Swarthmore College

Swarthmore College, founded by the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), holds strong to a special set of unique values in higher education: to find nonviolent solutions to conflicts and differences, to help others through service, to promote social and economic justice, to have kindness in daily living, and to support of each other's search for that of God within. Moreover, Friends/Quakers have long recognized the equality of women and men. HECUA's mission aligns with these lived values in the area of education for equity and justice.

Because social problems and social change are complex issues, HECUA's approach to understanding them draws on multiple academic disciplines, the integration of theoretical material with experiential learning, and ongoing holistic reflection. HECUA has a special relationship with Swarthmore's Lang Center for Civic and Social Responsibility, which lives at the intersection of academic excellence and social responsibility. Oriented to service, social action, and social justice, the Lang Center works with individual students and student groups, faculty, and engaged community partners locally and globally, and it has been a second home to students interested in HECUA programs. Over the years, Swarthmore College and HECUA have exchanged ideas about interdisciplinary learning, the integration of theory and practice, community-based student research, and academic-community partnerships.

Special services HECUA provides to the campus:

• A number of years ago, HECUA's then Executive Director, Nadinne Cruz, was invited to Swarthmore to visit with faculty and students about HECUA and give a public lecture. She returned the following year as the Eugene Lang visiting Professor in Social Change, and helped cultivate service-learning programs, including the Democratic Practice Project.
• In the mid- 90's Mauricio Barreto, HECUA’s then South American program director, visited Swarthmore and began what developed into a strong association with the Latin American Studies faculty. This groundwork was built upon by Alberto Rivera, HECUA’s Latin America program director, who visited the campus several times in in the early 2000's. More recently, HECUA's Community Internships in Latin America program director, Martha Moscoso also made a visit to campus to met with Latin American Studies faculty and also made connections at the Lang Center for Civil Responsibility.
• Similarly, other members of HECUA's international teaching faculty circle efforts to visit Swarthmore. Representatives from HECUA's flagship domestic and international programs, MUST: Poverty, Inequality, and Social Change program, and the Scandinavian Urban Studies Term (SUST) respectively, came to work collaboratively with the Lang Center.
• HECUA representatives visit Swarthmore regularly, and often with the assistance of program alumni, host informational sessions about HECUA programs and the themes studied at our international sites of activity: Bangladesh, Ecuador, Northern Ireland, Norway, and New Zealand

Application Process

Off-Campus Study Office
Located in the Cunningham House (adjacent to the Scott Arboretum).
Phone (610) 328-7827

The Off-Campus Study Office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Students are welcome to schedule appointments to discuss off-campus study or to make use of the resource room, which contains materials about study abroad programs, information regarding insurance, travel, passports and visas; lists of students who have completed study abroad, and their written evaluations of the programs they have attended; and assorted literature about other cultures and countries. Students planning on study abroad are required to attend a General Information Session. Sessions are available every week and specific dates and times are noted on the Off-Campus Study homepage.

It is important for Swarthmore students to note that specific program applications may be due earlier and some porgrams operate on rolling admissions. Regardless of the published application deadlines of programs to which Swarthmore students apply, applications(s) should be in by no later than the end of the third week of the semester prior to the semester that you plan to be abroad.

Need more assistance?

As you begin the application process and for more information about available programs, requirements, and fees, a HECUA Program Representative is always available: