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Direct enrollment into regular university courses at the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP), located in Sao Paulo, in liberal arts with a focus on language and linguistics. A minimum of 5 semesters of college Portuguese or 1 year of Portuguese and native fluency in Spanish is required. Housing in off-campus accommodations.
The Country
Bordered by every South American country except Ecuador and Chile, Brazil is the largest of the Latin American countries. It is host to the Amazon River, the Central Highlands, and lush tropical rainforests, as well as the world famous Carnaval. Brazil has a landscape that is rich in diversity. In the Amazon Basin and in those places along the Atlantic coast where the rainfall is very heavy, there is tropical rain forest composed of broadleaf evergreen trees growing luxuriantly. In the lowlands and plateaus of the eastern coast where rainfall is slightly less and the dry season is really dry, there is semi-deciduous forest, where the trees lose their leaves in the dry season. The northeast is semi-arid.
Due to its location on the other side of the equator, seasons in Brazil are the reverse of those in the U.S.: spring runs from late September to late December, summer from late December to late March, autumn from late March to late June, and winter from late June to late September. Plateau cities, such as São Paulo and Brasília, have very mild climates averaging in the high 60s. Throughout the country, winters tend to be dry and summers tend to be wet.
There are three basic racial sources for the Brazilian people. In the 16th century, the area that is now Brazil was inhabited by several hundred indigenous tribes who, while racially similar, spoke different languages and had different cultures. To the original inhabitants, Indians, were added successive waves of Europeans, mainly Portuguese; Africans, mostly from the sub-Saharan West Coast; and Japanese immigrants, who began migrating in the early 1900s. Today, the constant mixture of the various peoples and their cultures creates a dynamic and diverse society, which is constantly growing and changing.
Campinas
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Campinas, a city of approximately one million inhabitants in the state of São Paulo, is the home of the State University of Campinas, UNICAMP. The city is an important industrial and cultural center, supporting a symphony orchestra, major sporting events, theaters, musical groups, and art exhibitions. An hour's ride to the east will take one to the state capital, São Paulo, which is considered the "New York City" of South America and is located only 45 miles from the coast. |
The University
Universidade Estadual de Campinas, UNICAMP, was founded in 1966. Even within the Brazilian university setting, where the oldest university has been operating for less than 70 years, UNICAMP is considered a young institution. Nevertheless, it has already earned a strong reputation for education and technological research and is considered one of Brazil's most distinguished academic centers. As such, UNICAMP serves some 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students from all over Brazil and also from abroad.
The Program
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The University
at Albany sponsors an exchange program for undergraduate and graduate
students at the State University of Campinas. The program provides American
students with the opportunity to study the Portuguese language and topics
in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, economics, and business
for one semester or for an academic year.
The Brazil program is intended for students who are self-reliant and interested
in pursuing in-depth study in an academic discipline related to Brazil
and acquiring an appreciation of the people and cultures of Brazil. Participants
become integrated into university life through direct enrollment in regular
university courses taught in Portuguese. It is expected that participants
will have completed basic coursework in the disciplines of primary interest
so they can take upper-division courses.
Course Offerings
All participants
in the Albany program are admitted to the Institute of Language Study,
(Instituto de Estudos da Linguagem [IEL]). Our students may take regular
university courses, taught in Portuguese, in the following disciplines:
linguistics, literary criticism, Portuguese literature, and Brazilian
literature. Permission may be obtained to take courses at other Institutes
within the university in related fields such as economics, history, political
science, and sociology. Access to one or two advanced courses in Portuguese
for foreigners is available for those who wish to perfect their language
skills. Students who are proficient in Spanish will be able to take Portuguese
language courses designed for Spanish speakers.
Additional
information about this program and the courses offered may be found on
the UNICAMP web site at www.unicamp.br/unicamp/websites/websites.html
Housing
As there are no dormitories at Brazilian universities, foreign students rent an apartment or a room or share a rented house with Brazilian students. Occasionally it is possible to arrange a homestay with a Brazilian family. The staff of the IEL office in UNICAMP will assist students in finding accommodations. Participants should plan to arrive at the site three or four weeks prior to the start of the semester to locate appropriate housing.
Estimate of Costs
These costs are estimates and include in-state tuition, university fees, room, board, and round-trip air fare. They do not include additional expenses for local transportation, health insurance, books, passport and visa fees, and miscellaneous personal expenses.
Click here to view cost estimates. Please contact Office of Study Abroad if cost estimates are not posted.
Financial Aid
University at Albany students participating on a SUNY program are eligible for regular financial aid when studying abroad. You could be eligible for more financial aid than you currently receive. Please check with your financial aid advisor for details. Non-Albany students should check with the financial aid office at their home campus for details. CIEE Bowman Scholars may use their travel grants. (See http://www.ciee.org/council_isp_scholarships.cfm).
Requirements
Juniors, seniors, and graduate students are eligible to participate. Applications are welcome from students in all majors. Students must have an advanced level of Portuguese language - at least 5 semesters of college-level Portuguese or the equivalent. (Background in Spanish is not sufficient. However, native speakers of Spanish with at least one year of college-level Portuguese will be considered.) An average of B overall and B minus in Portuguese is also required.
Program Dates
The Brazilian academic year begins in March; it is recommended that students who wish to participate for the academic year follow the Brazilian academic year. Students who must follow the U.S. academic year should realize they may not be eligible for some year-long courses. The "first semester" (U.S. spring semester) runs from early March through early July. The "second semester" (U.S. fall semester) runs from early August through November. Students generally travel to Brazil about one month prior to the start of the semester to make housing arrangements and to finalize their registration.
To Apply
Applications received after the deadlines will be
considered only if there is still sufficient time for them to be processed.
Deadlines: Fall Semester & Academic Year
March 1
Spring Semester October 1