Teach Abroad
Leading a group of students abroad is a professionally rewarding experience! Hundreds of University of Minnesota faculty and staff have taught undergraduate and graduate students in an international setting. Students and program leaders alike find the experience to be a highlight of their academic and professional careers.
The Learning Abroad Center is here to help you develop one of these unique learning opportunities.
Call for Proposals
The submission portal for Create Your Own, Freshman Seminar Abroad, Global Seminar, and Summer Teach Abroad Opportunities proposals for academic year 2024-2025 is now open. The proposal submission deadline is February 1, 2024.
Review our Teach Abroad web pages, leader resources, and the Leader Portal Canvas site for additional information.
Proposal Considerations
We are particularly interested in programs taught in locations outside Western Europe and that appeal to traditionally underrepresented students. We encourage faculty and staff to thoughtfully consider how their own identity and positionality, both as instructors and as individuals, contributes to their experience teaching undergraduates and their ability to lead diverse student groups.
Additionally, the LAC has pledged to focus on sustainability in our programs. When developing your program we ask you to think about how your courses do or will discuss one or more of the the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Explore the Learning Abroad Center's 2023-2024 LAC Seminar Suite for programs that have been selected and will run this Academic Year.
Contact Lindsey Lahr with questions about the Proposal & Review process.
Instructor-Led Program Models
Learning Abroad Center Seminar Series
- Do you want to take first-year students abroad?
- Do you want to combine on-campus instruction with learning abroad?
- Do you prefer to have the highest level of Learning Abroad Center support with regard to program development, administration, and implementation?
- Do you want to take students abroad for a shorter period of time?
- Would mentoring and feedback from other leaders be useful?
- Could your program be designed for and open to students from a variety of academic backgrounds?
- Do you prefer to have the highest level of Learning Abroad Center support with regard to program development, administration, and implementation?
- Do you want to teach a course entirely abroad?
- Would mentoring and feedback from other leaders be useful?
- Do you prefer to have the highest level of Learning Abroad Center support with regard to program development, administration, and implementation?
- Do you want flexibility with regard to program length, number of credits, and academic focus?
- Do you want to teach an embedded course or a course taught entirely abroad?
- Would mentoring and feedback from other leaders be useful?
Summer Teach Abroad Opportunities
- Would you like to teach on a Learning Abroad Center summer program?
- Does your proposed course, and expertise, complement the other courses offered on the program's curricula?
- Do you want a longer teaching opportunity of up to eight weeks?
- Would you like to teach on a program where local faculty teach the complementary courses?
Location
Program locations for LAC Seminar models are finalized in consultation with the Learning Abroad Center. Factors taken into consideration are availability of partners that can provide strong on-site support, appeal to students, relevance to program topic, distance, safety, and cost.
For spring break, locations in Europe and Latin America are possible due to travel time and flight cost. For winter break, May session, and summer, travel to Asia, Africa, and Oceania is also possible.
Customized Programs
- Would you like to develop deeper connections with existing Learning Abroad Center programs and take advantage of the on-site staff's knowledge and expertise?
- Do you prefer to have a higher level of support from the Learning Abroad Center with your program's development, administration, and implementation?
- Do you prefer to design a discipline-specific program for a particular population of students?
Global Campus Partner Programs
- Do you prefer to design a discipline-specific program for a particular population of students?
- Does your program have specific academic prerequisites that students must meet?
- Do you have a specific location in mind?
- Do you prefer, and are you able, to assume full ownership of program development, finances, administration, and implementation?
Program Model Comparison Chart
Leader Portal
For more information about instructor-led programs, program development resources, and to connect with other leaders, refer to the Leader Portal Canvas site. If you need to enroll in the Canvas site, follow these steps:
- https://training.umn.edu/
- Select the "Course Catalog"button
- Keyword: LAC100 and/or Department offering training: Learning Abroad Center
- Select: Education Abroad Program Leader Resources
- Click green button: +Enroll in Course