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Studying abroad can be a uniquely transformative part of your college experience and can be an integral part of your Religious Studies major or minor. The Isabella Canon International Centre has several programs that are of particular interest to majors and minors in Religious Studies.
This study abroad course emphasizes the diversity of contemporary South Indian identities, devoting particular attention to religion, caste, and gender. This course brings students into a range of Indian religious spaces associated with Hindu, Jain, Muslim, Christian and Jewish traditions and into direct contact with Indians from an array of caste backgrounds, education levels, and occupations, allowing them to develop an informed appreciation of the diversity of the world’s largest democracy. Through directed study opportunities, lectures, and daily interactions with Indians who live and work in Tamil Nadu and Kerala students will: a) explore cultural expectations regarding gender (including arranged and other forms of marriage); b) assess the ways in which caste does and does not matter in contemporary society; and c) analyze how tradition and modernity interact in this rapidly changing nation.
Taking India’s fourth-largest city, Chennai, as our starting and ending point, we will visit ODAM, a non-governmental organization dedicated to girls’ educational opportunities, hike in a wildlife sanctuary, spend a night in a traditional agricultural village, study the seventh-century rock-cut monuments at seaside Mammalapuram, and learn about India’s rich artistic and performance traditions in an effort to develop our understanding of contemporary Indian identities.
This course may count either as a Religious Studies credit or toward the General Studies Civilization or Society requirement, and satisfies the Experiential Learning Requirement. It also counts toward the Women’s & Gender Studies and Asian Studies minors.
These courses do not count for Religious Studies credit but may be of interest to Religious Studies students: