Honors Study Abroad Program

The Honors Abroad program offers scholarship-funded short-term travel courses, as well as local and international internships. These interdisciplinary and applied educational experiences are each designed to help students become more engaged in their education and in their community by introducing them to new perspectives regarding Maine’s relevance and our emerging role in the North Atlantic region. To complement the worldview expansion encouraged by the short-term experiential learning travel, students have the opportunity to participate in internships that support Maine and the greater Portland area’s role in the North Atlantic economy. Currently we offer internships both in Maine and in Iceland, and are planning to expand our offerings in Norway by summer 2020. The goal of this program is to give students opportunities to build intentional and meaningful connections with the business communities in greater Portland and the North Atlantic region. Through scaffolded learning opportunities, students will graduate with skills in the following areas: engage with diverse perspectives and cultures; complete advanced interdisciplinary projects; and work well independently and as members of interdisciplinary teams.

Vision

Our vision is to expand our program offerings so that we can support more international and applied learning experiences for our students. We know that students who complete academic internships and study abroad experiences in college are more likely to attain full employment within six months of graduation, and we are committed to supporting these opportunities for Honors students at USM. Another goal is for the program to expand into other countries, such as Ireland, Scotland, Norway, and the Faroe Islands.

Collaborators

  • New England Ocean Cluster

  • Iceland Ocean Cluster

  • Reykjavik University

  • Eimskip

  • GEO Camp

Professors

Rebecca Nisetich

Rebecca Nisetich

Honors Program