Fall Semester in India

        FALL 2010

Offered in even-numbered falls
i.e. 2010, 2012

PROGRAM DATES:
*   August 23 - December 14

ELIGIBILITY:
*   Students in good standing
*   Minimum GPA: 2.75
*   Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors
*   Previous courses in South Asian studies preferred or recommended

LANGUAGE OF INSTRUCTION:
*   English

LIVING ARRANGEMENTS:
*   Hotels during travel
*   Guest House in Madras

APPLICATION DEADLINE:
*   February 1

The Program
Group Travel
Study in India
Resident Director
Academic Calendar
Housing and Meals
Financial Information
Application Information
Additional Program Information


The Program
Davidson College will conduct its 17th consecutive Fall Semester in India Program in 2010. Conducted continuously since 1981, Davidson’s Semester-in-India Program is among the oldest study abroad opportunities offered by a liberal arts college in the United States.

Our program has earned respect for academic integrity, high caliber of participants, extensive travel opportunities and sound execution. The success of our program has been demonstrated by the return to India by nearly half of our past participants.

Several participants have considered their semester in India to be a life-changing experience. In addition to providing a very stimulating academic experience the program provides extensive travel opportunities and affords the student the special pleasure of living with a group of students drawn from various college backgrounds in an atmosphere of trust, goodwill, and mutual care.

The Davidson College program is an undergraduate program that strives to provide a comprehensive as well as safe exposure to the Indian sub-continent through a well-defined academic program.


Group Travel
Train Station in New Delhi
Group travel is an integral part of the Fall Semester in India program.  Places the program visits include:  Agra, Ajanta, Amritsar, Aurangabad, Bangalore, Belur, Calcutta, Chidambaram, Cochin, Dharmasala, Gandhigram, Halebid, Jaipur, Kanchipuram, Khajuraho, Kodaikanal, Madurai, Mahabalipuram, Pondicherry, Sravanabelgola, Srirangam, Trichur, Trichirappali, and Trivandrum. 


Study in India
For much of the semester, the group will stay on the Madras Christian College campus near the prominent southern city of Chennai (formerly Madras).  While on the M.C.C. campus, students will take four courses approved by Davidson College. The Director of the program, Dr. William K. Mahony, will be assisted by a coordinator and a team of scholars for each course.  Lectures will be delivered by Indian academics, officials, and resource persons, and each course will contain about 15-20 lectures. 

The four courses for the Fall 2010 Semester-in-India Program are:

  • SOU 310 - India: Past and Present - (A series of lectures relating to important historical developments in India.)

  • SOU 354 - Issues in Contemporary India - (These lectures focus on prominent topics such as environmental problems and women's issues.  An individual research project will also be included in the course, a project that will involve field work for each student.)

  • SOU 385 - Public Health in India - These lectures view public health from economic, social, political, and medical perspectives.  Sample topics are HIV/AIDS and the health status of women and children.

  • REL 390 - Religious Thought and Sacred Sites in India
    Religious sensibilities in India, with an emphasis on Hindu, Muslim, Sikh and Buddhist thought and practice, coordinated with on-site visits to historically important and artistically significant temples, mosques, cultural and archaeological sites and pilgrimage centers.


    Resident Director
    The 2010 Resident Director of the Fall Semester in India Program will be Prof. William K. Mahony, the Charles A. Dana Professor of Religion and Chair of the Department of Religion at Davidson.  A specialist in the religions of India, Professor Mahony has written a number of books and articles in that field, travels frequently throughout the country, and has extensive experience leading previous Davidson student and faculty groups to India.


    Academic Calendar
    The program will begin in Davidson on August 23 with several days of orientation.  The group, which usually includes a few selected students from other colleges/universities, will then leave for India.  The program will conclude on December 14. 

