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Smolny College
Saint Petersburg, Russia

A joint venture between Bard College and the State University of Saint Petersburg, Smolny College opened in October 1999 as Russia's first liberal arts college.  Smolny College recognizes the link between liberal learning and democracy and represents an important milestone in the reform of Russian higher education.   Located within Saint Petersburg State University, it offers programs in the humanities, social sciences, and arts.  The course content is a mixture of distinctively Russian and international elements; students fulfill general education requirements and have broad latitude in constructing their course of study.  Classes are small, and the style of teaching is based on dialogue and critical examination of multiple perspectives.

Smolny graduates receive a dual B.A. degree from Bard and the State University.   The languages of instruction are Russian and English. Smolny College's current enrollment is 350.

Program in International Education (PIE)
East Central Europe and Southern Africa

The Program in International Education (PIE) began in 1990 with a conference that was held in response to the liberation of Eastern Europe.  Since then, 133 students have come to Bard from 17 countries of East Central Europe, the former Soviet Union, former Yugoslavia, and (since 1996) Southern Africa (South Africa and Zimbabwe).  All PIE students take a core seminar on aspects of democratization together with an equal number of American students; this curricular focus anchors the program and provides a focus for bringing the PIE students' knowledge and experiences home to American young people.

PIE/Southern Africa incorporates bilateral student and faculty exchange between Bard and three universities (the Universities of the Western Cape and the Witwatersrand, South Africa; and the University of Zimbabwe).

Humboldt University
Berlin, Germany

Taking advantage of its location at the center of the new Europe, Humboldt University has developed an active international program and a strong interest in university reform.   The university’s 36,000 students include more than 4,000 foreign students, many from Eastern Europe.  Humboldt and Bard are developing a collaborative program of student exchange and joint courses on topics such as international affairs, European studies, and globalization. Bard students from all disciplines are encouraged to apply.  Bard students at Humboldt enroll in courses throughout the university and typically attend the university’s German language courses.   To be eligible, students must have completed two years of German and have moderated.   Humboldt offers some courses in English.  Bard students at Humboldt may also take liberal arts courses, in English, at the European College of Liberal Arts, in Berlin-Buch. Students participating in the exchange pay Bard tuition.

International Human Rights Exchange (IHRE)

IHRE is an international, interdisciplinary semester program dedicated to the critical study of all aspects of theories and practices of human rights in the liberal arts tradition.  The IHRE international student body consists of approximately equal numbers of North American and African students—though typically many other nationalities are also included.  IHRE’s faculty is also international.  Students in the IHRE program take a full semester of four courses and participate in classroom discussions, attend lectures, and perform fieldwork. Students may accumulate 16 credits, to be issued by Bard College (for North American students) and Wits (for African students).

Hungary '56 Reunion and Conference

In the midst of the Hungarian struggle versus the Soviet empire, several freedom-loving Hungarians found the courage to leave their homeland and venture across the ocean to the United States.  Bard College had the privilege of taking in over 300 Hungarians as students; providing courses in English and a welcome to the American community.  This February 15-17, Bard will remember with many of these Hungarians, and friends of the Hungarian community, their journey and the events of this time that makes their stories so unique.  Please visit our website for more information and how to participate.