Global Member Programs:

* Indicates Title VI National Resource Center

The African Studies Program brings together an interdisciplinary group of faculty, staff, and students devoted to the study of the African continent and the African diaspora. The program offers an undergraduate concentration, graduate certificate and a PhD Minor, as well as a wide range of talks, conferences, and other outreach activities for teachers, business and government. African Studies also offers publications and links to related programs and activities across the campus and the world.

The Center for East Asian Studies at the University of Wisconsin brings together an inter-disciplinary group of faculty, staff, and students devoted to the study of China, Japan, and Korea. We offer an undergraduate major, an undergraduate certificate, and a Ph.D. minor; these allow students to take advantage of the wide range of courses given in all of the schools and colleges at the University. The Program also contributes to the intellectual vitality of the campus and the Madison community by hosting lectures by distinguished outside speakers.

The Center for European Studies (CES) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is an official National Resource Center funded by the U.S. Department of Education and the University. CES belongs to a select group of nationally-recognized Title VI European Studies Centers that have been awarded grants to create national centers of excellence for the purpose of educating undergraduates and graduates (and the broader community) about Europe.

CES brings together scholars from across the campus to investigate all aspects of Europe - from business to borders. The UW-Madison is home to more than 20 departments and programs offering Europe-related courses and offers students the opportunity to study almost all European languages. CES links departments, courses, and people, and offers further stimulation through symposia, conferences, and guest speakers on a variety of topics concerning Europe.

The construction and deepening integration of the European Union is one of the most significant political and economic phenomena of our time. Developments such as the completion of the single European market, the launching of a common currency, and the emergence of the EU itself as an increasingly important player in the governance of the international economy carry far-reaching implications for the United States and its citizens, as for the rest of the world.

The European Union Center of Excellence thus seeks to:

• improve understanding of the EU as a complex, evolving governance system and international actor
• enhance awareness of the growing importance and widening scope of EU-US relations, and
• promote intensified "people-to-people" links among EU and US citizens.
  

The Center for German and European Studies (CGES) is a joint effort of a consortium of faculty representing various disciplines from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison) and the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities (UMN-TC) who share research and teaching interests in German and European studies.

Established in 1998 by the DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) through a generous grant from the German Marshall Fund and matching funds from the two universities, the center draws on the expertise of the faculty from the two institutions, as well as a network of affiliated institutions across North America and Europe. Devoted to the development of the next generation of scholars and the production of new knowledge relating to Germany and Europe, the Center supports research, teaching, and outreach in a broad range of fields and disciplines. At the heart of the Center's activities is a unique series of Research Collaboratives focusing on Germany and Europe from a Transatlantic perspective, involving faculty, graduate students, and visiting scholars.

The Center for Interdisciplinary French Studies (CIFS) at UW-Madison was formally established in the year 2000 to advance the study of French in all domains. The Center's mission was defined to take advantage of existing synergies across the university, with industry, with the private sector, and with the general public in Wisconsin and beyond, and to work in cooperation with the network of Centres Pluridisciplinaires, privileged partners with the French Cultural Service in higher education.

Creation of CIFS recognized long-standing ties between the Department of French and Italian and other departments and programs at the UW in the humanities, the social sciences, business, education, law, the arts and, increasingly, medicine and the life sciences, as well as outreach programs for teachers, business and government professionals.

The Center is affiliated with the International Institute where it is a member of the European Studies Alliance. Its administrative office is housed within the Department of French and Italian.

The Latin American, Caribbean and Iberian Studies Program (LACIS) brings together an interdisciplinary group of faculty, staff, and students. The program offers the following degrees; BA/BS, MA, MA/JD and a PhD Minor. LACIS sponsors a wide range of talks, conferences, and other outreach activities for teachers, business and government. The Latin American, Caribbean and Iberian Studies program also offers publications and links to news and resources across the campus and the world.

The purpose of the Middle East Studies Program is to combine training in a discipline or profession with insight and knowledge about the culture, languages, and problems of the area. The program adopts the basic philosophy that it is necessary to develop a new practical approach to the study of the Middle East by first acquiring sound training in a discipline or profession and then by applying the methods and concepts of that discipline and profession, as well as skills of inquiry and research, to specific problems in the Middle East. Economic planning, legal reform and institution building, urbanization, demography, housing, nutrition, agriculture, land problems, the organization and development of educational systems, and technical and vocational training at all levels are some of the fields covered by the program. The University of Wisconsin-Madison has extensive and unique resources in these fields, and it offers a broad range of courses on the languages, history, culture, and literature of the region.

The Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia (CREECA) is a U. S. Department of Education Title VI National Resource Center. It was established in 1993 to unite the efforts of two longstanding University programs--Russian and East European Studies, and Central Asian Studies.

CREECA's mission is threefold:

• To foster new knowledge and understanding of Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia
• To train a new generation by providing the knowledge, tools, and experience necessary for understanding these societies and for playing productive roles in their reconstruction
• To serve as a community resource through outreach activities designed for Wisconsin's citizens, businesses and other parties interested in these regions of the world

Today CREECA offers PhD certificates, Masters of Arts degrees, and undergraduate certificates to dozens of students on the UW campus. Furthermore, through Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowships, CREECA supports graduate students in departments from Anthropology to Slavic as well as professional students in law, medicine, and engineering.

The Center for South Asia at the University of Wisconsin – Madison is made up of a community of faculty and staff who reflect the diversity and global relevance of South Asian Studies. We conduct and support outstanding research that is relevant to the world around us; teach all categories of students (undergraduate, graduate, returning adults, and K-12) how to evaluate and apply an understanding of South Asia to their personal, academic and professional goals; and disseminate the results of our research and teaching locally, nationally and globally through outreach and service.

Through our diverse academic disciplines, summer language institute, annual conference, student organizations and outreach programs, the Center seeks to define and promote greater understanding of South Asian history, language, religion and culture. We also support linkages to other relevant area studies and global studies programs that emphasize transnational flows of culture, people, money in ways that are important to a better understanding of South Asia both in the past and the present.

The Center for Southeast Asian Studies was formally established in 1973 as an interdisciplinary program of the College of Letters and Sciences. The Center operates a vigorous and well-developed program committed to the study of Southeast Asia that is recognized as one of the best worldwide.

The program consists of 25 core faculty members in 15 disciplines that include anthropology, business, communications (journalism), education, economics, forestry, geography, history, linguistics, literature, music and dance (performing arts), political science, public health, sociology, and urban and regional planning. Many other University faculty members have research and teaching interests in Southeast Asia and regularly work with students in a wide variety of fields, including environmental, development, and policy studies, natural resources, and law. The Center administers two major degree programs: BA in Asian Studies (Southeast Asian Concentration) and MA in Southeast Asian Studies. Faculty and student research are supported by extensive library holdings, with particular strengths on Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand, including a separate Southeast Asian Video Archive and other special collections.

UW-Madison offers more than 100 different study abroad programs around the world. More than 80 of these programs are offered by International Academic Programs (IAP) to UW-Madison students across campus; many programs are also available to Wisconsin residents or degree-seeking students from outside UW-Madison. A listing of UW-Madison schools and colleges that offer international programs is available here.

Instruction is in a wide range of languages, including many options in English. Program participants earn UW-Madison residence credits for the work they completed abroad.

Study abroad is a rewarding, life-transforming experience that complements any academic program! Explore our site to find out more...

The Center for World Affairs and the Global Economy (WAGE) is a research center that brings together scholars from economics, political science, public policy, sociology, business, law and other fields to study contemporary processes of globalization and international economic integration.

In the spirit of the Wisconsin Idea, WAGE shares international expertise with the businesses, government, and public of Wisconsin.  We organize and fund university events, faculty research, graduate education, and public outreach concerning economic globalization and its governance.

Founded in 1991 as a center for the study of peace, security, and international cooperation, Global Studies is the cross-regional, international partner of Wisconsin's seven Title VI-funded area studies centers, all housed administratively in the International Institute. Our action plan is a Wisconsin design to illuminate and help the nation address contemporary global challenges.

The Global Cultures Program is an interdisciplinary certificate program approved for credit in the College of Letters and Science beginning in the 1993-94 academic year. The program draws on the rich array of area studies courses and comparative studies courses offered at the UW-Madison, providing a framework for linkages between cross-cultural academic work and study abroad programs. The goals of the program are:

• Encourage greater participation in overseas study
• Better integrate campus course work with study abroad
• Stress cross-cultural learning experiences
• Help students find an "international pathway" through the College's breadth requirements.

The International Studies Major (ISM) offers a broad background in international and transnational political, social, economic, commericial and environmental affairs, together with a co-operative study of politics, economics, security and cultures. The goal is to provide students with necessary tools to understand global processes in their totality and how they are situated and lived in specific regions. It is important to stress that the major itself is not primarily vocational or professional. It does, however provide an integrated program of courses that lays the foundation for professional training in a wide variety of areas. Such a foundation can be invaluable in securing a place in competitive graduate or professional schools, which, in turn prepare an individual for government service, positions in commercial or industrial multinational corporations, international banking, house, foreign press services, and institutions of teaching and research.