    Here is the tentative 2010 schedule:

August 23-26          Orientation at Davidson College
August 27, 28          Travel to India:  Charlotte/Frankfurt/Madras
Aug 30-Sept 2         Academic program at Madras Christian College
September 3-5        Short Tour I: Kanchipuram, Mahabalipuram
September 6-17       Academic program at MCC
September 18, 19    Short Tour II: Belur, Halebid, Sravanabelgola
September 20-24     Academic program at Bangalore
Sept 27-Oct 2          Eastern India Tour: Delhi/Khajuraho/Varanasi/Calcutta
October 4-14           Academic program at MCC
October 15-20         Southern Tour I - Kerala: Trichur/Cochin/Trivandrum
October 22-27         Academic program at MCC
Oct 28-Nov 5           Southern Tour II - Tamil Nadu: Trichirappali/Srirangam/Madurai/Gandhigram/Kodaikanal
November 8-11        Academic program at MCC
November 12-13      Short Tour III: Pondicherry/Chidambaram
November 14-25      Academic program at MCC
Nov 26-Dec 13         Northern India Tour: Delhi/Amritsar/Dharmasala/Agra/Jaipur/Aurangabad/Ajanta/Ellora/Goa/Delhi
December 14            Program concludes at Delhi

Davidson College reserves the right to change this preliminary schedule as circumstances warrant.
                                

Housing and Meals
International Guest House at MCCStudents stay at the International Guest House of Madras Christian College. This modern building, designed by a Swedish architect to western standards, is situated in the midst of a densely wooded area near the athletic fields. Wild deer grazing outside the dining room is not an uncommon sight.

The building is air-conditioned and the rooms are spacious and airy. The facility has two separate, self-contained flats upstairs. Each of these flats has two bedrooms, a large living room and a long covered verandah. Downstairs there are two double occupancy rooms; a suite where the director will stay and a spacious dining room with a kitchenette.

Food is specially prepared for the program participants in the Guest House by a chef from a leading hotel in Chennai. Meals include breakfast, lunch and dinner, including afternoon tea. In addition, fruits, snacks, soft drinks and bottled water will be stocked in the dining room refrigerators. Initially meals will be bland. After a week or so Indian dishes will be introduced. After two weeks every meal will have more Indian and less western dishes.

Financial Information
The cost of the program is the same as Davidson's comprehensive fee. In 2010 it should be around $23,000. This will cover board and lodging during the pre-departure program in Davidson as well as during the semester in India, tuition for a four-course academic load, laundry, museum and monument entrance fees, visa fees, travel from Charlotte, NC to India and back, and travel within India including local travel in Chennai by commuter train. Porterage, tips and entrance to performances will also be covered by the program.

During travels, where necessary, students will be given an allowance for food and laundry charges. Expenses for celebrations such as Halloween and Thanksgiving will be met by the Program.

At all times, travel arrangements and accommodations are made with student safety as a primary focus.


Application Information
Application forms can be found at the top right of this webpage.  Please be sure to download and complete ALL necessary documents including:

PART 1 - GENERAL APPLICATION
PART 2 - APPLICATION RECOMMENDATION FORMS
PART 3 - APPLICATION WAIVER & RELEASE FORM

For NON-DAVIDSON students ONLY:
PART 4 - APPLICATION HOME SCHOOL APPROVAL FORM 
Also, please have an OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT sent to the Davidson College Study Abroad Office.

Applications, including all supporting materials, are due in the Study Abroad Office.

Deadline:          February 1
Notification:       March 1


Additional Program Information
Davidson College reserves the right to cancel or modify part or all of a study abroad program should changing circumstances make it necessary to do so.  In cases where the college has security concerns, the program director and the Dean Rusk Program Director will gather information and make a recommendation to the Dean of Faculty.  The dean will take his decision to the president, who retains ultimate authority to decide whether or not a particular Davidson-sponsored trip should proceed.

Davidson admits qualified students without discrimination because of race, color, religion, national origin, age, handicap, gender, or sexual preference.

PLEASE BE AWARE THAT, IN INDIA, THERE IS VERY LIMITED ACCESS FOR PEOPLE WITH PHYSICAL DISABILITIES.

For more information please contact:
Study Abroad Coordinator
Duke Residence Hall
704-894-2250