Harvard Summer Program in St. Petersburg, Russia
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Julie Buckler and Vladimir Gitin
(8 credits: UN, GR) Limited enrollment
Program dates: June 11–August 3
Application deadline: The application period is now closed.
Program cost: $7,000
Deposit due: April 16
Full payment due: May 15
As the capital of the Russian Empire, St. Petersburg was the seat of military might, ceremonial pomp, and official state policy. But "Piter," as insiders have always liked to call it, was also the literary capital of tsarist Russia and, as such, the setting for major works by Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, and Tolstoy. Established by Peter the Great in 1703 on remote swampland at the northwestern edge of Russian territory, the new Russian capital became the hub of a great empire and a showpiece city with strikingly western baroque and neoclassical architectural ensembles and a network of canals that many have likened to Venice and Amsterdam. Renamed Leningrad in the 1920s and famously blockaded by the Nazis during World War II, St. Petersburg returned to its original name in the early 1990s and celebrated its tricentennial and rich history in 2003.
The program consists of seven weeks of course instruction at the Nevsky Institute of Language and Culture in St. Petersburg, Russia, and one week of travel to Moscow and Novgorod. The program pursues two goals:
- To develop further knowledge and skills in Russian using Harvard University Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures materials specifically applicable to everyday life situations. All classes and interactions are conducted in Russian.
- To give students a broad knowledge of the culture, art, and social life of Russia’s northern capital, and of the imperial and Soviet periods of Russian history. Class lectures are complemented with trips to local museums and places of historic interest. Students produce an independent research paper on a chosen cultural, historical, or social topic.
Course of Study
Students take the following courses.
RUSS S-Ba Study Abroad in St. Petersburg: Intermediate Language and Cultural Study (32127)
Vladimir Gitin and Nevsky Institute staff
In this course, students develop vocabulary and oral expression while continuing to work on difficult grammar topics. Vocabulary words are thematically organized to include such topics as self and family, education, work, human relationships, politics, and national attitudes. Students also practice the etiquette of common social situations. Vocabulary is reinforced through films and the reading of classical and contemporary fiction and history.
Each week, students spend five hours on grammar, five hours on conversation and videos, four hours on analytical reading, and one hour on phonetics and intonation.
Prerequisite: One year of college-level Russian or the equivalent.
SLAV S-50 Study Abroad in St. Petersburg: Russian Imperial Masterworks (32126)
Julie Buckler
This course investigates major works of imperial Russian culture (literary, architectural, musical, and theatrical) as products of their original historical contexts and in terms of their ongoing lives as acknowledged masterworks in Russia and the West. Works include Rastrelli’s Winter Palace, Falconet’s monument to Peter the Great, Pushkin’s The Bronze Horseman, Dostoevsky’s Notes from the Underground, Tolstoy’s War and Peace, Mussorgsky’s Boris Godunov, Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, Chekov’s Uncle Vanya, and Bely’s Petersburg, as well as the imperial capital city of St. Petersburg itself. How have these masterworks been variously renewed and reinterpreted since their initial reception? Students spend five hours a week in this course.
Prerequisites: None.
Course Credit
Harvard College credit. For Harvard College students, this program counts as one full-year course (8 credits) of Harvard College degree credit.
Intermediate Language and Cultural Study is the equivalent of Slavic B (second-year Russian) at Harvard College. Russian Imperial Masterworks satisfies the Foreign Cultures Core requirement. It also counts as credit toward a Slavic concentration or a secondary field in Slavic.
Harvard Summer School courses and credits are accepted toward degrees at most colleges and universities. Since degree requirements vary among schools, students are advised to obtain transfer credit approval from their home institutions before registering for Harvard Summer School courses.
Faculty
Julie Buckler, Professor, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Harvard University
Vladimir Gitin, Senior Preceptor in Slavic Languages and Literatures, Harvard University
Application
Students must submit an application form (download* form); official transcripts; a $50 nonrefundable application fee; and a supplementary statement describing their travel experience abroad (not a prerequisite) and the reasons for their interest in the program to Julie Buckler, Harvard Summer Program in St. Petersburg, Russia, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Barker Center, 12 Quincy Street, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 USA. Students must have official transcripts sent directly from their schools to the above address; unofficial copies of transcripts will not be accepted. Students must be 18 years of age or older. All application materials must be received by March 1.
Students are notified of admission decisions by mid-March.
Cost
The cost of the program is $7,000, plus a nonrefundable $50 application fee. In addition, students are responsible for a $120 health insurance fee (which is waived if students have US insurance coverage) and for their transportation to and from St. Petersburg. The program fee covers the following:
- tuition
- room and some meals
- course materials
- excursions (including meals when appropriate)
A nonrefundable deposit of $700 must be received by April 16 to ensure the admitted student’s place in the program. Payment in full is due by May 15. A $100 late fee will be charged for payments received after this date.
Students who do not purchase health insurance through Harvard Summer School should confirm that their insurance providers offer coverage outside the United States.
Harvard College students are eligible for financial assistance through the Harvard Office for International Programs (OIP). Students may download a study abroad scholarship information sheet on the OIP website's scholarships page or contact the office for more information. Other Harvard students may be eligible for financial assistance through their Harvard financial aid offices. Students enrolled at other institutions should consult their respective financial aid offices.
Accommodations
Students stay in homes with Russian families, where they have the best chance to immerse themselves in Russian life. Homestays are arranged by the host institution, the Nevsky Institute, which has extensive experience placing students with families.
Additional Information
Contact Julie Buckler, Harvard Summer Program in St. Petersburg, Russia, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Barker Center, 12 Quincy Street, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 USA, buckler@fas.harvard.edu.
Students with disabilities should contact Joanne Eno, disability services coordinator, as soon as possible: (617) 495-0977, (617) 495-9419 (TTY), or disabilities@dcemail.harvard.edu. Request-for-accommodation forms (download* form) and supporting diagnostic documentation must be submitted by April 27. More information about disability services, including request forms and guidelines for documentation, will be online by early February 2007.
Students applying for admission to Harvard's study abroad programs should understand that although the University provides reasonable assistance and support to facilitate the participation of qualified students in its programs (including students with disabilities and health impairments), some of our programs are located in parts of the world where accommodations may not be readily available. Students are encouraged to be forthcoming with the disability services coordinator about any specific needs and functional limitations so that the Summer School can collaborate with those students in a way that fosters their safe participation and allows them to fully appreciate any barriers that they may face, depending on the location and rigors of the particular program.
Harvard Summer School is aware of the risks associated with international travel. Should the US Department of State issue a travel warning for any of the countries in which a study abroad program is planned, the program in that country may be cancelled.
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