Ecuador: Culture and Development

  Ecuador

• Quito: 
Quito

Term: Fall, Spring 
Dates: September-December/ February-May

Description: Ecuador, a nation rooted in ancient cultures, enjoys a stunning range of natural environments as well as a rich and diverse cultural heritage. Today, development in this highly indigenous nation faces new challenges, including the recent "dollarization." As Ecuador copes with political and economic transition, increasing participation on the part of indigenous organizations offers hope for a more inclusive and representative democracy.

Quito, Ecuador's picturesque 9,000-foot-high capital, is a bustling city with international, colonial, and indigenous influences. Homestays in the semi-rural outskirts of Quito, as well as educational excursions to communities in the High Sierras, Amazon basin, and Pacific Coast complete your understanding of the impact of Ecuador's cultural, political, and economic transformation on its national and cultural identity.

Highlights: Four weeks homestay in the tranquil Los Chillos Valley, near Quito, and four weeks in Urban Quito. Educational excursions to the Ecuadorian Amazon, Guayaquil and coastal Ecuador, and the Andean cloud forest.

Cost in US$: contact sponsor

Experience Required: yes

three recent semesters of college-level Spanish or equivalent and the ability to follow courseweork in Spanish, as assessed by SIT.

Scholarships are Available.

Application Process Involves:

• Letters of Reference
• Physical Exam/Health Records
• Transcript
• Written Application

Post Services Include:

• Exit DebriefingAbroad
• Alumni Network
• Job and Internship Network

SIT Study Abroad's Mission Statement: SIT Study Abroad is the accredited higher education institution of World Learning, a private, nonprofit international organization promoting international and intercultural understanding, social justice, and economic development through education, training, and field projects around the globe. SIT prepares students to be interculturally effective leaders, professionals, and citizens through SIT Study Abroad, undergraduate, field-based academic programs operating in more than 50 countries worldwide, and thorough short-term professional training and graduate degrees in language teaching, conflict transformation, international education, social justice in intercultural relations, management, and sustainable development.

Year Founded: 1932