Achieving Success as an International Student

(UGST199) Achieving Success as an International Student (1 credit) introduces first-year international students to strategies for achieving academic, personal, and professional success during their time at UO, that include but are not limited to: critical thinking, understanding your major within the liberal arts education system; how to engage successfully with UO faculty and graduate students; where to go when you need help: understanding and accessing campus resources; beyond the classroom: extra-curricular and professional development opportunities; travel tips: exploring the Eugene, Orego

Understanding U.S. Higher Education

(UGST 199) Introduction to US Higher Education (4 credits): This course is an integral component of the pre-freshman international program in Shanghai. It is designed to help international students prepare to come to the UO, get to know US higher educational culture and expectations, and earn credits in topics relevant to their core education and possible degree pathways.

Human Rights in Latin America

This is a survey course covering the history, theory, and practice of human rights in Latin America. Emphasis will be placed on the normative context within which human rights discourses develop, followed by an explanation of how and why legal institutions support (or inhibit) the protection of human rights in local contexts throughout the region. Drawing on the instructor's legal background, students will also be introduced to the practice of human rights law in relevant domestic and international contexts, with a special emphasis on the Inter-American Human Rights System (e.g.

Intercultural Dynamics

Each actor in a globalized economy is increasingly likely to work with colleagues and partners from diverse cultural environments. Cross-cultural awareness and communication skills are therefore essential assets. This course aims to introduce you to the main issues of intercultural dynamics within groups of various cultural origins. Concepts from communication sciences will be introduced and a range of theories from the social sciences will be drawn upon that help make sense of the specific challenges of intercultural encounters.

Soccer and Nationalism in Spain and Spanish America

This class will explore the complex and intertwined history of soccer in Spain and Spanish America from the late nineteenth century to present times, using nationalism as the core thematic focus. We will study the origins of soccer in both Spain and Spanish America, the ways in which it intersected with political and ideological projects of nation-state formation, and its centrality as a powerful symbol of national and regional identities.

Transitional Justice in the Southern Cone

Transitional justice is an emerging field of law and inter-disciplinary academic study.  Latin America has been at the forefront of the transitional justice movement since the early 1980s, and countries such as Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Peru continue to serve as models for other societies seeking a peaceful post-conflict transition.  This course will introduce students to the study and application of transitional justice by exploring and analyzing the way South American societies have transitioned from dictatorship and war to democracy and peace.  Case studies of transitiona

Nongovernmental Organizations of South-East Asia

This course provides an immersion into the nonprofit sector in two developing nations, Thailand and Cambodia. Usually called nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in an international context, these organizations play crucial roles in providing basic services to the populations of developing nations. They also engage in advocacy for human rights and environmental protection. This course will consist of coursework evaluating the role and activities of NGOs in South East Asia.

Via Francigena: Trekking Through Italian History

Trek along the Via Francigena (route of the Franks) from the French border to Genoa, along the Ligurian coast of the Cinque Terra, to Lucca and Siena and finally Rome. The present day economic and cultural conditions of towns along the Via Francigena will win our attention as we attempt to understand the communications that defined this route in the pre-modern era of the troubadours, the newsprint world of the industrial era, and the e-world of contemporary times. Students will also enroll in the other regularly offered courses during the Siena fall program as well.