Those who are looking for opportunities in Armenia to advance in their studies during summer have more choices this year than ever before. Educational institutions as well as non-educational organizations are offering a multitude of programs; some at introductory level and some on rather advanced and specialized topics; some taught in English and some in Armenian; some at international prices and some for free. Quality-wise, variety seems to be the case as well.
AGBU’s Ambitious Program
The most extensive summer program is offered by the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) and hosted by the American University of Armenia (AUA). This is the first time that AGBU is offering a summer program in Armenia.
Composed of seven 4-credit courses, taught entirely in English, the program mainly targets Armenian-American students. In fact, “being of Armenian descent” is one of the eligibility criteria. The other conditions include enrolment at an accredited college or university and “participation in public service oriented activities”.
In addition to AUA, 3 major state universities are affiliated with this 4-week program (30 June – 25 July, 2008). They are Yerevan State University, State Engineering University of Armenia (Polytechnic), and Mkhitar Heratsi Yerevan State Medical University. Thanks to AGBU’s collaboration with these universities, the program includes a variety of subjects in different disciplines which expand considerably its reach.
Each student is expected to enroll in at lease one and maximum 2 courses. The courses that are offered this year are:
> Armenian Art through the Ages
> Health Care Systems in Transforming Economies
> History & Politics of the Caucasus
> Human Rights & Civic Development in the Caucuses
> Regime Transformations in Post-Soviet Politics
> Trauma Related Psychological Defense Mechanisms
> Web Application Development
The lecturers that have been invited to the program are of high caliber to ensure a high-quality program. However, offering a high-quality program is not sufficient to attract students from abroad. Students usually expect that their home institutions recognize their academic work performed elsewhere. In other words, the credits earned must be transferable, and the transfer can usually take place if the host and home institutions have a partnership agreement or if their respective accreditation agencies recognize each other.
For U.S.-based students, the AGBU summer program seems to offer such a possibility. AUA that issues the final student transcript is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), and WASC is recognized by the other American accreditation agencies.
It is however strange to notice that AUA maintains a certain discretion concerning its participation in this program. For instance, its web site does not provide any information on the program. In fact, the AUA web page containing the relevant information is a “hidden” page; inaccessible to those who do not have the exact link. Is this because WASC accreditation does not extend to undergraduate or summer courses or courses offered by other institutions (the 3 state universities), is it because some of the admission criteria are clearly discriminatory (Armenian descent), or …?
The AGBU program tuition fees and expenses also match American standards. Each course costs 3,500 USD. In addition, students are required to pay a participation fee of 1,450 USD that includes 4-week accommodation, entrance visa, Armenian language and history courses, “meetings with government officials”, and several social events and cultural excursions.
On the down side, one can remark the condensed and intensive structure of the program. It seems that 4 weeks is too short to complete a course and to participate in all the extra-curricular and cultural immersion activities that AGBU has planned. It even makes it impossible to take two courses; something that most students enrolling in summer programs usually prefer.
Single-course Programs
Among single-course programs, one can mention yet another first; a program offered at a private institution. The course is entitled “The Promises & Perils of Globalization” and the enterprising institution offering it is Eurasia International University (EIU). EIU was established in 1996 and is accredited by the Armenian Ministry of Education and Science.
The course is taught in English by a U.S.-based instructor. The enrollment “is open to all”, however, upper-level undergraduate and graduate students and professors of Social Sciences and Business are strongly preferred (maximum intake: 25).
The course lasts 2 weeks (28 July – 8 August) and costs 130 USD. EIU issues a Certificate of Achievement to participants who complete the course successfully. According to EIU, students can also transfer 3 academic credits to their home institutions. It is however unclear how the University has translated the overall time volume of the course (10 hours) into 3 credits. According to the European Credit Transfer System which is now the norm in Armenia, a 10-hour course would be equivalent to fewer credits.
A non-credit bearing but very interesting program is a training module in Journalism entitled “Journalism for the New Media Environment” offered by the U.S.-based International Center for Journalists. The 2-week program (7 July – 19 July, 2008) is fully funded by Open Society Institute and hosted by the Armenian School of Journalism of Yerevan State University.
The goal of the training program is to raise professional skills of young journalism educators on new media and methods of application of the new media in teaching. The program is open only to junior (max. 34 years old) faculty and PhD students based in Armenia or in other Eastern European and Central Asia countries (maximum intake: 21).
Other Options
The Armenian Association for Academic Partnership and Support (ARMACAD) is offering a seminar entitled “Religion vs. Politics: The Case of Armenian Christianity and Shiism”. The seminar analyzes how religion and politics interrelate and how religion interacts with state politics. The subject is discussed from a historical perspective, with an emphasis on the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Shiite branch of Islam.
The 5-day seminar (9-13 August, 2008), conducted in English and in Armenian, meets for 2 hours per day and is open to a select number of participants. The eligibility criteria include “residing in Armenia during the days of the event”, maximum age of 35 years old, mastery of English language, and being a researcher or a graduate student of Social Sciences. ARMACAD has not specified if it charges any participation fee.
AGBU’s Ambitious Program
The most extensive summer program is offered by the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) and hosted by the American University of Armenia (AUA). This is the first time that AGBU is offering a summer program in Armenia.
