Memorial University offers its students a number of ways to study abroad and see the world while earning credit towards your degree at Memorial.

How does it work?

There are two primary study abroad options (in addition to internships and research abroad options):

• Faculty-led Field School options that offer a cluster of courses taken at locations abroad. Many of these are offered as "summer schools."
• International student exchange programs for individual students who apply to study at one of Memorial’s 140+ partner institutions worldwide.

Note: There are also options for researched-based or co-op work placements abroad, and an option of taking leave from Memorial and travelling as a visiting, fees-paying student at another global university. You can read about these three options on the Internationalization Office's website. 

Faculty-led field schools abroad

Schools, or departments within a faculty, plan field schools for any given year. They often occur at Memorial’s Harlow Campus in the UK (40 km from London).

As an example, for the 2015 summer semester, the Departments of Geography and Folklore created a field school program entitled “Consuming Cultures: From Field to Plate” at Harlow. Its four cross-listed courses used food to explore themes like tradition, globalization, sustainability, regional development and cultural tourism. There were twelve field trips to locations such as farms, markets, fishing communities, breweries, fair trade merchants, and transition towns.

A perk of field school options is there is minimal planning on your end, everything from accommodations to courses are predefined. Their duration can range from 2 to twelve weeks. They're specific to your degree program.

International student exchanges

Memorial University has partnered with more than 120 post-secondary institutions, in more than 40 countries – From the Americas to Africa, Europe to Asia, and Australia to the Arctic – so that a student of Memorial can study at these universities while earning credits towards their Memorial degree. 

You will continue to be registered as a Memorial University student for the duration of your studies abroad, and you will pay your tuition fees to Memorial University.

A perk of the exchange option is that you are free to decide where you’ll live, eat, play, and work while abroad, and you’ll be able to take courses not offered at Memorial.

This option comes with considerable planning, and the institutes available to you depend on what faculty you’re a student of, but Memorial has exchange coordinators available to help you plan.

There are countless reasons to consider studying abroad. Here are just 10:

Studying abroad lets you see and experience the world without delaying your studies. 

1.) Experience the allure of another country first hand, not from a textbook. Taking in legendary landmarks and landscapes, or unique cuisines and regional entertainment, is the only way to really understand that cities and cultures are experienced in a way words cannot capture.

2.) Learn new language skills. You’ll find that when your lunch or ride to the airport depends on your language skills, they improve swiftly.

3.) Grad school admissions personnel look favourably on applicants who have studied abroad. It proves a passion for your academic pursuits, and shows you can navigate new terrain and roll with it.

4.) Studying abroad broadens your perspective on the world and your place in it. You will return with new academic interests, and possibly new personal interests as well.

5.) See a side of your major you wouldn’t be exposed to at Memorial. Different countries have different ways of teaching. Learning in a new way will broaden your mind and deepen your understanding of your academic discipline.

6.) You’ll make lifelong friends. Studying abroad is a bonding experience for you and students. You’ll all be looking to connect with someone, and you’ll already share many similar interests (at least academically). There’s a lot to learn from friends of other cultures, and it helps to have friends in many places.

7.) The act of exploring a new city on your own has been proven to boost people’s independence, quickly. You’ll find yourself more self-reliant when you return, and more adaptable to new scenarios.

8.) You will get more global minded, and come to see your own culture through a new global lens. Whether it’s in work, study or play, you’ll be able to use your new global mindset to question other people’s arguments, or inform your own beliefs and big life decisions.

9.) Build your resume. Impress employers. Studying and working abroad shows you have experience with other cultures, and you’re highly adaptable to different challenges and environments. Our world is more globalized than ever and employers really value global-minded graduates.

10.) Find yourself and your career path. Travel changes us, for the better, in a way you'll only understand after a great experience abroad. It’s good to know who you are before locking yourself into a career path for life!

Additional info on study and research abroad

For more information on current study abroad programs, visit the Go Abroad webpage.