Program Information

Programs for Adult Students

Adult students come to Brown seeking and enriched learning environment. They currently can take evening or weekend non-credit courses through Continuing Studies during the Fall or Spring term in content areas that reflect Brown’s academic strengths in the Arts, Sciences and Humanities, Courses vary in length from 2 to 12 sessions and lectures on contemporary topics are sponsored. Faculty can present a topics of interest and discipline specific courses but should be prepared to engage with adults who seek learning outcomes that are meaningful to them, who are frequently self directed and will want to draw on their personal experience .They expect high quality instruction from expert faculty and will let you know when they feel they are not receiving it.

Adult students may take non credit evening classes for personal enrichment or professional development. They may be enrolled in a Credit Bearing Certificate program where they sometimes meet face –to- face in a traditional class structure or on-line combined with short resident-at- Brown intensive experiences. All credit bearing Certificate programs are offered in collaboration with a sponsoring department and must meet certificate program requirements. Faculty can consider the use of innovative technology in both the development and delivery of their courses with support provided by SCS.

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Off-Campus and International Programs

Summer and Continuing Studies International programs are for pre-college (High school) students, college undergraduates (Brown and others) and Adults  who are seeking to extend their experience with a language and/or a culture in a secure faculty facilitated academic environment typically between one to seven weeks in length.

Undergraduate travel programs are designed for a mix of students from Brown and other institutions (typically first and second year -though not restricted) who may have limited experience abroad as well as international students and students who have traveled but not studied abroad previously. A small percentage (5-10%) of undergraduates will use this short term experience abroad as a springboard to a semester or year-long program in the same locale.

Some international programs may not require previous language experience and are open to all students who use the summer semester in order to reduce the conflict with concentration-based scheduling constraints and explore a country or a culture of interest. Other international programs may focus on advance language acquisition and application in an environment where students must speak and think in the required language

Precollge travel programs are for exceptionally motivated students with interests in cultural diversity, cultural studies the arts and sciences and leadership. Currently Summer and Continuing Studies partners with The Kohala Center in Hawaii in order to draw upon a diverse network of Island-based institutions with expertise in the physical and cultural sciences, politics, education, and history. The Kohala Center is committed to helping Island residents preserve and enhance the intellectual, cultural, and natural assets of the Island. The program is intended to explore the complex relationships in the natural and social worlds of the island.

Adults seeking travel programs are seeking global education as an increasingly essential component for understanding and living in today's world. Travel programs for Lifelong Learners offered through Summer and Continuing Studies are designed to develop an awareness of some of the important elements of interdependence necessary for coexistence in the world, build insight and background for interpreting international problems and conflicts, clarify awareness of their own culture through contrast with others and interact with other cultures providing a historically relevant perspective of both developed and emerging nations of the world. Programs are in development for Hawaii and Italy.

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Undergraduate Students

Brown University undergraduates comprise the majority of the audience for summer credit bearing courses although some visiting undergraduates, advanced high school students and Brown graduate students do enroll. The summer session serves as the summer term for Brown University and faculty should be prepared to teach courses that have broad appeal across disciplines since the number of students focusing on any single discipline is likely to be small.

However the summer is a good time for courses that may be critical prerequisites for subsequent fall classes. Students are frequently seeking courses to improve their academic standing, access courses that are typically full during the rest of the academic year, or explore new subjects.

The term is 7-weeks long which include 6 weeks of instruction along with an additional week of combined reading period and final examinations. All courses and instructors must have the endorsement of a Brown University academic department and must also be approved by the University faculty committee responsible for the curriculum.

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Pre-College programs for High School and Middle School Students

High school students interested in the intellectual sophistication and varied methods of inquiry typical of a college curriculum can pursue opportunities through the Mini Course program. These non-credit courses are presented in an intensive workshop format that meets Monday through Friday for 3 hours per day beginning at the end of June and ending the first week in August. .Courses may range in duration from one week to 4 weeks, allowing the instructor to present either a brief introduction or a more in depth opportunity for content mastery in  a wide variety of disciplines such that the diversity of the Program curriculum represents the diversity of a college curriculum in general and the diversity of the particular academic fields represented at Brown University.

Courses appropriate for this audience  should be  targeted towards a freshman level student – in other words, for those beginning learners who ready to be intellectually challenged, but might not have all of the building blocks of a more experienced student. And, it is important for instructors to consider a varied toolkit of teaching techniques as  presentations must be engaging and  - as much as possible – interactive.

High school students interested in developing knowledge, skills and attitudes associated with socially responsible leadership may choose the Leadership Institute. Summer courses are two weeks in length and meet for two hours each morning and two hours each afternoon. The courses are team taught and have a teaching assistant.

The goal of this program is to help students develop the intellectual skills to analyze complex social issues and the interpersonal skills and confidence to act on the knowledge they have gained. Faculty should be prepared to focus their academic content on a contemporary issues  such as: globalization, women’s studies, civil rights history, global health, environmental concerns, conflict and violence, comparative religion , social change or other areas of interest. Faculty may come from a wide variety of disciplines and are paired with educators who have experience teaching the leadership aspects of these courses. Together as a team they bring an engaging multidisciplinary approach to these topics.

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