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Summer Study at the University of Amsterdam

Read Nicola McEvoy’s account of her time doing a short course (Arcane Worlds: New Frontiers in the Study of Esotericism) at the University of Amsterdam over the summer.

For three weeks, I was studying in Amsterdam — in the only department in the world that specialises in esoteric studies. It is an intensive course that introduces the academic field of esotericism: the current approaches, where it is going and how it can be improved. We had lectures on different topics including chaos magic, alchemy, Sufiism, and Jewish mysticism, with many guest lecturers. The close-knittedness of the very small community made the experience invaluable, and the camaraderie of the course made my time there enjoyable.

I attended the preliminary programme last year with help from the Go Abroad scheme, so when I received an email from the University of Amsterdam Summer School department that there would be a more advanced programme, I could not pass up the opportunity to attend in person.

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Pisa Summer School

Read the blog post of Lydia Hiraide, a BSc Politics and International Relations student who attended a summer school at the University of Pisa. Lydia received funding by Santander Universities.

I am very keen on travelling as a way to enrich my research, so I often spend a lot of time looking online for opportunities abroad. I was thrilled when I found the Politics Ontologies Ecologies summer school at the University of Pisa whilst searching on Google for summer schools relating to my field. I thought this would be a fantastic chance to discover a new city whilst engaging in some of the most urgent conversations and discussions ongoing in the field of my research. 

My experience abroad in Pisa will be one that I always remember. It was my first time ever visiting Pisa and my first time attending a summer school in person – I was very pleasantly surprised with the great balance between attending really challenging but interesting classes and being able to discover this magical city.  

Lydia, a young woman, sitting on a short brick wall with the leaning tower of Pisa in the backdrop.Everyday, classes started bright and early. Every morning I prepared myself a hearty breakfast before walking down the beautiful riverside to the University of Pisa. Once I arrived, I always found a few minutes to chat to others and settle in before the first session. Each session consisted of a presentation from some of the top academics in my field before some discussion. Then, with plenty of time for lunch, I tried a new spot to discover the local cuisine everyday. The food in Pisa was delicious – so different from the food back home. And there were so many different dishes to try!  

One morning during the summer school, each of the student participants shared our own research project which we discussed collaboratively. This was a great chance to practice communicating research whilst getting to learn about other peoples’ ongoing projects. It was very exciting.  

Some of the highlights of my experience in Pisa included discovering the town and its culinary delights in my spare time. The Leaning Tower is magnificent – a sight that photos simply can’t do justice! I also really enjoyed the opportunity to be in a room full of students and scholars working on similar topics to me. The discussions were extremely stimulating and I felt very lucky to actually meet some of the scholars whose work has been very important for my own research. It’s a special experience to be able to put a face to a name you’ve been reading for months. 

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Summer School in Korea

Two people walking on Yonsei University Campus

Hannan Nassir-Deen, a BSc Psychology student was awarded funding by Santander Universities to study at the Yonsei University summer school in Korea. You can read about her experience below.

I found this opportunity online. I think I just searched up summer schools in Korea, something along those lines. I had already heard about the university (Yonsei) beforehand, so I was comfortable pursuing studies there.

I explored the area around the university.

After daily lectures, I would explore the campus, finding places to study and admiring the buildings. The campus had so many areas to study and relax. They even had dedicated napping areas!

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Data Science Summer School in Wrocław, Poland

Sam, a Media and Communications student, attended a two-week data science summer school in Wrocław, Poland. He was awarded funding from Santander Universities to help cover the costs of his placement.

I decided I wanted to take advantage of the Go Abroad programme but came to the idea quite late. Looking around on the internet, I came across the Data Science summer school in Wrocław. I’d always wanted to try and work on my computer programming skills after several aborted attempts at self-education throughout my adulthood, and I’d never been to Poland but I knew that it has a fascinating history, so I took the plunge.

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Summer School in Helsinki

Benjamin Morran, a PGCE student, attended a summer school on Finnish education at the University of Helsinki. They were awarded a £800 Santander Universities Go Abroad bursary to help cover their costs.

I first found out about Goldsmith’s Go Abroad programme through the language partner programme on the VLE. At first, I thought that I might apply to a language school to work on my Russian but, when I looked through the list of Goldsmith’s partner institutions, I spotted the University of Helsinki, which gave me an even better idea. Finland, in recent years, has come to be highly regarded for its education system on account of world-class PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) results. As I was, at that time, halfway through my teacher training year, I decided to check the University of Helsinki’s summer school catalogue to see if they were offering a course on education and, sure enough, they were: Finnish education system through social justice and diversities, to be exact. This course, I thought, could really broaden my horizons as a new teacher and so I decided to apply to Goldsmiths for funding.

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‘Countering Hate Speech’ – an Erasmus Virtual Experience

Antonia Morena Olivares, a BA Politics & International Relations student, has completed an Erasmus+ virtual experience over the summer holidays. ‘Countering Hate Speech’ is a 5-week interactive online course where participants engage with online content and meet with others to discuss and exchange ideas.

The course is centred on understanding what hate speech is, the forms it can take, its causes and consequences, how it is regulated, and what place it takes in our societies. Crucially, the course is designed to provide participants with strategies on how to counter hate speech and promote an open society.

Antonia discusses her experience with fellow participant Roxana on her Instagram Live

Virtual Summer School in Mindfulness and Compassion

Davy Yong, MA Art Psychotherapy student, completed a virtual summer school at the University of Amsterdam. Davy received a grant of £225 to cover the cost of the placement, and has written a series of insightful blog posts about the experience.

Hi there! My name is Davy, a MA in Art Psychotherapy student at Goldsmiths – University of London. This summer my university offered me a GoAbroad grant for the chance to experience a virtual exchange or study abroad (virtual global opportunity). In a few interactive blogs, I will be sharing some of my experiences with you, just to give some insight into what it was like to (virtually) study ‘abroad’.

When, due to COVID-19, the University closed for face-to-face lectures, and my internship came to an abrupt ending, I was glad the global opportunity came along. While in my final stages of training to become an Art Psychotherapist, I expanded on my interests to implement more contemplative practices into my future profession. That’s why it was an easy choice to follow a Summer School Course in Mindfulness and Compassion at UvA (University of Amsterdam).

Check out Davy’s blog for the rest of his posts. Alternatively, follow the links below for each individual post.

Featured Artwork: ‘Roaring Fire’ (2020)

Virtual Summer School in Cologne

Maisie Goulsbra, a BA English & Media graduate, is completing a free online summer school at the University of Cologne titled ‘Perspectives and Visions on Virtual Societies’. Maisie is writing a series of blog posts about her experience of completing a virtual global opportunity.

I have to admit, I’m entering this experience with my heart slightly broken. Sitting at the dinner table, in my student house, in London. If it were not for lockdown, I would be in Cologne. Two weeks before the summer school begins, we meet via Zoom for a tutorial on how to use Discord, the platform on which all interaction outside of lectures will take place. In the Cologne Summer School Discord channel, are private chat rooms that we, the students, can make use of to have discussions and ‘socialise’. There is a virtual ‘playground’, and even a digi bar which will act as a substitute for going to the pub together. I can’t help imagining the sweetness of German wheat beer on my tongue as the digi bar sits and awaits me.