Study Abroad
Experience your defining moment while connecting with the world around you.
Students who take advantage of MSU Study Abroad become more attuned and part of the larger world. They have more balanced global perspectives and attitudes. At the same time, they develop a stronger sense of personal identity, flexibility and self-confidence – all developed while they learn and earn credit toward their MSU degree.
We supports many options for both Natural Science and other colleges majors.
- Witness and apply environmental science firsthand in faculty-led field studies on six continents.
- Study math and science for a semester in a completely different university system.
- Conduct research with a team in an international lab or field station.
- Become fluent in a foreign language by living and learning overseas.
- Earn Integrative Studies requirements in social science, arts and letters or general science.
- NatSci majors are not limited to “science” Study Abroad. Most MSU programs welcome students from all MSU colleges. Search by country or subjects that intrigue you.
For more Study Abroad opportunites, search all MSU Study Abroad programs by country, subject, semester and length.
Two Types of Programs
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Faculty-led Study Abroad
Travel and learn with a faculty member and a small group of MSU students. Elective field studies credits for science majors, and ISB or ISP (Science Integrative Studies) for non-science majors. (There are also “Study Away” programs which are like Study Abroad except they do not travel outside the U.S.)
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Semester Abroad
This is typically a half- or full-year program with no accompanying MSU faculty. Instead, you are an international student at an overseas college or university. The course credits you earn are approved/endorsed by MSU departments as credit applied towards your MSU degree.
Programs
Summer
Ride in bush vehicles among African mammals; monitor and test hypotheses for individual and group behaviors you see. Work with researchers at the Holekamp Field Station. See how the Massai live with their land. Visit Kenya’s national parks.
Program details
Contact: Eli Strauss
Unique plants, animals and people adapt to and take advantage of Iceland’s “green” resources. Spot whales and seabirds. Go in a volcano; hike on a glacier; stand between two tectonic plates. Explore modern culture and Viking heritage.
Program details
Contact: Prof Mike Gottfried
From Switzerland’s snowcapped Alps (Matterhorn, Lake Lucerne), you can spy palm trees in subtropical Ticino. Distinctive natural regions mean colorful variety in culture, political customs and four official languages.
Program details
Contact: Prof John Mugg
Spend days under the sea and in the field – almost unlimited opportunity to study vertebrate and invertebrate animals in and around the islands. Discuss conflicting tides of change in modern Galapagos with island residents. Go deep into Ecuadorian Amazonia to learn about rain forest and river ecology.
Program details
Contact: Prof Jerry Urquhart
Join a German research team for 11 weeks at Heinrich-Heine Universität Düsseldorf. Grow professionally thru mentored lab experience, advanced biology and language seminars. Grow personally thru culture immersion in the Rhine River Valley.
Program details
Contact: Prof Susanne Hoffman-Benning; Prof Barb Sears
Winter
Witness concepts and relationships in ecology in one of the world’s most ecologically enlightened countries. Travel in hill and lowland rain forests; alpine mountain and cloud forests. Snorkel in the Pacific.
Program details
Contact: Prof. Pam Rasmussen
Ocean surf! Alpine meadows! Geothermal springs! Glaciers! Geological forces, evolution and adaptation shaped the unique flora and fauna of the two islands. Interact with local Kiwis and native Maori. Appreciate how all work to protect New Zealand’s habitats and natural treasures.
Program details
Contact: Prof Jeanette McGuire
Winter Break (offered every other year - 2016, SS17 courses; 2018, SS19 courses, etc). Study earth system science and wildlife in Antarctica – the only continent governed by multinational treaty promoting advanced scientific research, international collaboration and peace.
Program details: Search Study Abroad programs - Argentina, starting Spring 2017
Contact: Prof Mike Gottfried
Semester Abroad
Australia - Monash University in Melbourne
Australia - University of New South Wales in Sydney
Australia - University of Technology Sydney
Australia - Australia National University
Ecuador - Universidad San Francisco de Quito
New Zealand - Conservation Medicine - New in Spring 2017!
Norway - University of Oslo
United Kingdom - Lancaster University, England
Many more universities are open to ALL MSU majors - Meet with advisors to determine what school is best for you. Search Study Abroad Programs
Program Costs & Aid
Program costs vary and depend on factors like location, program length and type of housing offered. Study Abroad scholarships are available for students with a degree major in the Natural Sciences. Additional information on financial aid and scholarships is available from the MSU Office of Study Abroad.
How to Apply
The Study Abroad Online Application must be submitted for each student applying to any MSU-sponsored Study Abroad program. The MSU Office of Study Abroad also provides resources to aid in all aspects of studying abroad.