Welcome! This page is for faculty staff and students who are interested in going to Europe as an ILET scholar. Click on a topic below for more infomration:

Required Qualifications
Financial Aid
Application procedures
Academic Activities
Credit and Graduation
Housing
ILET Experiences
Contact the UVA ILET Coordinator

Reqired Qualifications

What are the qualifications needed to participate in the ILET program?
Students qualifying to participate in ILET should be registered in doctoral programs in instuctional technology, with particular interest in teacher education and higher education. However, students with related interests may also be welcome. Students should also demonstrate an interest and a desire to expand their knowledge and practice in intercultural education. ILET aims to support students in negoting an experience complementing their doctoral studies and their own research by linking them with ongoing research and development programs in schools and universities across the Atlantic. Top

ILET Partner Unversities

Where are the universities that participate in this program and what do they offer?
This is the list of ILET Partners.

Financial Aid

Can I afford it? Is there financial aid available?
ILET will support a total of 30 doctoral students to become ambassadors studying on the other side of the Atlantic in partner universities.

The ILET project provides each university with funding for five students to support them to study abroad for approximately one semester in an ILET partner university on the other side of the Atlantic. The travel stipend is $3,000 for US students and 3,000 Euros for European students. In addition, the US students studying in Denmark and Spain will receive a stipend of $1,500 to develop their competence in that foreign language. Students in the USA must be eligible for federal funding (in most instances they will be US citizens or Permanent Residents). Other funding may be available though initiatives such as the US Fulbright program, local scholarships and assistantships.

In exceptional cases students may also be able to work in some locations in Europe, but advanced planning is necessary to ensure that an appropriate visa is obtained. Please seek information on this issue through the International Studies Office.

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Application Procedures

How do I apply for the program?
Each participating ILET university has its own application specifications. Students wishing to apply are encouraged to contact and start negotiations as soon as possible with their home university through Zahrl Schoeny, UVA's ILET coordinator, and their major professor, supervisor, or mentor. Prof. Schoeny will introduce you to the coordinators in transatlantic institutions, and to the expertise and opportunities that complement your interests. Top

Academic Activities
Since the ILET program’s objective is to provide you with opportunities to complement your doctoral studies at home it is your decision to structure your experience the way you wish with help from your major professor and ILET coordinators at your home and international sites.

Will I be able to teach at my international institution?
This will also depend upon your visa status and the expertise you bring. Please use your resume and negotiate to market your expertise. Internships are encouraged but they are also challenging.

Are there specific ILET responsibilities?
All students in the relevant doctoral programs of partner universities are expected to facilitate intercultural exchange and promote the aims of this ILET project. This is particularly important for those studying courses on the web or studying abroad.

All students receiving ILET support for study abroad must undertake to complete the ILET certificate and to publish their related portfolio or parts of it on the ILET web site. ILET students studying aboard are particularly important ambassadors for the project and they will be expected to exhibit exemplary professional behavior as far as possible. This will normally include presentations on their intercultural perspectives when abroad and on their return home. It will also include assisting the university coordinators in orientation activities, where relevant.

What are my responsibilities to my home and host university respectively?
Essentially, ILET students studying abroad will become visiting members of the center or department with the status and responsibility it entails. It may also be considered to be similar to the status of a student teacher on their final placement for teaching practice in schools. The negotiation process should result in a letter of invitation to the department or center and that letter will be an important document with which to obtain the visa.

Will students meet other ILET participants when studying abroad?
It will not be uncommon for students studying abroad to do so at the same time as a student from another partner university. In addition, attendance at professional conferences, especially the SITE annual conference, should bring together students who study abroad in person or virtually. An intensive course is planned to capitalize on this opportunity for students as part of future SITE conferences.

Do I need to learn a foreign language? Will I be provided financial support for learning a foreign language?
ILET provides $1,500 language stipend to develop language competency for students planning to study at the University of Barcelona or the Aalborg University in Denmark. This funding will normally be spent on an intensive course at the start of the study abroad period, especially as per Danish procedures.

US students studying in Aalborg will need to acquire some Danish to ensure a good inter-cultural exchange, although teaching and much research is carried out in English. The ILET project will provide support for this. US students studying in Barcelona must be able to work and converse in Spanish. They should plan this far in advance and selection will depend upon fluency in Spanish. In addition, Catalan is spoken in Barcelona; the project will support students to obtain familiarity with this language as well.

US students studying in London and London students studying in the US do not need a foreign language but they will need cultural preparation.

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Credit and Graduation

How many academic credit hours do the ILET courses carry? Will they count toward my program of study?
The ILET courses will often carry an optional 1-3 credit hours. . The credit hours will count toward the program of study.

Will I be required to take courses at the international site or engage in independent study?
ILET students are encouraged to participate in the consortium wide courses being developed through ILET such as the Reading Groups in English and/or Spanish starting Oct 2002 and Danish Language Preparation course. While studying abroad it is not mandatory to take courses. Doctoral programs in European universities are generally structured differently from those in the U.S. Doctoral students are not required “to attend classes” as their U.S. counterparts. Instead they undertake independent research work, attend seminars and/or workshop, teach and/or engage in professional development activities. This may well require taking a course but it is not mandatory. Since the ILET program's objective is to provide you with opportunities to complement your doctoral studies at home it is your decision to structure your experience the way you wish with help from your major professor and ILET coordinators at your home and international sites.

Will it delay my graduation?
No, ILET courses form a part of student's program of study and will not delay graduation. It is important for students to plan to integrate the experience within their doctoral studies. Top

Housing

Where will I stay during my ILET program?
Housing arrangements will be made for you when studying abroad. Visit the ILET partner sites to find out what is available at each university.

Can I bring my family with me? Could my family or a friend accompany me?
You can, but there is no support from the ILET project for family, friends, or partners following the student studying abroad. Should this be important to you, please ask your coordinator for advice. Top

Experiences of other UVA students who have participated in ILET
Currently, there are three doctoral students from UVA participating in ILET exchanges.

Liz Langran (in Barcelona)
Hugh Crumley (in Aalborg)
Richard Sebastian (in Barcelona)

Check back soon to read about their experiences.

Contact the UVA ILET coordinator
Zahrl G. Schoeny, Associate Professor, Administrative Technologies
zgs@virginia.edu
Center for Technology and Teacher Education
Lambeth House, 1912 Thomson Road
P.O. Box 400279, Charlottesville, VA 22904-4279, U.S.A.
Tel: +1 434-924-4620
Zahrl's homepage

Site designed by Hugh Crumley
Contents © 2004
URL: http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/centers/ilet/going.htm
Last modified 16-May-2004