International Institute Experiential Learning Fund

Description: The International Institute Experiential Learning Fund is designed to support faculty-led group travel for undergraduate, graduate or professional school students wishing to incorporate an education abroad experiential component into an ongoing course, group internship, or other academic program during either winter break or spring-summer terms. Although grants are primarily for student costs and it is expected that most faculty costs will be covered by their home department, the International Institute will consider requests for no more than half of the cost of (non-student) expenses. Grants are up to $10,000.

Eligibility Criteria: Proposals must be from faculty and must make clear the experiential component of the program—“experiential” meaning student learning through participation in course-related activities outside the classroom. Proposals must also make clear the manner in which the program will give students an opportunity to acquire and use insights about the society in which the program (or its overseas component) will take place. Finally, proposals must identify the faculty member(s) who will be actively involved in site selection, planning, and evaluation of the overseas experience. In general, the expectation is that faculty will lead the trip. In some cases (e.g., group internships) faculty may appoint a colleague in-country to manage the trip. The International Institute has a preference for trips that include students from multiple units, as well as initiatives that have potential both for a continuing contribution to students at the University of Michigan and for long-term engagement with host country partners and institutions. Trips may be part of a non-credit experience, but should be part of a well-defined course or curricular program. Grants will not be awarded for humanitarian trips, projects with the primary purpose of service learning, or conference travel.

Deadline: Monday, December 3, 2012 & Monday, February 25, 2013. Requests for trips taking place over winter recess 2013 must be submitted by December 3, 2012. Requests for trips taking place during spring/summer 2013 may be submitted at either the deadline: December 3, 2012 or February 25, 2013.

Application Submission: Requests may be submitted in hardcopy or via email to Kelly Peckens and should include the following information:

  • Application Form
  • Description of the program (maximum length of four pages): include information on the educational value of the experience to the participants. Be explicit about the experiential nature (hands-on component) of the trip. What makes the activities substantially different than classroom lectures on the Ann Arbor campus? The review committee is multidisciplinary and reviewers are not likely to be from your discipline. Also include the expected benefits to the host country institutions.
  • Budget: include per-student cost for airfare, lodging, food, local transportation, visas, and required immunizations. Include other sources of funding (on or off-campus), if any. View a Sample Budget
  • Itinerary
  • List of participants or a description of the selection process by which participants will be chosen
  • Course syllabus

Contact: Kelly Peckens (kpeckens@umich.edu)