About the Bard-Smolny Study Abroad Program

• Structure of the semester/academic year program
• Support Staff
• Program Dates

The purpose of the Bard-Smolny Study Abroad Program is to provide North American students with a rigorous and rewarding academic, linguistic, and cultural experience that will advance their level of competency in the Russian language and give them the unique opportunity to take a diverse set of courses in the liberal arts. Since the program is housed in a college, it also creates innumerable opportunities for cross-cultural exchange and dialogue. Students from North America sit side-by-side with Russian students in the classroom, participate in student clubs, organizations, and volunteer opportunities with their fellow Smolny classmates, and interact directly with the permanent faculty of Smolny College.

Smolny College is the only program in Russia to offer visiting North American students a broad range of liberal arts courses along with Russian as a Second Language (RSL). Strictly speaking, Smolny is not a "study abroad program." It is a four-year college with a diverse curriculum, faculty, and student body. Smolny's unique character allows students from North America to be immersed in classes with Russian students. International students can take Russian as well as other academic courses that meet requirements for their B.A. degree at their home college or university.

The study abroad program for North American students at Smolny College is made up of several components, all of which work together to deliver the above-stated goals. The program is comprised of the following main aspects: program orientation, the RSL program, the academic program, the cultural program, and student life. Our website contains information on all of these aspects of the program.

The Bard-Smolny Study Abroad Program is at the center of a truly remarkable process: the evolution of a new kind of international education and the democratization of Russian higher education.