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Summer Language Intensive

Russian Summer Language Intensive
Live, breathe, eat, and sleep Russian language and culture by immersing yourself in this intensive study abroad experience. Live with a host family, explore St. Petersburg, and improve your language skills. Students who attend the 8-week language intensive and the fall term immediately following are eligible to apply for a $10,000 scholarship toward the cost of the summer program thanks to generous support from the US Russia Foundation and the Institute for International Liberal Education at Bard.
The Immersion Experience

The Immersion Experience

The Bard-Smolny Summer Language Intensive (SLI) strives to provide participants with a total immersion experience:

  • A Russian-only policy at Smolny and during cultural excursions
  • Interaction with Russian students working as peer tutors
  • “Russian Table” lunch with instructors, classmates, and peer tutors
  • Homework sessions with faculty and tutors for extra help or conversation practice
  • Excursions to St. Petersburg’s world-renowned cultural sites such as the Hermitage and the Mariinsky Theater
  • Practice and perform in our Russian choir or theater program
  • Homestays with Russian families

SLI Overview

  • The Program
    The Bard-Smolny Summer Language Intensive provides challenging courses for students who have completed between two and six semesters of college-level Russian or its equivalent. Students can choose to enroll for four or eight weeks; the four-week program focuses on solidifying language concepts already covered while improving language skills, and the eight-week program is the equivalent of one year of Russian at a North American institution and covers text such as V Puti: Russian Grammar in Context and materials developed by Russian as a Second Language faculty. Students' Russian skill level will be measured with a short assessment administered at the time of application.
  • Coursework
    SLI is an immersive program, with 22 hours of classes per week, daily quizzes and written assignments, and weekly tests. Class sizes are small (typically 8 to 10 students), with coursework that emphasizes vocabulary acquisition, grammar comprehension, reading improvement, and writing achievement as well as verbal and aural precision. Language is taught in conjunction with our cultural program, which integrates academic experience with a feel for the city of St. Petersburg. Coursework for upper-level students includes a thematic workshop that focuses on language learning through content-specific instruction, such as Russian history and literature. Past workshops have included Russian politics, literature, and art history.
  • Excursions
    SLI students are provided a rich cultural program, including biweekly excursions and events. Excursion sites have included:
    • St. Issac’s Cathedral
    • Peterhof
    • Petter and Paul’s Fortress
    • Velikiy Novgorod (overnight trip)
    • Dostoevsky Museum
    • Hermitage
    • Ballet and opera at either the Mikhailovsky or Mariinsky Theater
    • Blockade Museum
    • Political Hitsory Museum
    • Elagin Island (ballroom dancing)
    • Russian Museum
    • Pushkin (Tsarskoe Selo)
    • Museum of Modern Art “Erarta”

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