SATA Vietnam 2007

Arrangements | Informational Meetings | Courses | Excursions | SATA Vietnam 2006 Blog

Professor Don Peppard on the streets of Hanoi

Hanoi, Vietnam will be the campus for a small group of Connecticut College students during spring semester, 2007 for the sixth SATA Vietnam program, directed by Bill Frasure, Professor of Government, and Don Peppard, Professor of Economics.

SATA Vietnam offers students the chance to become immersed in the life of a developing country whose history is intrinsically interesting and at the same time inseparably a part of major currents in world affairs. Colonialism and its aftermath, the Cold War, Confucianism and Communism, war and revolution, globalization: all are manifest in the atmosphere of Hanoi. SATA Vietnam’s academic program takes full advantage of its setting, which will enrich the education of students interested in history, cultural studies, economics, international relations, Asian studies, environmental studies, and American studies, among others.

To read one student's view of the SATA Vietnam program, CC junior David Owyang '07 is posting his imagery, insights and observations about his studies and sojourns in the bustling city of Hanoi while on SATA Vietnam in Spring 2006. Read his SATA Vietnam 2006 Blog.

Informational Meetings

Throughout the spring semester of 2006, there will be several informational meetings for students who may be interested in SATA Vietnam 2007. The first meeting is on February 28 at 4 pm in the Faculty Lounge, Blaustein. Watch for announcements of more meetings in April and May.

Arrangements

As in all SATA programs, each student’s financial arrangements and obligations, mainly the comprehensive fee and financial aid, are the same as they would be if he or she were staying at Connecticut College for the semester. The SATA Vietnam 2007 program includes round-trip travel from New York, room and board in Vietnam, and all group field trips in Vietnam. In Hanoi, students live in an international students’ dormitory situated in one of the university complexes. Typically, students have single rooms with private bath and air-conditioning.

Courses offered in 2007

Students of all majors are encouraged to apply to this program.  Frasure and Peppard will work with interested students to assist them in course selection.

Vietnamese Language and Culture — 6 credits. Required of all students. Each class has only 3 to 5 students and meets for 2.5 hours each morning, Monday through Thursday. Students learn from a textbook and close interaction with the young teachers from Vietnam National University (VNU). Emphasis is on speaking and listening competence. Guided by their language instructors, students in this course are introduced to the life and culture of Vietnam.

Vietnamese History — 4 credits. Required of all students. Taught by a professor of history from VNU, this course introduces students to the long and rich history of Vietnam. 1 meeting per week.

Elective courses (each course meets once a week for 2.5 hours):

ECO 216 The Political Economy of Post-War Vietnam — 4 credits. This course covers the recent economic history of Vietnam and introduces students to the remarkable changes that have occurred since 1986.  (Peppard)

ECO 406 Political Economy Seminar — 4 credits. The course will consider a variety of readings. Students will write weekly papers and 2 longer papers. (Peppard)

GOV 348 International Political Economy – 4 credits. This course considers the structures and institutions of international trade and finance, the politics of economic development, and globalization, with an emphasis on Vietnam and the United States.

GOV 494g Seminar: Environmental Issues in International Politics – 4 credits. This seminar considers responses to global and transnational environmental issues.

Schedule, Travel, Excursions

SATA Vietnam 2007 students will depart as a group from John F. Kennedy Airport in New York on approximately January 17, 2007. In Hanoi, they will follow an academic calendar similar to that of Connecticut College.

In addition to classes, there will be day trips to local sites of historical and cultural interest, and at least two longer trips. A highlight of the program is a 12-day spring break trip to sites in central and southern Vietnam. The group will travel to Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, to begin a study tour of the Mekong Delta to learn more about that important part of the country. In HCMC, students can sample life in the most modern of Vietnam’s cities and visit sites associated with the war in Vietnam. The group will visit Nha Trang, a lovely beach resort city;  Hoi An, a quaint old fishing town; and Hue, the ancient imperial capital of Vietnam. Late in the semester, there will be an extended trip to the northern mountain town of Sapa.

The end of the semester, like the beginning, will closely coincide with that at Connecticut College. Students will be ticketed to depart Hanoi around May 14, 2007, for their return to the US,  but are free to arrange for later departure or rerouting, subject to current airline rules and regulations, at their own initiative and expense.

Connecticut College students interested in SATA Vietnam 2006 should contact Professor Peppard; or Shirley Parson in the Office of International Programs, Fanning 113.