Category: Study Abroad Opportunities

Study Abroad opportunities for SEFS students

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InterAction Nepal, Spring 2026, Extended Deadline, Dec 1st

InterAction | Nepal is an immersive, interdisciplinary study abroad program offered during the spring quarter with the support of the UW Dept. of Landscape Architecture,
UW Dept. of Global Health and UW Nepal Studies Initiative. It is open to both graduate and undergraduate students from any discipline.

This year’s program will focus on two rivers – the Bagmati, an urban river in the Kathmandu Valley, and the West Seti, a pristine, free flowing river in far western Nepal. We will explore the impacts of contemporary development on river ecologies and communities, support river conservation efforts, and work to improve human health / well-being at a local scale through community-based participatory design and project implementation. The Nepal River Conservation Trust and students / faculty from Kathmandu University will serve as key collaborators.

Program activities will include lectures and discussions, organizational site visits, independent study, language instruction, community workshops, hands-on project implementation and extended trekking and rafting excursions.

Online Information Sessions

Applications accepted on a rolling basis until Dec. 1st

Contact
Ben Spencer | Landscape Architecture + Global Health | bspen@uw.edu

* Information on Study Abroad Scholarships is available here

—

Benjamin Spencer
Affiliate Associate Professor
Department of Landscape Architecture
Department of Global Health
University of Washington
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Travel around the world with the Bonderman Travel Fellowship

Where would you go if you had eight months to travel solo? Which two continents and six countries would you visit? What experiences would you seek out? How would you be transformed?
Each year a handful of lucky University of Washington students get to make those decisions as they embark on the adventure of a lifetime with the support of a Bonderman Fellowship. The 2026 application is open and you may be eligible to apply for this $26,000 fellowship that supports independent exploration and travel abroad.
Bonderman Fellows undertake international travel on their own for eight months, to six or more countries in two or more major regions of the world. Through solo travel fellows focus on exploration and discovery, learning about the world and themselves in it. Each Fellowship carries a $26,000 award to be used only for extended solo international travel. Fellows may not conduct research, pursue an academic project, or participate in a formal program or organization.
Applications are due before 5:00 pm PT on January 14, 2026. In person and online information session information can be seen here.
More information and the application can be found at bonderman.uw.edu – please review the eligibility requirements below to see if you may apply.
Eligibility:
In 2026, the Bonderman Fellowship will offer University of Washington undergraduate graduating seniors, graduate and professional students from the Seattle, Tacoma, and Bothell campuses an opportunity to engage in independent international travel. Open to all fields of study.
Students with limited/no international experience are particularly encouraged to apply. Undergraduate students from low-income backgrounds are also encouraged to apply.
To be considered, applicants must:
  • Be U.S. citizens or permanent residents.
  • Be enrolled in a University of Washington degree program.
  • Graduate/professional students must be enrolled in a degree program the quarter the application is due (Winter Quarter 2026).
    • On leave status is not considered “enrolled”.
    • Professional students include those in Law (JD), Medicine (MD), Dentistry (DDS), and Pharmacy (PharmD) degree programs.
  • Undergraduate applicants must be planning to graduate in winter 2026, spring 2026, summer 2026 or autumn 2026 and must be enrolled in at least two quarters between autumn 2025 and autumn 2026.
    • If you are not graduating in winter 2026, spring 2026, summer 2026 or autumn 2026, you are not eligible to apply this year.
    • If you are selected as a Bonderman Fellow, you must graduate before you start your travels.
  • Be in good academic, conduct and disciplinary standing during the quarter the application is due.
  • If awarded, good academic, disciplinary and conduct standing is a prerequisite of receiving the fellowship.
  • Please thoroughly review all guidelines and preferences.
To learn more about this extraordinary opportunity, please review the Applying and FAQ sections of the website.
Best regards,
Bonderman Travel Fellowship
University of Washington
Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships & Awards, Undergraduate Academic Affairs
Office of Fellowships and Awards, The Graduate School
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Spring Study Abroad Info Session 10/29 + 11/6 Fwd: InterAction Nepal, Spring 2026

InterAction | Nepal is an immersive, interdisciplinary study abroad program offered
during the spring quarter with the support of the UW Dept. of Landscape Architecture,
UW Dept. of Global Health and UW Nepal Studies Initiative. It is open to both graduate and undergraduate students from any discipline.

