Chile: Valparaíso

Academics

Requirements Fulfilled:

General Education - This program fulfills the Global Perspectives general education requirement for students who successfully complete 8 or more semester credits.

Major/Minor Requirements: This program fulfills the overseas study requirements for the Hispanic Studies major, the World Languages Major with Spanish as the primary language, the Hispanic Studies minor, and the Latin American Studies minor.

Credits: Credit earned varies based on courses completed. Students may earn up to 19 credits. Overloads are not permitted. 

Curriculum: During their time in Chile, students enroll in regular university courses at PUCV, where they can choose from a wide range of course offerings in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences. Students can also choose from IFSA program courses:

- Exploring Chile: Community and Culture - Sociopolitical History of Latin America - Chilean Society and Community Action (internship course)

All students are required to take IFSA’s Advanced Oral and Written Spanish course.

A minimum of two academic courses should be direct enrollment courses taken at the local university associated with the program.

Excursions: Typically, students participate in a long weekend trip to the Andes Mountains, indigenous communities along the Pacific Ocean, or the northern city of La Serena. Day trips in the region allow you to explore astronomical observatories, historic mining towns, and local pisco factories.

Student Life

Housing: Students stay with local families in Valparaíso and Viña del Mar. The vast majority of the families have been hosting IFSA students regularly for at least 5 years. While on the Chilean Universities Program in Valparaíso, students will receive three meals per day.

Host families play an important role in student’s immersion. Students will interact with various family members, relatives, neighbors, and friends, and explore and discover the surroundings through exposure to everyday Chilean routine and unique new flavors of traditional dishes. Students also immerse themselves in the Chilean culture by attending and participating in sporting activities, taking public transportation, and enjoying various types of entertainment and cultural events.

Cultural Activities: Program activities are designed to enhance students’ intercultural competence by developing their understanding of the local culture and people. Activities vary each term based on availability, but previous events have included Valparaíso city tours, a vineyard harvest tour, a visit to poet Pablo Neruda’s Isla Negra home, or an exploration of the city street art.

Cost

2023-2024 Fee Breakdown*

Total Fee (includes Tuition, Program Fee, and Health & Wellness Fee): $39,385

Tuition: $30,958

Program Fee: $8,390

Health & Wellness Fee: $37**

Included in the program fee are room/housing, board/meals, and administrative fees. Not included are airfare, passport and visa expenses, primary insurance coverage, photographs, books, immunizations, and incidentals.  *Fees are updated every February for the following academic year.

**The Health & Wellness Fee supports the operations of Wellness Services staff in delivering pre-program orientation services, as well as in providing health-related consultation regarding participant health needs. All students in the College of Arts and Sciences pay a mandatory fee of $37 per semester.

Stipend: Students will receive a stipend to cover the cost of meals and transportation costs not covered by the program fee.

Estimated Airfare (Round Trip PDX to SCL): $1,000-$2,000

Estimated Travel Document Fees: $160 - $200

Estimated Health Insurance Fee: $1,943.50

All students participating in overseas programs are automatically enrolled in iNext, a supplemental travel insurance program. The fee for iNext is covered in the program cost. However, students are also required to have comprehensive health insurance during their time abroad. All students participating in overseas programs, both abroad and domestic, are automatically enrolled in the College’s student health insurance program. Similar to a regular semester on-campus, students participating in overseas programs may waive enrollment in the student health insurance program if they have other comprehensive health insurance (e.g., through a parent, guardian or employer) that 1) provides coverage for them in the geographic region in which they will be studying and 2) includes mental health benefits. Click here for more information regarding health insurance & overseas programs.

Program Preparation

Application Process: This program has a dual application process. Student must first submit a Lewis & Clark Application. Once admitted by Lewis & Clark, the students will receive instructions for submitting their secondary application to IFSA and will receive a separate notification letter of admittance. Please keep a digital copy of your essays and other application materials as you will need to submit these similar materials to IFSA. Please note that this secondary application process can be as late as the semester preceding your scheduled participation.

For more information about the application process, click here.

Travel: Students usually fly into Valparaíso, where they are met by IFSA staff and transported to orientation.

Visa: Students will be required to apply for a visa in order to participate in this program. In most cases, students are required to visit a consulate in their jurisdiction. The nearest consulate that serves the Portland, Oregon area is San Francisco. More information will be provided upon admission to the program.

Country-Specific Health Information: Click here to view specific health information for people traveling to Chile.

State Department Country Information: Click here to visit the State Department’s Chile page.