Chicago Semester

Program:

Course offerings:

All students must take the Field Internship and select two of the four seminars available.

Field Internship*. Students enrolled in the Chicago Semester program have a large number of placements available to them. Students may select internships from a range of organizations which include art centers, banks, businesses, hospitals, media centers, newspapers, publishing houses, mental health clinics, churches, social work agencies, museums, libraries, and zoos. Work internships demand high quality work and are supervised on the job by Chicago Semester staff members.
(9 semester hours; general elective credit or major or minor department electives)
*Note: Students interested in Elementary Education Student Teaching should see Professor Louters in the Education Department. Students interested in the Social Work Practicum should see Professor DeJong in the Sociology Department.

Arts in the City. This seminar introduces students to new expressions of creativity. You will experience the cultural richness of Chicago through weekly events in music, dance, theatre and visual art. Artists visit class regularly, and students will have the chance to explore their creativity, bringing flexibility and play into adult life and career. The course provides a supportive environment for engaging and understanding the arts.
(3 semester hours; The Arts Core)

History of Religion and Society in Urban America. The seminar examines how people of faith have tackled social problems in urban America. Topics range from battles between workers and entrepreneurs in the nineteenth century to the Civil Rights Movement in the mid-twentieth. Throughout the course, students will turn old questions into theirs, asking how faith informs business and labor, church and state, saving souls and redeeming culture.
(3 semester hours; general elective credit)

Metropolitan Seminar. This seminar looks at the multicultural diversity of Chicago and the tensions inherent in a global city. Using Chicago as a laboratory, students will investigate the trends and social conditions that residents and workers face. The course also explores the future of urbanized society and presents transformative options for its citizens. Class activities include neighborhood tours, field trips and presentations from guest speakers.
(3 semester hours; general elective credit)

Values and Vocations Seminar. This seminar welcomes students into a semester-long conversation about modern work and American culture. Topics include the power of gender roles, pressures to overwork and a corporate grip on the globe. Students will think big by seeking to understand these forces, probing for theological meaning and formulating a vocational vision for their lives.
(3 semester hours; general elective credit. However, some departments accept this course for the Senior Seminar requirement. e.g. CAS 399 for CAS majors)

Cost:

* CS estimates that a student can expect to spend $700 a month on living expenses, which include rent, meals at home and out, public transportation, phone bill, and personal entertainment (varies widely depending on student).

Applications:

If you have completed the Preliminary Application through the Calvin Off-Campus Programs office and it has been approved, you may apply for the Chicago Semester program. The Chicago Semester applications (all sections) must be handed into the Calvin College Off-Campus Programs. No CS program applications will be accepted without the prior approval of the Preliminary Application.

Note: The spring semester of the Chicago Semester often starts prior to the end of Calvin's interim is over. (The other partner schools do not have the Interim and therefore begin their semesters earlier.) Students must request permission of the interim course instructor BEFORE interim starts to complete the course early. Instructors do not have to give permission. If a student is denied permission to end a course early, the student must find another interim course or not take an interim course during that academic year.

In spring, 2007, there is no conflict with Calvin's interim. The dates of the Chicago Semester have been adjusted and are now January 29-May 11.

Please refer to the Chicago Semester website
(listed below) for the following information:
Application (and supplemental application for
Social Work students and Student Teachers), recommendations, application checklist, and deadlines.

http://www.chicagosemester.org/apply/calvin.htm

Contact:

For more information, contact the Off-Campus Programs Office or the Chicago Semester homepage.