Currently, the College is the only top liberal arts college in the nation without any of its own programs in places outside of Amherst. While some students do utilize our partnership with Japan's Doshisha University, other colleges have much more extensive programs. For instance, Swarthmore College has five programs of its own in three different countries, all headed by Swarthmore faculty members though only one is owned by Swarthmore itself. Williams College operates three different programs, two of which take place in the U.S., and one of which operates at Oxford University in England. And not all of these schools operate programs on their own-Vassar College and Wesleyan University operate programs together in France, Spain and Italy.
However, our request that the College at least consider the viability of operating such a program is not simply to "keep up with the Joneses" (though the thought did cross our minds).
As the sophomore class is now discovering while they choose if, when and where to study abroad, one's academic major or pre-professional program (most notably pre-med), can operate as an enormous deterrent to study abroad. Many departments give limited credit (or no credit at all) to courses taken abroad; in other departments, professors give or withhold credit at their own discretion. While further research into other colleges' and universities' programs could solve this problem, programs of Amherst's own could potentially ensure that these courses meet the high standards of specific departments.
In addition to exploring abroad programs in popular areas like Western Europe and in other, less-traveled nations, the College might consider domestic programs that cater to specific departments along the lines of Williams' Mystic Seaport or New York City programs.
Forty-three percent of the junior class chose to study abroad this year. And while we do not mean to cast aspersions on their academic experiences, wouldn't it have been nice if at least some of them could have continued to take advantage of an Amherst education for an extra semester or two rather than an Amherst-certified one?