Study Abroad

Engineering Students work with Dr. Bryan Hill, study abroad advisor Ava Buchanan, and their academic advisors to determine the best timing to go abroad based on each students' degree progress and goals. Courses at partner schools have been pre-approved to work with the Engineering curriculum!

View all Engineering Programs in the Current Student Study Abroad hub.

Semester and Academic Year Programs

Exchange Programs are semester and academic year opportunities for students to 'swap places' with a student at one of our partner institutions. U of A students pay normal U of A tuition rates based on their residency and college/major but take classes at another school. Students must hold a 3.0 GPA at the time of application and need to be able to demonstrate resiliency, as these programs are highly independent and immersive.

UA Faculty-Led Summer Programs

Faculty-Led summer programs are short-term programs (2-5 weeks) where Engineering students travel abroad with U of A faculty members and classmates to learn earn U of A credit for their degree. Some of our Faculty-led programs include:

Sustainability in the Euro Food System: A faculty-led trip to Ghent, Belgium, where
students learn about sustainable agriculture and engineering systems in the Eurozone

The Rome Center is the U of A's only international residential study center, offering U of
A credit taught by on-site faculty, as well as faculty from Fayetteville.

External Programs

We also work with affiliated External Program providers, which create even more opportunities for U of A students. Programs vary greatly in length, and students earn transfer credit.

All of the external programs have these different alphabet soup names (e.g., AIFS, CEA, USAC), but they all do the same thing: support our students on study abroad. External program providers usually provide international insurance, arrange housing, enroll student in academic courses, offer cultural activities, etc.

Visit the Study Abroad Website

International Engineering Program

The International Engineering Program (IEP) gives students the opportunity to earn two degrees in five years—a BS in engineering and a BA in German. It is open to students in all fields of engineering. The program involves a semester at the Technische Universitat Darmstadt (Darmstadt University) in Germany followed by a paid internship in Germany.

Interested students should indicate they would like more information on their orientation questionnaire and attend the informational webinar held in April prior to orientation. Students wishing to enroll in the program should fill out the form here. Questions regarding the program can be directed to condray@uark.edu

Why Germany?

The German economy is the powerhouse of Europe. As a country, Germany has traditionally led engineering fields with firms such as BASF, Bayer, BMW, Mercedes, Merck, Porsche, and SAP. Germany is also a leader in renewable energy research, with an announced government goal of 80 percent of energy provided in the country by sustainable sources by the year 2050. German firms also invest heavily in the United States and Arkansas. There are 22 German-owned companies that provide 1,600 jobs in Arkansas (including automotive parts, power tools, plastics, and steel). The German government is actively recruiting foreign workers for jobs in the STEM sectors that are going unfilled. [make-it-in-germany.com.--Click on EN for an English translation of the site.]

Add German to Your Engineering Skills

A knowledge of German gives you another skill set when looking for jobs. According to a 2014 Economist article, knowing German resulted in a 3.8% premium in salary, or $128,000 over an average career. [“Johnson: What is a Foreign Language Worth?”] All International Engineering students at the University of Arkansas will participate in the proficiency exams of the Goethe Institute at the B1 level, part of the European Union’s proficiency scala (the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages). This gives students an internationally recognized certification of language skills that can be used when looking for employment or applying to graduate schools [Goethe Institut].

Study and Work in Germany

IEP students spend their fourth year abroad. In the fall, students take engineering courses at the Technische Universitat Darmstadt, which is one of the leading German technical universities, represented by the TU9 consortium and which Albert Einstein recommended to his nephew. The courses that students enroll in are regular engineering courses taught by German professors, rather than special courses designed for foreigners.

In the spring, students will intern at German companies. Most internships are paid. The University of Arkansas supports students in finding their internships through multiple job skill presentations (including ones specific to a German internship search) and developing relationships between employers who both recruit at UA and have locations in Germany. In the past, our students’ assignments have included BMW (transportation and logistics), a start-up in Berlin (marketing), an aeronautics firm (engineering), a web-based software company (economics), an architecture firm, and a medieval hotel and restaurant (hospitality management). Students work alongside German professionals in regular offices, and successful internships can lead to full-time offers of employment.

What if I haven’t had any German yet?

Students who were not able to study German in high school can easily catch up by taking Elementary German I and II (GERM 10103 and 10203) in their first year. Students who have had previous background with the language may be eligible to start in a higher-level GERM course.

What if I am already fluent in German?

If you are an international student who holds the Großes Sprachdiplom or the Kleines Sprachdiplom, you can make faster progress towards the degree by receiving Credit by Achievement for beginning and intermediate language courses and concentrating on content courses. Students who have had some German in high school are also eligible for Credit by Achievement credit. Students who pass an upper level language course with a C or better earn retroactive credit for the lower level language courses that cover material they have already mastered.

Curriculum

The International Engineering Program provides opportunities for students to earn 2 degrees in 5 years. The fourth year of studies is spent abroad. Current students can find curriculum sheets for each area of engineering along with their required German classes on our Study Abroad Sharepoint Page.