Sophomore Christine Dussault is toying with the idea of adding a Spanish minor, but she doesn’t want to delay her graduation if she decides against it.
So Dussault will spend six weeks of summer session in Cuernavaca, Mexico, taking classes and earning six credits of Spanish.
| “The students we try to promote summer programs to are those in very lock-step programs, such as nursing.” –Cheryl Lochner-Wright Study abroad coordinator |
“I just got back from traveling to Guatemala for two weeks,” Dussault said. “And (traveling) is the best way to learn a language.”
Study abroad is one of many options students have for summer session, which starts registration for graduate students today. Seniors can register beginning Thursday for summer session, which runs from May 19 through Aug. 1.
Students should consider taking summer classes this year in particular due to the uncertainty surrounding the state budget, said Jan Morse, administrative officer of Academic Affairs. Potential UW System budget cuts could limit the number of courses offered at Eau Claire in future semesters, Morse said.
Summer session also offers other benefits, she said.
“It’s good for students,” Morse said. “For instance, if they want to take more than one course. And it offers flexibility for faculty. They can still have summer plans.”
Study abroad is not the only summer session option for travel.
Since the early 1980s, Eau Claire has been sending biology students to the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory in Ocean Springs, Miss. The program gives students the opportunity to study marine science firsthand, biology professor Darwin Wittrock said.
“It’s been extremely popular,” Wittrock said. “Students can’t wait to go back.”
Many do return for a second summer at the lab, he added.
On average, 2,500 to 2,600 students take some sort of summer class during one of the two summer sessions, Morse said.
The three-week session runs from May 19 to June 6, and the eight-week session runs from June 9 to Aug. 1.
Students can register for summer classes until right before they begin, but should register as early as possible, Morse said. This is because classes with only a few students signed up may be cancelled, forcing those who sign up to either find a different section, or a different class altogether.
The deadline for summer study abroad programs was Nov. 15, but it’s never too early to start thinking about next summer, study abroad coordinator Cheryl Lochner-Wright said.
Summer study-abroad programs are ideal for those who don’t want to or can’t study abroad for an entire semester, she said.
“The students we try to promote summer programs to are those in very lock-step programs, such as nursing,” Lochner-Wright said.
Summer programs also might be beneficial for non-traditional students or those who play sports, she said.
The summer program timing was perfect for Dussault.
“I was a little hesitant to not be working at first,” she said. “But we all just want to get through (and graduate). It just made sense for me.”
