Summer Courses 2023
St. Lawrence University offers an array of dynamic off-campus summer courses around the world. Explore this page to learn more!
Belgium, France, and Luxembourg Ireland Italy (Florence) Italy (Naples) Kenya-Biodiversity
Application links are provided below.
Summer 2023 course application deadline: December 6, 2022
Tentative Course Fees*:
1 SLU Unit - $4,500 + airfare
1.5 SLU Units - $6,000 + airfare
2 SLU Units - $8,000 + airfare
(*Based on Summer 2022 fees; final Summer 2023 fees may be higher and will be confirmed in December.)
Students will be billed a $30.00 application fee after submission of their application. Selected students are required to pay a $400 program deposit by January 20, 2023.
Students are required to submit the full summer course payment via the instructions provided on Studio Abroad by February 17, 2023.
All courses are contingent on sufficient enrollment and course fees are subject to change. Course fees do not include the cost of airfare.
If you have questions about any of these programs, please contact the program instructor(s).
The European Union: Past, Present, and Future
Students should verify that they are eligible to travel to BELGIUM, FRANCE, and LUXEMBOURG before applying.
Instructor: Professor Mert Kartal
Dates: July 5 , 2023 - July 20, 2023 (tentative)
Listing: Government; Approved to count toward the European Studies minor
Units: 1 SLU Unit
Pre-requisites: None
Course Length: 2 weeks
Course description: This two-week, off-campus summer course is designed for those of you who are interested in a hands-on exploration of what is arguably the most ambitious form of inter-state cooperation in the world, the European Union (EU). When learning about the cultural, historical, and political factors that have been shaping the EU, we will visit several sites of key importance for Europe (such as the Haut Königsbourg in Alsace/France, the Struthof former concentration camp and the Historical Museum in Strasbourg/France, and Ouvrage Hackenberg in Veckring/France). When exploring how the EU operates in practice, we will attend sessions in several EU institutions (such as the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament in Belgium and the Court of Justice of the EU in Luxembourg). This course will also feature lively discussions on current issues before the EU (such as the Russia-Ukraine war, the rise of right-wing populism, refugee flows, and COVID-19) and the role of culture, diversity, and human rights in Europe facilitated by prominent scholars as well as current and former policy-makers.
Apply to study in France, Belgium, and Luxembourg
Place and Nationalisms in Ireland
Students should verify that they are eligible to travel to IRELAND before applying.
Instructor: Dr. Val Lehr
Dates: June 4, 2022 - June 21, 2023
Listing: History, Government, Global Studies, and Peace Studies
Units: 1.5 SLU Units
Pre-requisites: None
Course Length: 2.5 Weeks
Course description: This program is comprised of two separate courses, "Memory and Place” and “Peace and Conflict in Northern Ireland”, which share some foundational readings in Irish history and geography.
The theoretical focus of 'Memory and Place' is on issues of popular memory, memorialization, and the formation and maintenance of national identity. Students read theoretical articles on popular memory, revisionist historiography, and geography as contexts for the stories they hear and the texts they read. This provides a background for the second course 'Peace and Conflict in Northern Ireland' where students learn how difference can be constructed and experienced among white, European, Christian people, people who by U.S. standards seem to be very similar. In turn this should reflect back upon the contingency of how race is constructed in the U.S. Students will learn also about the Northern Ireland Peace Process and how people from different communities are learning to work together across deep divisions to create a better society. Finally, students will be exposed to how history complicates contemporary political action, through exploring issues such as Brexit, abortion, gay rights, and education.
The Neuroscience of Fear
Students should verify that they are eligible to travel to ITALY before applying.
Instructors: Dr. Serge Onyper and Dr. Adam Fox
Dates: May 31, 2023 – June 29, 2023
Listing: Biology, Neuroscience, Psychology
Units: 1 SLU Unit
Pre-requisites: BIO102 or PSYC101
Course Length: 4 Weeks
Course description: Brain structures that control the fear response are shared across humans, mammals, birds, and reptiles. These structures have been evolutionally preserved because fear helps to protect us from danger, injury, and death. Though the dangers of modern society differ substantially from those of our ancient past, aspects of our primal fear instincts remain. Are such emotions merely intrusions from another time or do they still have a function in our consciousness today? With a focus on the fear response, this Florence-based course will examine the evolutionary foundations of emotions, how they are displayed in infancy, develop over time, and tie into decision-making in our everyday lives. Students in this course will examine this issue from a multidisciplinary perspective, synthesizing recent work from the fields of biology, developmental psychology, neuroscience, and philosophy.
Mediterranean Culture in Naples: Images, Boundaries, and Societies
Students should verify that they are eligible to travel to ITALY before applying.
Instructor: Dr. Alessandro Giardino
Dates: June 11, 2023 - June 26, 2023
Listing: World Languages, Cultures, and Media; Sociology
Units: 1 SLU Unit
Pre-requisites: None
Course Length: 2 Weeks
Course description: Mediterranean culture often suggests romance, the constant pursuit of pleasure, unforgettable landscapes, architectures and culinary experiences. Yet, scholars have often challenged such imagery and the boundaries of the Mediterranean itself. In this course, we will contrast myths and realities of Mediterranean capitals by exploring and examining locations, habits and social practices. In doing so, we will examine the historical and cultural influences that characterized Naples as the western gateway to the Mediterranean culture. More specifically, through visits to historical sites, walking tours, and additional readings and films we will challenge the epistemological value and veracity of these representations. Some of the readings will be used as a starting point for exercises in creative writing upon themes including nostalgia, melancholia, and wanderlust; others will be used as subjects for scholarly essays and presentations.
Kenya Biodiversity Safari
Students should verify that they are eligible to travel to KENYA before applying.
Instructor: Dr. Alex Schreiber and Dr. Abdelwahab Sinnary
Dates: June 1, 2023 – June 26, 2023
Listing: Biology (BIO195 for non-majors; BIO295 for majors)
Units: 1.5 SLU Units
Pre-requisites: None
Course Length: 4 weeks
Course description: In this month-long, field-based course you will study conservation biology through game drives and treks on both land and water, coming into contact with giraffe, zebra, elephant, and rhino, as well as predators like lions, hyenas, leopards, and eagles. You will spend 10 days exploring the savanna grasslands and lakes of Kenya’s Great Rift Valley, where you will study mammalian and avian ecology, consider the impacts of tourism and poaching on the national economy, and examine methods of balancing wildlife conservation with economic development in the Naivasha/Nakuru region. Next, you will spend five days conducting hands-on field research at Ol Pejeta Conservancy (OPC) in Laikipia, Central Kenya. You will test the interesting hypothesis that cattle can be used to actually improve range ecology for the wild ungulates and also benefit the area’s key predators. Finally, you will spend one week ascending 18,000 foot-tall Mt. Kenya, the second-highest mountain in Africa, and the source of most of Laikipia’s water. Here you will learn about the impact of climate change on the region, and also how you and the animals that live there adjust physiologically to this unique high altitude ecosystem.