This year’s program will focus on two rivers – the Bagmati, an urban river in the Kathmandu Valley, and the West Seti, a pristine, free flowing river in far western Nepal. We will explore the impacts of contemporary development on river ecologies and communities, support river conservation efforts, and work to improve human health / well-being at a local scale through community-based participatory design and project implementation. The Nepal River Conservation Trust and students / faculty from Kathmandu University will serve as key collaborators.

Program activities will include lectures and discussions, organizational site visits, independent study, language instruction, community workshops, hands-on project implementation and extended trekking and rafting excursions.

Online Information Sessions – Zoom
Wednesday, October 29th @ 7pm PDT
Thursday, November 6th @ 7pm PST

Applications Due November 15th, 2025

Contact
Ben Spencer | Landscape Architecture + Global Health | bspen@uw.edu

* Applications submitted by November 15th will be eligible for potential Study Abroad Scholarships
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Wildlands Studies at UW! (10/6 – 10/7)

Wildlands Studies international environmental field programs provide students the opportunity to gain hands-on field experience. Students study a wide variety of topics, including ecology, environmental policy, geology, climate change, habitat conservation, and the relationships between environments and culture. Most participants are undergraduates who join us on-site from all over North America. Students can earn 15 units of upper-division credit provided through Western Washington University! Scholarships can apply towards funding our programs. Program teams consist of around 10-16 participants working with a PhD or professional researcher. Students can choose different wildlife, wildland, and cultural ecology field study locations that are all searching for solutions to environmental challenges. 

Current field studies occur in Australia, Belize, Chile, Ecuador, French Polynesia, Iceland, Indonesia, Japan, Nepal, New Zealand, Thailand, Alaska, and Yellowstone.

Information on all of our programs is available on our website: www.wildlandsstudies.com.

Please join our Student Information Session on Tuesday October 7th at 4:00PM in Winkenwerder 105 to learn more! We also host Zoom Info Sessions every Wednesday at 5pm PT.

Hope to see you there!

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At Wildlands Studies, Earth Day is Every Day

https://files.constantcontact.com/71258499701/21d326e3-05a3-48f3-97d4-a54cd5fdccb1.png?rdr=true

At Wildlands Studies, Earth Day is every day.

We celebrate the Earth by immersing ourselves in it—bringing students face to face with some of the planet’s most dynamic and diverse environments.

Through hands-on research, exploration, and community engagement, our programs offer students the chance to better understand the complexity of biodiversity and the urgent challenges our planet faces. In doing so, we learn not just how to protect these places—but why they matter.

As we mark Earth Day this year, we also honor the memory of our founder, Crandall Bay, who passed away earlier this year. His words continue to guide our work and inspire generations of students:

“We love our wildlands. Wherever we go, we strive seriously to minimize our impact on the land. We believe that to know its beauty and feel its inner music is a human need, a need important to our hearts as well as our heritage.”

It’s not too late to join us this summer on one of our two-week field courses in Hawaii, Big Sur, Yellowstone, or Alaska or this fall in Australia.

Learn more and apply now at the links below.

Enrollment is open through Spring 2026. Visit our website to explore all of our upcoming programs.

Not all classrooms have four walls

Wildlands Studies | 831-684-9999 | www.wildlandsstudies.com

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Wildlands Studies at UW (April 23-24)!

UTF-8Wildlands Studies & UW Info Session – 4 24 25

ANNOUNCEMENT: FIELD STUDY OPPORTUNITIES! 

Wildlands Studies environmental field programs provide students the opportunity to gain hands-on field experience. Students study a wide variety of topics, including ecology, environmental policy, geology, climate change, habitat conservation, and the relationships between environments and culture.

Most participants are undergraduates who join us on-site from all over North America. Students can earn 5 or 15 units of upper-division credit provided through Western Washington University! Scholarships can apply towards funding our programs. Program teams consist of around 10-16 participants working with a PhD or professional researcher. Students can choose different wildlife, wildland, and cultural ecology field studies locations that are all searching for solutions to environmental challenges.

 

Current field studies occur in Thailand, Ecuador, Chile, New Zealand, Costa Rica, Nepal, Belize, French Polynesia, Iceland, Yellowstone, Big Sur, Alaska, Hawaii, Australia, and Quebec.

 

Information on all of our programs is available on our website: www.wildlandsstudies.com.

