CUT MATERIAL
Embracing the Scandinavian model
Your classes at DIS draw inspiration from the Scandinavian academic model, which prioritizes interactive learning and free exploration of topics.
You have the freedom to select any combination of courses and build a schedule that works for you, whether that means diving deeply into a single field or exploring a wide variety of subjects.
Expect your classes to offer a hands-on approach with open discussions, case studies, conversations with experts and professionals, and projects to demonstrate your skills and understanding.
Semester labs and research
Some labs are co-requisites with an accompanying Core Course so you can explore classroom topics in a lab setting. Others are open to all students.
Research Assistantships vary between 3-credit and 6-credit research opportunities and span a wide range of topics, including neuroscience, architecture, climate studies, psychology, and more.
Learn more about all of our lab and research opportunities.
Summer labs and research
Find all opportunities for lab work and research under the Labs, Research, and Practicums Summer Session.
Core Course (acordion)
Every DIS semester student enrolls in a Core Course, which serves as the backbone of your academics.
Your Core Course determines your Academic Program and is the course you will travel with on your two faculty-led Study Tours. By the end of the semester, students are often closest with their fellow Core Course classmates and instructor.
There are no Core Courses during summer sessions, since you will only take one course at a time.
Dive into research abroad
Labs, research, practicums, and more
You have plenty of opportunities to dive deep into a topic and build relevant skills while you’re abroad.
We offer lab courses and research assistantships, allowing you to embed with a local research group and take part in a research project, or train your skills as part of a lab course.
Get a full overview of lab and research opportunities.
We also offer a variety of special elective courses, including practicums, workshops, and studio courses.
Practicums offer the opportunity to embed within a local organization and put your skills in action.
Workshop and studio courses give you the space to work on projects throughout the semester, recieve feedback and training from a mentor, and create products that can be added to your portfolio
How will you receive credit?
How we talk about education
We use some terms that you might not be used to from your home university. Listed below are some of the key aspects behind learning at DIS.
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Every DIS semester student enrolls in a Core Course, which serves as the backbone of your academics.
Your Core Course determines your Academic Program and is the course you will travel with on your two faculty-led Study Tours. By the end of the semester, students are often closest with their fellow Core Course classmates and instructor.
There are no Core Courses during summer sessions, since you will only take one course at a time.
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Study Tours are a defining feature of the DIS experience.
On tour, you will travel with your instructor and classmates beyond your home city to explore your academics from a broader European perspective.
Study Tours can take many shapes, but they all include opportunities to engage with hands-on learning activities, to see how your academic topic takes shape in real world situations, and to explore new places, cultures, and perspectives.
Read more about Study Tours and what they include.
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Field Studies are special class periods designed for you to go out and explore your course topics in new and exciting ways.
Field Studies take you around the city to visit relevant locations and to meet people working on your course topics. It could be a visit to a local nonprofit organization, business, research lab, political group, or guided tour through a part of your city.
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There’s not much point to studying abroad if you spend the entire time learning from inside a classroom that could be anywhere. Instead, place-based learning embraces your new location and prioritizes learning experiences that are specific to where you are.
Your classes at DIS embody this principle in many different ways. Your class might study a local architectural feature by visiting a site within the city, read a piece of literature or philosophy in the exact location that inspired it, or visit areas affected by climate change to see the effects firsthand.
No matter which courses you take, you can expect to learn how things are done within the Scandinavian context and break down the traditional walls of a classroom.
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We know that the historical systems of teaching and evaluating learning don’t work for everyone. Many institutions have worked to overcome these barriers by introducing learning accommodations, things like extra time for a timed-exam, low-distraction environments, TKTK
What if, instead of lowering the barriers, we worked to remove them entirely?
That’s the goal of universal design. We are trying to design a learning experience that works for everyone, removing the need for accommodations and meeting each student exactly where they are.
We practice this through our experiential learning and through our approaches to testing. We have shifted our model so that we have almost no traditional closed-book, timed tests.
Most elective courses earn three credits, while a few earn six credits. All courses are designed for upper-division undergraduate students, with the exception of Language and Culture courses.
All courses are taught in English. Courses at DIS include a blend of lectures, group work, and Field Study visits. Students have several additional academic opportunities while at DIS – from research projects to hands-on practicums and labs to the performing arts.
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Normally, full-year students switch to a new program in their second semester, enrolling in a new Core Course and new Study Tours, while continuing to be able to take advantage of the wide variety of electives offered.
Students may also arrange to do a research project within the academic field of the Core Course they took in the previous semester if approved by their home school.
Students that wish to change cities in between semesters may do so as well at no extra cost and full year students receive a substantial discount.
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Summer Session options are available at both DIS Copenhagen and DIS Stockholm. You can choose from three, four, or seven-week single course options.
You can also mix and match summer sessions in one location – or both – to stay six, seven, or up to 10 weeks and earn from three up to 12 credits.
You can also explore lab courses, workshops, studios, and practicums for the chance to hone specific skills and work within local research institutions, non-profits, and businesses.
The DIS academic model
Your classes at DIS will prioritize interactive learning and the free exploration of topics.
You have the freedom to select any combination of courses and build a schedule that works for you, whether that means diving deeply into a single field or exploring a wide variety of subjects.
Expect your classes to offer a hands-on approach with open discussions, case studies, conversations with experts, and projects to demonstrate your skills and understanding.
