Is this program right for you?

This program is designed for students who have an interest in Russia. The program can accommodate different levels of language proficiency, especially beginning and intermediate Russian language students.

Academic Program

Academics Program Snapshot

• Improve your Russian language proficiency with intensive training

• Live in the beautiful 300-year old city of St. Petersburg and experience the relationship between traditional and modern elements influencing Russian society

• Participate in optional volunteer projects organized through a well-developed network of contacts that facilitate integration into Russian society

• Experience a rich cultural program including local and regional excursions, visits to museums and historical sites, and interaction with locals

• Class-related field trips in and around St.Petersburg, such as Pushkin and Dostoyevsky in St.Petersburg, The Siege of Leningrad, The Russian Museum, The Menshikov Palace, St.Petersburg Cathedrals, Petrodvorets, Pavlovsk, and Yusopovskii Palace

• Excursions to Moscow, Novgorod, and Tallinn, Estonia (fall) or the Pskov region (spring)

• Peer language partners

 The Russian Area Studies Program and the Summer Russian Areas Studies Program are for students who are interested in an academic program in Russia with an English component. The program offers a set of courses, taught in English, on Russian history, culture, and civilization as well as a rigorous language program.

The program can accommodate students with no more than four semesters of Russian. Students at a higher level (having taken at least one Russian class beyond intermediate) enroll in the Russian Language Program. The RAS program cannot accommodate advanced learners and cross-registration between RAS and RLP is not possible.

Oral Proficiency Interviews--A digitally recorded oral interview is conducted with each student at the beginning and end of each semester. The interviews are conducted by the Resident Director and follow American Council of Teachers of Foreign Language (ACTFL) guidelines. These interviews provide students with easily accessible language "snapshots" of their pre- and post-program language proficiency.

Credit

Recommended credit for the semester is 17 credit hours and for the summer in 6 credit hours.

Academic Culture Classroom attendance and participation are monitored carefully and may have a significant impact on final grades. Though homework assignments are given, they serve to reinforce what is discussed in class. Much of the academic material is presented in class, and the 90-minute periods (called para) provide plenty of time for a range of learning activities. Students are expected to be prepared for class. Much of the material used is written by the teachers themselves, and exercises are often taken directly from the teacher's texts.

CIEE teachers have years of experience with American students, but sometimes they may express their feelings more frankly than Americans expect. A more traditional attitude toward behavior in the classroom means no wearing of baseball caps, no eating or drinking in class, and no feet on the furniture.

The area studies classes may include visiting lecturers, topic specific visits to museums, and other activities.

Student Life

Where You'll Study - St. Petersburg State University

Founded in the 18th century, St. Petersburg State University is one of Russia's leading institutions of higher learning. The University's 16 departments provide instruction for more than 20,000 students. The campus has expanded from its original site on the Neva River, and now includes over 400 buildings around the city center and the suburb of Peterhoff. CIEE students receive instruction through the University's Center of Russian Language and Culture on the Smolny campus, in a quiet neighborhood approximately 20 minutes from central St. Petersburg.

Students begin their study abroad experience by participating in a CIEE Online Pre-Departure Orientation before departing the United States. Upon arrival in St. Petersburg, all students participate in an intensive three-day introduction to Russia, the culture, health and safety, and the academic program. The orientation is supported by Russian assistants in order to facilitate students' entry into their new culture.

Housing and Meals

All students live in Russian homestays. Housing and most meals are included in the program fee. Participants have their own room with a Russian family in a private apartment. Two meals daily are included with the family (three on weekends). Students are responsible for weekday lunches.

Internet Free wireless is available at the CIEE Study Center for students who bring wireless-enabled laptops. Additionally, there is a fee-for-service Internet classroom maintained by the Center for Russian Language and Culture. There are also many inexpensive Internet cafés throughout St. Petersburg.

The academic program is supplemented with excursions and field trips arranged by CIEE staff. Discussion of excursions is an integral part of class work. Although the schedule changes somewhat from year to year, typical excursions include a city bus tour, the Hermitage, the Peter and Paul Fortress, Pavlovsk, Peterhof, the Yusupov Palace, a walking tour of Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment, Pushkin's Apartment Museum, and the Baltika Brewery. Additionally, CIEE staff arranges boat tours, a group cooking class in Russian cuisine, visits to the Russian bathhouse, and tickets to activities such as concerts, ballets, and sports events. Weekends are mostly free with the exception of overnight weekend field trips and possible Saturday excursions.

The program also offers three overnight field trips each semester and two in the summer: Moscow, Novgorod, and Tallinn, Estonia (fall semester) or the Pskov region (spring semester). These trips include excursions to places of educational, cultural, and historic significance, while still allowing some time for students to explore the sites on their own. The trips are coordinated with the academic program, through preparation in class prior to the trip and through discussions of experiences and impressions upon return to St. Petersburg.

There is also an Independent Russian Travel Week each semester. Students are encouraged to visit areas outside of St. Petersburg on their own. Students travel independently and the cost of this travel is not included in the program fee. In past semesters students have camped on Lake Baikal, visited Vladivostok, taken in the sites of the Tatar Republic, and visited the shores of the Black Sea.

Volunteering

CIEE students have the opportunity to conduct English conversation lessons with students from St. Petersburg State University. In addition, students may take advantage of a range of volunteer projects. Past students have volunteered at after-school programs for children, local art galleries, and private libraries. CIEE staff organize an information fair each semester to introduce students to available opportunities with local businesses, agencies, and schools.

Sobesedniki--Peer Language Partners

CIEE students are paired with local students for a variety of language and cultural exchange activities. These students help provide CIEE participants with additional language support and a firsthand look at the lifestyle of their Russian peers.