For many college students, the opportunity to immerse themselves in a new culture at a destination of their choice is a big draw. 

Maybe that destination is already familiar, or maybe it’s a bucket list dream. 

For Mary Migliozzi, Ph.D., assistant director of the Center for International Programs, studying abroad also closely aligns with St. Joe’s Jesuit mission, particularly the principle of “cura personalis,” or care for the whole person. 

“I think an important part of educating the whole person is taking the whole person out of their comfort zone and putting them in situations where they’re confronted with different points of view, different ways of living and different ways of seeing themselves in the world,” Migliozzi said.

St. Joe’s offers a host of options across 18 countries for a semester or year abroad. For shorter-term options, there are three faculty-led summer classes and numerous study tours each semester. 

Whether you want to spend a semester away or just over a week, here’s a list of five study abroad options off the beaten path to check out.

Study tour, Viking Era Ritual and Religion 

Location: Reykjavík, Iceland

In spring 2026, a brand-new St. Joe’s study tour will travel to Iceland for nine days. The Viking Era Ritual and Religion class will take students to multiple historic sites across the country, all revolving around pre-Christian Nordic religion. 

Study tours are the shortest duration of all study abroad options. They involve travel added to a semester-long course, usually at the end of the course. 

Shawn Krahmer, Ph.D., associate professor of theology and religious studies, has taught theViking Era Ritual and Religion course for two other semesters, but this will be the first time a study tour will be featured at the conclusion of the class.

Krahmer said this will be her first time in Iceland, too. 

“What I would tell students is don’t be afraid to push yourself outside your comfort zone because your professor is doing that, too,” Khramer said.

The deadline to apply is Nov. 1. 

Summer program, Media & Cultural Studies 

Location: Johannesburg and Durban, South Africa

If you don’t want to spend part of your academic year abroad, summer study abroad programs are a great option. The South Africa course, taught and led by shenid bhayroo, Ph.D., assistant professor of English, and Jenny Spinner, Ph.D., professor of English, features stays in two South African cities: Johannesburg and Durban. 

Over the course of four weeks, students produce and publish journalism stories across multiple mediums — print, video, photography and social media. Field trips include a safari, sites connected to Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi and apartheid history (and wherever else your stories take you).

Allie Miller ’24, former editor-in-chief of The Hawk, said their time in the program in 2022 was “the experience of a lifetime.” They said the program was immersive by the nature of the class structure, which centers on storytelling. 

“Whether [students] are or are not interested in journalism, I would absolutely recommend that people consider it as an option, especially because South Africa is one of those places that other people might not have the opportunity to go to on their own,” Miller said.

The deadline to apply is Feb. 1, 2026.

Semester, The Beijing Center 

Location: Beijing, China

The Beijing Center, one of 27 semester/year programs St. Joe’s offers, provides students with  the opportunity to study in the capital of China at a Jesuit institution on the University of Business and Economics campus. There, students can immerse themselves in Chinese culture and language. 

Students can participate in a professional internship program, and academic excursions are offered each semester. They can also spend an entire academic year in Beijing through this program. 

Meilyn Frank ’26, who has roots in China, said she studied at The Beijing Center for a summer term, as the academic term did not fit into her schedule. She said the experience was incredibly impactful. 

“It’s so dramatic to say it changed my life, but I think a lot of people going abroad would say that, and it definitely did in the sense that the world’s so much bigger than I ever could have imagined it to be.” 

Semester, Universidad Alberto Hurtado  

Location: Santiago, Chile

This direct exchange program allows students from the Universidad Alberto Hurtado in Santiago, a similarly sized Jesuit university in the capital city of Chile, to swap places with students from St. Joe’s. Migliozzi referred to the swap as an “exchange balance.”

“We offer them a certain number of spots based on the number of students we send them, and vice versa,” Migliozzi said, adding that students don’t have to attend the other university the same semester.  

This program is immersive and Spanish intensive. Migliozzi said participants must have an intermediate level understanding of the language. Students stay with a host family. 

“You’re taking classes with local students in an unfamiliar culture in your second language, and you’re living with a local family and you are making local friends,” Migliozzi said. “You’re not surrounded by other Americans and just really getting to know how people live there.”

There has not been a swap in a couple of years, Migliozzi said, so now is the time to go. The deadline to apply for a semester abroad in fall 2026 will open in January.    

Semester or year, Create your own

Location: Anywhere

Can’t find a program you like? Come up with your own!

The Center for International Programs offers the process of petitioning, where students can research and request programs that aren’t offered by St. Joe’s. Students must write four standard applicant essays and receive two faculty recommendations, like for other study abroad programs. Additionally, students must write a 500-word petition essay, receive one recommendation from their advisor and complete a course equivalency form. 

Natalie Parone ’27 successfully petitioned to study abroad at the University of York, where she is currently studying. She said she didn’t really like the programs St. Joe’s had to offer but wanted to study medieval history in the United Kingdom. The Center for International Programs helped Parone through the entire process of petitioning. 

Parone said she chose the University of York because she hoped to find a school similar to the things she liked about St. Joe’s, like her approachable professors. 

“I wanted to find a school where I could have that experience,” Parone said.