Albania Project Center

The IQP journey begins for these 24 students at the annual WPI Global Fair more than a year prior to their travel. The fair features every off-campus project center, with WPI Global Ambassadors (those who’ve already had an immersive project experience) on hand to share and answer questions. Leaving the event with a lot to decide, the students have the next 14 weeks (two WPI terms) to explore the info, attend in-depth sessions, and complete an intensive application process, before committing to Albania.

By the time they set out for Albania in October, they have a sense of the work ahead, have “met” their sponsors by phone or web, and have begun to coalesce in teams of four. They are excited, hopeful, ready to change the world. Four thousand miles and seven weeks later, they realize the experience has taken them further than they ever imagined. They leave Albania wiser and more humble, passionate about this place and its people, and beginning to understand that what's changed the most is how they view the world—and their place in it.