Student in garden in Japan

Global Learning at Grinnell

Let the world in.

Explore opportunities across the globe. Position yourself to work in cultures and navigate societies, communicate in other languages, and learn experientially about global issues facing the world. Whether you have come to Iowa from abroad or you plan to study internationally for a semester, or a few weeks, a global experience is a powerful way to understand the world. You will build self-confidence and develop skills that prepare you for your future career.

Study Abroad Next Year: applications open mid-September!
Apply for a short-term faculty-led program (login required)
  • Max Hill in South America sitting high over city.

    Semester-Long Programs

    Take your time and make meaningful connections.

    The longer you spend in a country, the better you’re able to unpack its history, form meaningful connections, learn local languages, and acquire new understanding for societies different from your own. Your experiences abroad can play a critical role in launching new chapters in your academic journey and uncovering intellectual paths you didn’t even know were out there.

    Stay Awhile
  • GLP exploring Japan

    Short-Term Programs

    Investigate another place during your off-season.

    At Grinnell, you could go abroad through our Faculty-led Learning Across the Globe (FLAG) program. These experiences fit into your busy schedule. FLAG even includes experiences abroad for first-years, athletes, and conducting summer research with a faculty member. So you don’t have to wait until your third or fourth year.

    Join a FLAG Program
  • Cora Touchstone ’19 practices her Arabic alphabet on the chalkboard

    Center for Languages and Intercultural Communication

    Speaking of new ways of seeing the world, let’s talk.

    Our academic community comes to campus from all over the globe. This exchange offers you the perfect chance to explore new languages with expert faculty and students. At Grinnell, you can pursue Ancient Greek, Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Latin, Russian, Spanish, and more languages through the Alternative Language Study Option (ALSO) Program. The Center for Languages and Intercultural Communication is a resource to support the language departments and deepen your language skills on campus.

    Learn a Language
  • Professor Xavier Escandell at meeting with students

    Global Partnerships

    Working together to bring the world to campus.

    A large part of the international expertise and cultural discourse we’re known for at Grinnell is due to the collaborations we have built over the years. These global collaborations provide strong instruction and disciplinary partnerships. They also give a deeper understanding of the experiences our diverse student body may have in Grinnell as well as an understanding of the experiences students have while studying abroad.

    Faculty Collaborations
  • Student with chicken in small village in Cuba.

    Come Chat

    Programs on and off campus for you.

    Linking campus programs with research efforts, language learning, cultural events, and everything in between, the Institute for Global Engagement works to advance global initiatives on and off campus. Our knowledgeable staff and experienced student staff are ready to help you find programs that fit your academic, personal, and professional goals.

    Meet Our Staff

Student Stories

cranes in Bhutan

“We emerged at 5:30 in the morning from our homestays in Phobjikha Valley, Bhutan to count the endangered Black-Necked Cranes. The cranes are protected under Bhutanese law and celebrated with a large Crane Festival when they arrive around November from their breeding grounds on the Tibetan Plateau. As they arrive, the cranes are said to fly three times around the Gangteng Monastery as an act of circumambulation. It was one of my favorite experiences in Bhutan.”

— Eva Gemrich ’20, School for Field Studies, Bhutan

Marnie Monogue summer language grant recipient in Leipzig, Germany.

“Traveling to Germany gave me first-hand experience within the culture I had been studying. In addition, there’s no experience quite like completely immersing yourself within an environment where your target language is spoken.”

— Marnie Monogue ’21, summer language study grant recipient

Students having a picnic in Paris

“The Global Learning Program opened my eyes to a whole new way to travel and explore the world. The intentionality and purpose that each day of the trip had, in conjunction with the issues that were still fresh in my mind from the class we took, made me engage both intellectually and emotionally much deeper than I had in any classroom or past trip. I learned that immersing myself in an issue helps make me more knowledgeable and empathetic about the world around me.”

— Avery Lewis ’21, Global Learning Program participant (pictured second from right)

18%
of Grinnellians are international students
55%
of Grinnellians study off-campus
45
countries and 105 programs are currently hosting Grinnellians

IGE News

Valencia Alvarez Receives Stouffer Fellowship for Graduate Studies

Alvarez will pursue graduate studies in global epidemiology leading to a Master of Public Health degree with the support from the Elsie M. Stouffer 1924 Fellowship.

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