Student Exchanges
As technology and commerce become increasingly international in outlook, students in engineering, science and management must learn about countries and cultures other than their own. To respond to this need, WPI offers its students an extensive range of opportunities to broaden their academic and cultural perspectives through study in a foreign country. Unlike many other exchanges, the WPI program is structured to allow students to work directly with foreign students, faculty, and professionals, and to live in residences with the students of the host institution. For WPI students on these exchanges, time is usually available for additional travel, before or after the formal academic period.
WPI presently offers undergraduate exchanges with universities in Canada, Germany, Mexico and Sweden as described in detail below.
These exchange programs typically involve third-year students, though qualified sophomores and seniors have been accepted. Students could go on these exchanges for a semester or a full year. Where perfecting a foreign language is part of the program in Germany or Sweden, a full year abroad is more common. The principal academic emphasis in all exchanges is upon course work. In such programs, students must work closely with their advisor, the academic advisor of the exchange program, and the program coordinator at the site to design an individual program of study. Students have the responsibility of obtaining prior tentative approval from their department that courses taken abroad will count towards departmental distribution requirements. For final transfer credit evaluation, students must provide upon return the necessary detailed information on the content of courses taken abroad and the satisfactory completion of all work. In some exchanges, opportunities exist to complete project work (IQP, MQP, and Humanities and Arts requirement). The exchanges offer exceptional possibilities for projects comparing American and overseas applications of technology and the impact of technology on society.
For more information on these programs, consult with Leanne Johnson in the Project Center or the academic advisor listed for each program.
Language Requirements
The usual language of instruction at most of the exchange institutions is the official language of the host country. While these institutions may offer a few courses taught in English, most lectures will be given in a foreign language. Thus, exchange students who intend to complete substantial course work must acquire the necessary language background. In some cases intensive language instruction can be arranged on site. In other cases, students acquire the language background through courses taught at WPI or other colleges, or by self study. A few exceptions exist at some technical universities where the official language of instruction may be English. For information about language requirements, inquire with the academic advisor listed for each program or Leanne Johnson in the Project Center.
Ecole Polytechnique; Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Exchange
Coordinator: Leanne Johnson, Project Center
Academic Advisor: Prof. W. A. Bland Addison,
Salisbury Labs 02
The Ecole Polytechnique de Montréal provides WPI students with the opportunity to study in French without incurring the cost of transatlantic travel. The École Polytechnique is located in the beautiful cosmopolitan city of Montreal, known for a rich variety of cultural activities, night life, and easy access to winter sports. This program offers a unique opportunity for an inside look at francophone culture within Canada today. Students study and socialize with French-speaking students at Poly and can take French language courses at the University of Montreal. In coordination with the academic advisor of the program, students can complete French language or French-Canadian Studies sufficiencies or IQPs through the exchange.
University of Applied Sciences; Konstanz, Germany; Exchange
Students who already know German or are planning to begin studying it have the opportunity to study in Germany for a semester at the Hochschule für Technik, Wirtschaft und Gestaltung (HTWG: University of Applied Sciences; http:// www.htwg-konstanz.de/) in Konstanz, Germany. The city of Konstanz, located at the western end of Lake Constance (in German, der Bodensee) and right on the border with Switzerland, is one of Germany’s most beautiful cities, with a wellpreserved medieval and Renaissance city center. The snowcovered Alps are visible across the lake and the HTWG campus is on the bank of the Rhine where it flows out of the lake and heads north. The city is pedestrian friendly, has great food, and there are unlimited opportunities for biking, boating, swimming, skiing, and hiking in the immediate vicinity. Weekend travel to Austria, Italy, and France is easy and Switzerland is literally right across the street. Students who begin their study of German in A, B and C Terms can complete the Humanities and Arts Requirement by attending the HTWG in D and E terms. WPI will not charge these students extra tuition for E term. Students whose German is already at an intermediate or advanced level may take either advanced language courses or technical courses at the HTWG. Admission to this exchange program is competitive.
Monterrey Institute of Technology; Monterrey, Mexico; Exchange
Coordinator: Leanne Johnson, Project Center
Academic Advisor: Prof. Cosme Furlong-Vazquez, Higgins Labs
WPI has established an exchange agreement with Mon-terrey Institute of Technology (The Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey, ITESM). ITESM was founded in 1943 and is the foremost private technological and management university in Mexico, with -programs available in Spanish at the main campus in Monterrey in northern Mexico. Some opportunities also exist for study at selected ITESM satellite campuses at 25 other locations in Mexico, by special arrangement in advance. WPI students have excellent opportunities to study engineering, science, and management in this leading Spanish-speaking university. In addition, ITESM offers special courses for North Americans wanting to learn how to do business in Latin America, and a full program of residential and academic study for English-speaking students seeking to increase their knowledge of Spanish language and culture.
Royal Institute of Technology; Stockholm, Sweden; Exchange
Coordinator: Leanne Johnson, Project Center
Academic Advisor: Holly Ault, Higgins Labs 207
WPI and the Kungliga Tekniska Hogskolan (Royal Institute of Technology, KTH) in Stockholm, Sweden, have arranged an exchange for WPI students learning Swedish. KTH is a fouryear technical university which is divided into ten different schools of engineering which are relatively independent of each other and control their own admissions.
The academic year, approximately August 25 to May 31, is divided into eight periods of four weeks (three weeks of classes and one week of unscheduled activities). Most courses last three to four periods; others may be shorter or longer. Final examinations for courses are normally given three to four times a year and can be taken repeatedly without having to repeat a course. There are some courses with regular examinations. Many students live in rooms and apartments in the city of Stockholm; some live in accommodations provided by the student union. Some scholarship aid is available, and students may fulfill their Sufficiency requirement through the exchange.
Technical College; Munich Germany; Exchange
Coordinator: Leanne Johnson, Project Center Academic
Advisor: Prof. David Dollenmayer, Alden 209
The “Technical College” is an institute for applied technology studies. Located in Munich, the FHSM has approximately 10,000 students. It offers degree programs in civil engineering mechanical engineering, electrical engineering and computer science/engineering. For students who have developed adequate proficiency in Germany, the FHSM offers the possibility of completing a co-op assignment in Germany.
Maintained by webmaster@wpi.eduLast modified: February 02, 2009 08:50:02