As previously communicated to all students enrolled in 2nd, 3rd and 4th
year computer science
courses, the department is actively encouraging international exchanges
and in that context it has organised, since 2003, summer schools in
Germany (Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg, known also as
BRSU) and is continuing
to
expand these by organising in 2010 three summer schools as listed
above.
These schools are consistent with and support a
broader
exchange
program established with HRSDC financial support in
2004 and
renewed
in 2008 for a three year term. This program involves
two York partners in Canada
(U of New Brunswick and Dalhousie U) and three partners in Europe
(BRSU, Warsaw University of Technology (WUT), and University of
Crete and ICS/FORTH). This program allows for short-term (summer)
or long-term (fall and/or winter)
student
exchanges across the Atlantic. Summer schools are an integral part
of this effort. Participating York computer science students will be
immersed in a foreign culture and language milieu for a minimum
duration of one
month, and take an intensive computer science course abroad (
in
English) that counts toward their degree at York.
This brief visit, it is hoped, will whet the appetite of students and
prepare them to go back, to
the same or to one of the other two
European partner universities, for at least one long-term of study
(fall or winter, or both).
Unlike
summer
schools, instruction during
the longer
exchange visit in the fall or winter terms
may be in the
host country's
native language, although there may also be some courses that are
taught in English.
It is important to note that the University of Crete provides
linguistic accommodation to English speaking students who visit in the
Fall and or
Winter terms.
Instruction in
Summer Schools is, of course, always in
English.
This
accommodation,
during
fall and / or winter exchanges, extends to
instruction and examinations. I quote from
http://www.uoc.gr/erasmus/uoc.html:
- Language of Instruction
- The language of instruction
is
Greek. However, special arrangements for English-speaking students can
be discussed with each Department.
The language barrier will be addressed systematically, first by
"survival"
language courses offered by the host institutions during the
summer schools. These brief courses in basic language skills will give
the visiting students the ability
to interface with the locals in their native language, and will be a
good
co-requisite towards appreciating the host country's culture. These
skills along with
the fact that many people in Heraklion, Bonn and Warsaw are able to
communicate in English will make it fairly easy for York students to
communicate.
For longer term visits, York students who wish to participate in a fall
or winter (or both) exchanges have access to, and
it is recommended that
they take, intensive
language courses
at York as part of their preparation to go for a fall and/or
winter exchange. York has a rich set of courses in both
German and (modern) Greek.
Of strong interest to those contemplating participation in an exchange
program is the new honours degree programs that leads to an
International BSc (
iBSc) and an
International BA (
iBA) in Computer Science. For
details see the latest on-line mini-Calendar and checklists on this
page
http://www.cse.yorku.ca/cscurrent_students/undergrad_students/index.html.
Why
not
plan
to
visit our EU partners in partial fulfilment of your
iBSc/iBA requirements and benefit from the HRSDC funding!
For advise and more information please
email
me.