Composed of seven 4-credit courses, taught entirely in English, the program mainly targets Armenian-American students. In fact, “being of Armenian descent” is one of the eligibility criteria. The other conditions include enrolment at an accredited college or university and “participation in public service oriented activities”.
In addition to AUA, 3 major state universities are affiliated with this 4-week program (30 June – 25 July, 2008). They are Yerevan State University, State Engineering University of Armenia (Polytechnic), and Mkhitar Heratsi Yerevan State Medical University. Thanks to AGBU’s collaboration with these universities, the program includes a variety of subjects in different disciplines which expand considerably its reach.
Each student is expected to enroll in at lease one and maximum 2 courses. The courses that are offered this year are:
> Armenian Art through the Ages
> Health Care Systems in Transforming Economies
> History & Politics of the Caucasus
> Human Rights & Civic Development in the Caucuses
> Regime Transformations in Post-Soviet Politics
> Trauma Related Psychological Defense Mechanisms
> Web Application Development
The lecturers that have been invited to the program are of high caliber to ensure a high-quality program. However, offering a high-quality program is not sufficient to attract students from abroad. Students usually expect that their home institutions recognize their academic work performed elsewhere. In other words, the credits earned must be transferable, and the transfer can usually take place if the host and home institutions have a partnership agreement or if their respective accreditation agencies recognize each other.
For U.S.-based students, the AGBU summer program seems to offer such a possibility. AUA that issues the final student transcript is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), and WASC is recognized by the other American accreditation agencies.
It is however strange to notice that AUA maintains a certain discretion concerning its participation in this program. For instance, its web site does not provide any information on the program. In fact, the AUA web page containing the relevant information is a “hidden” page; inaccessible to those who do not have the exact link. Is this because WASC accreditation does not extend to undergraduate or summer courses or courses offered by other institutions (the 3 state universities), is it because some of the admission criteria are clearly discriminatory (Armenian descent), or …?
The AGBU program tuition fees and expenses also match American standards. Each course costs 3,500 USD. In addition, students are required to pay a participation fee of 1,450 USD that includes 4-week accommodation, entrance visa, Armenian language and history courses, “meetings with government officials”, and several social events and cultural excursions.
On the down side, one can remark the condensed and intensive structure of the program. It seems that 4 weeks is too short to complete a course and to participate in all the extra-curricular and cultural immersion activities that AGBU has planned. It even makes it impossible to take two courses; something that most students enrolling in summer programs usually prefer.
Single-course Programs
Among single-course programs, one can mention yet another first; a program offered at a private institution. The course is entitled “The Promises & Perils of Globalization” and the enterprising institution offering it is Eurasia International University (EIU). EIU was established in 1996 and is accredited by the Armenian Ministry of Education and Science.
The course is taught in English by a U.S.-based instructor. The enrollment “is open to all”, however, upper-level undergraduate and graduate students and professors of Social Sciences and Business are strongly preferred (maximum intake: 25).
The course lasts 2 weeks (28 July – 8 August) and costs 130 USD. EIU issues a Certificate of Achievement to participants who complete the course successfully. According to EIU, students can also transfer 3 academic credits to their home institutions. It is however unclear how the University has translated the overall time volume of the course (10 hours) into 3 credits. According to the European Credit Transfer System which is now the norm in Armenia, a 10-hour course would be equivalent to fewer credits.
A non-credit bearing but very interesting program is a training module in Journalism entitled “Journalism for the New Media Environment” offered by the U.S.-based International Center for Journalists. The 2-week program (7 July – 19 July, 2008) is fully funded by Open Society Institute and hosted by the Armenian School of Journalism of Yerevan State University.
The goal of the training program is to raise professional skills of young journalism educators on new media and methods of application of the new media in teaching. The program is open only to junior (max. 34 years old) faculty and PhD students based in Armenia or in other Eastern European and Central Asia countries (maximum intake: 21).
Other Options
The Armenian Association for Academic Partnership and Support (ARMACAD) is offering a seminar entitled “Religion vs. Politics: The Case of Armenian Christianity and Shiism”. The seminar analyzes how religion and politics interrelate and how religion interacts with state politics. The subject is discussed from a historical perspective, with an emphasis on the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Shiite branch of Islam.
The 5-day seminar (9-13 August, 2008), conducted in English and in Armenian, meets for 2 hours per day and is open to a select number of participants. The eligibility criteria include “residing in Armenia during the days of the event”, maximum age of 35 years old, mastery of English language, and being a researcher or a graduate student of Social Sciences. ARMACAD has not specified if it charges any participation fee.
The only program offered outside Yerevan is based in Ijevan and is called “European Union: Policy and Institutions”. The 5-day program (15-20 August, 2008) is a survey of European Union structure and operations, and introduces the participants to EU legal and economic environment and practices. The seminar is conducted in Armenian. It costs 200 USD “including VAT” which covers travel related and accommodation costs. The total time volume of the program has not been specified.
The seminar is open to students and graduates of Social Sciences, and the participants are awarded a Certificate upon completion of the program. However as the organizer, the European Education and Research Center, is a vocational training and consulting center and not an educational institution, students cannot earn and transfer any academic credits.
2 comments:
Aryana,
Thank you for your observations in this post, as well as the post about AUA's new building, PAB. Your perspective is very interesting.
Great post!
Thank you.
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