Three study abroad programs allow Auburn students to complete a full minor in seven or 13 weeks

Studying abroad offers Auburn University students the chance to build global perspective, strengthen character and enhance academic achievement.

Of the more than 130 programs offered through Auburn Abroad, three — Joseph S. Bruno Auburn Abroad in Italy, Business minor in Milan, Italy and Tropical Conservation and Sustainable Development in Costa Rica — also allow students to earn a complete minor in only seven or 13 weeks.

And that is how Jack Sublette, John Warr, Kate Witten and Conor Mahoney spent their summer.

Sublette chose the Ariccia, Italy-based program to immerse himself in a new culture and broaden his horizons. Warr went to Milan to complement his engineering studies and boost his internship prospects.

Witten was drawn to Costa Rica, as its biodiversity and conservation focus matched her career goals. Mahoney saw the same program as a chance to explore a bucket-list destination while gaining credentials to help land a job after graduation.

Conservation in Central America

Witten, a sophomore in the College of Agriculture studying agricultural science through the Path to the Plains program, and Mahoney, a senior in business management in the Harbert College of Business, joined the newest study abroad option for earning a minor.

Wayde Morse, a professor in the College of Forestry, Wildlife and Environment (CFWE), had previously led students to Costa Rica but envisioned a more immersive experience.

He drew on his own research and long-standing ties with the country’s Center for Tropical Agriculture Research and Higher Education (CATIE) to create a seven-week program.

Morse’s own international background — studying in New Zealand, serving with the Peace Corps in Panama and earning a doctorate through a joint program with CATIE — inspired the combination of classroom learning and CATIE faculty-led fieldwork.

“Costa Rica has some of the most innovative environmental conservation on the planet,” Morse said, noting that 98–99% of its electricity comes from renewable sources and more than 25% of its land is protected.

Between three-week sessions, students take a nine-day travel course through national parks and protected areas, exploring the country’s rich biodiversity, including plants and wildlife like sloths and howler monkeys.

“Witnessing how the people value climate, soil, water and ecology helped me get closer to my future goals,” Witten said.

“I learned a ton about the importance of protected areas from a culture focused on conservation,” Mahoney added. “The experience was eye-opening.”

Morse is proud to have designed an interdisciplinary program, utilizing Auburn faculty from CFWE, Agriculture, Sciences, and Mathematics, and University College, that appealed to students across campus. This summer’s launch attracted 14 students from 10 different majors in six colleges.

Italian immersion

Sublette, a senior communications major in the College of Liberal Arts, participated in the Joseph S. Bruno Auburn Abroad in Italy (JSB) program, offered by the College of Human Sciences.

“There was a beautiful moment around the six-week mark where everything clicked,” he said. “It became second nature to converse with Italians, buy local produce and use public transportation. It was empowering to be fully engaged in the Italian way of life. By the end, I could hardly believe how far I had come.”

Since its inception more than two decades ago, the JSB program has immersed more than 1,000 students in Italian culture and history. Based in the 17th-century Chigi Palace in the hillside town of Ariccia, students live and learn in Auburn’s only permanent overseas campus.

The 13-week curriculum blends classroom lectures with hands-on field experiences across the country. One of Sublette’s favorite excursions was in Palermo, Sicily, where students saw the Opera dei Pupi — a puppet show.

 

“It’s a dying art form that you really can’t experience anywhere else,” he said.

Students engage deeply with the community and develop global leadership skills through the Elevate Ariccia project, collaborating with local schools, businesses and organizations while leaving a lasting Auburn legacy.

The college hopes to build on its own history after a recent discovery of a hidden staircase in the palace revealed a series of rooms that can be renovated, with funding support, into additional learning spaces. 

“This study abroad experience helps students on their journey to becoming global citizens and imparts the confidence needed to contribute to their local and global communities,” said Lydia Witt, the program’s executive director.

Upon completion, students earn an international minor in human sciences. Honors students may also earn Honors credit and an Honors international minor.

“The minor is certainly great on my resume, but it didn’t greatly affect my decision to go,” Sublette admitted. “It’s the lessons I learned living in Ariccia that will serve me the most in my future.”

Northern neighbors

Warr, a sophomore chemical engineering major in the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering, was in the northern Italian city of Milan with the Harbert program.

“I wanted to broaden my horizons and explore history and culture outside the U.S.,” he said. “When I saw that I could finish a complete business minor and get Honors [College] credit, I jumped at it.”

More than 300 students were in Milan this summer, with more than 50 others splitting time between campus and abroad, all earning a business minor. This option is open to all Auburn students, regardless of major, except for business students who also can’t complete a minor in business.

But starting next summer, junior business majors will be able to earn an international business minor through a new program in Milan and Madrid, Spain.

With that launch, Marketing Professor Dan Padgett said Harbert will return to a dual-city format: students in the business and international business programs will rotate between Milan and Madrid, European business hubs with easy access to the rest of the continent.

Warr found Milan to be “a prime location for weekend travel,” as several cities were only a few hours away, allowing him to get the most out of living abroad.

Padgett said the opportunity to earn a minor abroad appeals to students across all majors, and the summer option makes it possible for those with limited flexibility in scheduling extra courses.

Warr said the minor was a factor in his decision: “I felt that having a full minor going into my sophomore year would set me apart from other applicants when applying for internships. A business minor isn’t necessary to be an engineer, but it makes me a more qualified employee.”

Padgett agreed, stating, “living and working abroad is the kind of professional development valued by many companies. It also says something about you if you can navigate Europe.”