Vienna Program
VIENNA IN WESTERN CIVILIZATION

Please note: Study abroad programs sponsored by the undergraduate College of the University of Chicago are open to University of Chicago students only. Applications from outside the University are not accepted.

     


Mozart Memorial Statue
General Description:
Students in Chicago's autumn-quarter Vienna program study the history of Central Europe in one of its chief capitals. The three-course "Vienna in Western Civilization" sequence is compressed into the ten weeks of autumn-quarter and taught in English. A series of excursions in and around Vienna supplements the lectures and readings, connecting them with the architecture, historical sites, and artistic treasures that comprise the physical legacy of the Habsburg Empire. A local excursion includes a visit to the Heiligenkreuz Abbey, while a more extended excursion to Budapest offers an opportunity to explore this beautiful and historically significant city, and to compare the two Central European capitals.
Apart from the civilization sequence, students take an additional course in German language designed to help them connect with their surroundings.

The program is headquartered at the University of Vienna. The University is a major European institution of higher learning, dating from the fourteenth century and attracting many students from around the world. Take a virtual tour of Vienna at http://wien.arounder.com/.

Housing:
Program participants live in the Residenz Molkereistrasse, a student residence hall located in the Leopoldstadt section of Vienna near the Prater Park (with its famous Ferris wheel).  Students occupy single rooms arranged into apartments, each apartment including a common area, kitchen, bathroom, television, and internet cable. The building itself includes bike and laundry rooms. 


Heiligenkreuz Abbey

      
Credits:
Participants in the Vienna program receive three credits for the civilization sequence, which meets the College’s civilization requirement, and one credit for the German language course. If students have already met the civilization requirement they may use these credits as electives. Course titles, units of credit, and grades are placed on your Chicago transcript.

Registration and Tuition:
Students remain registered full-time in the College and pay regular College tuition, the Vienna program fee and the non-refundable study abroad administrative fee required of all participants in Chicago's programs abroad. For precise figures, see Study Abroad Program Fees.

German Language Pre-session:
Students wishing to get a head start on their German are urged to take advantage of the German Language Pre-session, a three-week supplement to the Vienna program devoted exclusively to German language. Participants in the pre-session arrive in Vienna three or four weeks before the regular program begins. This opportunity is open to students at all levels of German, including beginners. There is a modest surcharge for instruction and accommodation.

Financial Aid:
Students retain their financial aid eligibility while abroad. However, two expenses—the study abroad administrative fee and the round-trip airfare to Vienna —are not underwritten by College Financial Aid. On the other hand, since students cannot be expected to work part-time while in Vienna, the self-help component of their financial aid package does not include a term-time employment factor.

Eligibility and Application:
    



The Chicago Vienna program is designed for undergraduates in good standing who are beyond their first year in the College. While the program stipulates no minimum grade-point average, students should present a transcript demonstrating that they are a serious student who will make the most of this opportunity. Because the civilization sequence is taught in English, students are not required to have had previous study of German. At the same time they are encouraged to take as much German as possible before the beginning of the program, and their application is likely to be strengthened by doing so (and their experience of Vienna enhanced).

Please note: Because of the considerable demand on the Chicago civilization programs abroad, no student may participate in more than one of these programs.

In preparing the application and especially in composing the required personal statement, students should keep in mind that admission to Civilization programs are selective and that the number of places available is insufficient to meet the considerable demand. A student accepting an offer of admission is expected to secure his or her place with a non-refundable study abroad administrative fee. 

Further Information:
If you would like to discuss the Vienna program and the possibility of participating in it, you are invited to contact Erika Mercer (Harper 216; 834-5424).

Statements contained on this site are subject to change without notice.