The Catalyst is in session in London, Paris, Berlin and Prague, your housing will be centrally located and included in the program price. So will your breakfasts and at least one group dinner in each of our cities. The Catalyst staff will help you plan your period of Authentication Travel, so that you can make the most of your time, budget and experience. Your housing and meals during Authentication are your own responsibility, and are considered supplemental costs beyond your The Catalyst program fees. Authentication Travel Up to this point in your life, you've probably traveled with others leading the way. If your companions were experienced travelers, chances are things went pretty smoothly. Now it’s your turn to be in charge. During Authentication Travel, you make your own plans. You could choose to travel with other The Catalyst students. Or experience the rush of freedom and excitement that comes from setting your own course to a destination you alone have selected. You will have period of Authentication Travel on The Catalyst, lasting seven days. As you discover Europe, your confidence and self-reliance will grow. So will your time management skills, as you’ll need to complete academic assignments in conjunction with the Needle course, which is required of all students. Student Life and Exploration Time In each city, students will have one day with no class meetings or visits scheduled. Students can use this time to read for class, study or to explore the amazing host cities along the Catalyst journey. Students will be living together in each host city and may plan to do things as a group or in smaller groups during free time. Passport and Visas? All students will require a passport for the Catalyst Program. Due to processing times, it is recommended you apply for your passport by March 15 in order to have it back before you depart for the Catalyst Program. Visas are not required for US citizens on the Catalyst Program. If you not a US citizen, please consult with UWF Study Abroad regarding possible visa requirements for the Catalyst program. If you need a visa, you will need to submit visa application(s) in April 2015. Visa application may require you to apply in-person at more than one location.
Quick Facts
Population: 10177300 Capital: Prague Per-capita GDP: $ 27400 Size: 78867 km2 Time Zone: (GMT + 01:00 hour) Brussels, Copenhagen, Madrid, Paris
US State Department
Travel Warning: YES See : Country Specific Info.