 

Please join our Student Information Session on Thursday (April 24) at 4PM in Winkenwerder 105 to learn more! We also host Zoom Info Sessions every Wednesday at 5pm PT. Hope to see you there!

***********************************************

Max Arquilevich (he/him)
Field Studies Advisor, Wildlands Studies
Office: 831.684.9999
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Regenerative agroecology, conservation, and land management student opportunity

FIELD-BASED OPPORTUNITY IN ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY & ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION 
IN ECUADOR FOR UW STUDENTS!
The Regeneration Field Institute is an interdisciplinary research, education, and development center. We have transformed a 28 hectare farm in rural coastal Ecuador degraded monocrop and pastureland  been into a mosaic of regenerative land management, including syntropic agroforestry, riparian restoration and erosion dam construction, biocorridor creation, and more. Our research center works to develop and showcase a replicable model of regenerating ecosystems that inspires land-use change in the environmentally degraded and deforested regions around the world. We have also —with the help of many students— built more than 30 bamboo bus stops, shade structures, and community buildings in nearby local towns.
Ecosystem Restoration, Regenerative Agroforestry & Conservation
Immerse yourself in the beautiful biodiversity and culture of Manabi, Ecuador! Get hands-on experience in ecosystem restoration, conservation, regenerative agriculture, and climate justice in Ecuador.
Hosted by: Regeneration Field Institute (Check us out on instagram!)
Dates: June 14-23, 2025
Location: Manabi, Ecuador (one of the most biodiverse places on the planet!)
Cost: $1800 + airfare + insurance (estimated total cost of $2500-$3000 for everything – all in-country food, transportation, lodging, course fees, program materials, tourism excursions and more).
Program Details: This course offers immersive, experiential learning to cover topics on post disaster construction, environmental design, sustainable architecture and engineering, regenerative agriculture, ecosystem restoration, wildlife conservation, biological diversity, agriculture, agroforestry, social and environmental impact and enterprises, natural resource management and more. You will learn from local field experts, get to build bamboo structures with your hands to support local communities, and be surrounded by the biodiversity and beauty of natural, native Ecuador which RFI is working to protect, regenerate, and preserve.
Other details: Flights are in/out of Guayaquil or Quito, we will book tickets once everyone has their initial deposits paid.
Interest Form: Get more info and meet our student leaders by filling out this interest form:
Additional materials:
Watch a video of students from a previous trip.
Additionally this is a third party website that collects program reviews from our students.
Read another student experience on our blog.

Action Steps:
(1) Complete the interest form to get in touch with our team: https://forms.gle/7feQCkW26uUAJGns9

(2) Register for the UW program on our website: https://www.regenerationfieldinstitute.com/uw-june-14-23
(3) Make program payment: $1800 via venmo (@regenerationfieldinstitute) or via check (instructions on our website)
(4) Buy flight & Insurance & Waivers in April (details to come after confirming previous steps)
Thank you greatly for your time,
Matteo

—
Matteo Schaffner
Trip Leader and Outreach Coordinator | Regeneration Field Institute
www.regenerationfieldinstitute.com
US: +1 918-845-2384
Whatsapp: +977 9803492935

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Greece Program Summer Quarter: deadline April 6

Would you like to join an engaging program in Greece this summer? 

 

The 2025 Greece Study Abroad Program, hosted by the American College of Greece and Harvard University’s Center for Hellenic Studies in Greece, focuses on sustainability while UW students also explore one of the oldest cultures in the world with visits to many classical sites. There are many group meals, museum visits and excursions to Greek islands.  This summer, we also celebrate the program’s 20th year anniversary. We are grateful to all the students that contributed to the growth of our program.

 

More information and application can be found here. Students pay no tuition, only the program fee, yet receive 17 UW credits. The application deadline is April 6, 2025. 

 

Learn more in this Informational Video:

Greece Sum 2025 Video v.1.mp4    

 

[To access video, if prompted, please choose the “Not now” button]

 

Please reach out to Dr. Taso G. Lagos – taso@uw.edu – for additional information!

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Ecuador Study Abroad in Early Fall: Deadline extended to Sat 3/15

Our Early Fall study abroad program to Ecuador & the Galapagos Islands needs more students and the Deadline to APPLY has been extended to Saturday, March 15!
– No prerequisites. No language requirement. Welcoming students from all majors, all campuses!
Contact Program Directors with questions: Santiago Lopez at cslopez@uw.edu or Rebecca Beard at rbeard@uw.edu.