Students Prepare to Span the Globe This January

January is an exciting time at Randolph-Macon College where students can travel abroad and study while being immersed in a different culture. We call it J-Term, a four week session between the fall and spring semesters when students have access to unique and cultural educational opportunities. This year, a record 210 students are packing their bags and traveling to one of nine countries. They’ll learn about the country they visit, conduct research, and develop a new appreciation for cultural diversity.

Students will choose one-of-a-kind international study opportunities, such as studying animal behavior while staying at a nature reserve in Costa Rica; exploring the history of the West African nation of Ghana; climbing the Great Wall in China while studying the country’s culture and society; traveling to Japan to study Tokyo’s past and present; or studying the history of mathematics in England.

J-term not only offers global educational opportunities, but life-changing experiences. Many students say it’s one of the brightest highlights of their undergraduate career.

For example, during last J-Term (2007), 24 students traveled to Brazil to study the history of mission work and social justice in the South American country. They worked at a summer camp for urban, underprivileged children in the coastal city of Vitoria. They helped to complete construction of a camp dormitory, as well as landscaping and fence construction.

Another group of students traveled to Johannesburg, South Africa to explore the social transformations in this country as it moves towards democracy. The students were able to visit townships and witness everyday life as well as see, first-hand, various sights of the anti-apartheid struggle.

You can follow the travel of students during the upcoming 2008 J-Term program on our website. Several students from each course will post “J-Term Diaries” during their travel and will share experiences as well as photos so you can keep up with their exciting adventures. So buckle up and visit www.rmc.edu often!