Chile: Santiago

Program Snapshot
Semester: Fall, Spring, or Full Year
Offered: Annually
Estimated Dates: Fall: late July to early December, Spring: late February to mid-July
Program Focus: Language Intensive

Prerequisites:

Completion of Spanish 321. A cumulative GPA of 3.0 and a 3.0 GPA in Spanish course study are required. Students must satisfy the Words and Numbers CORE requirement before participating in an overseas program.
Housing: Host Families
Campus Contacts: Matthieu Raillard
Associate Professor of Hispanic Studies

raillard@lclark.edu, 503-768-7472

Magali Rabasa
Assistant Professor of Hispanic Studies
mrabasa@lclark.edu, 503-768-7482

Juan Carlos Toledano Redondo
Professor of Hispanic Studies 
toledano@lclark.edu, 503-768-7425

Freddy Vilches
Associate Professor of Hispanic Studies and Director of Latin American Studies
vilches@lclark.edu, 503-768-7431


Program Design

In cooperation with the Institute for Study Abroad (IFSA), Lewis & Clark offers this program at Universidad de Chile, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, and Universidad Diego Portales. The program includes local outings as well as weekend excursions to Valparaíso and Isla Negra.

Chile is a long and narrow country, bordered on the east by the Andes and on the west by the Pacific Ocean. Santiago, 60 miles from the coast and the sixth-largest city in South America, is home to over six million inhabitants. Visitors will revel in its world-class cuisine, infectious energy, and exotic suburban parks. The capital city of Chile, Santiago, is both modern and dynamic, and the industrial, financial, and geographic center of Chile. It is the home of the regional headquarters for many national and multinational companies and organizations.

Note: Students interested in studying in Chile for the Full Year are encouraged to start in the Spring semester and then stay in the Fall. This sequence works best, as there is a significant break between the Fall and Spring semesters.


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: Students take classes alongside local students at up to three different universities: the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Universidad de Chile and Universidad Diego Portales. To complement your learning, IFSA offers elective classes specially designed to increase language skills and facilitate engagement in the local community. These classes, taught in Spanish by local professors, are intended to provide you with an understanding of the events and issues that make Chile what it is today.

Classes offered at the IFSA center include Spanish language, directed research and an internship course. All other courses are taught at local universities.

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

Excursions:

- Valparaíso & Viña del Mar Trip: Leave the mountain valley of Santiago behind for a tripto the coastal, maritime communities of Valparaíso and Viña del Mar. Touring downtownValparaíso will allow for ample opportunity to compare and contrast it with big-citySantiago.

- Isla Negra Trip: On this day trip, you will get to explore the emblematic site where Nobel Prize recipient and poet Pablo Neruda spent the final years of his life.


Student Life

Housing: Students live in private Chilean homes. The homestay is essential to the student’s learning process and integration into life in Santiago. The opportunity to live with a Chilean family not only allows students to deconstruct stereotypes and observe real life in action, it also creates opportunities for dialogue about issues raised in their courses, and practicing their Spanish language skills.


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 the Santiago airport (SCL), where they are met by IFSA staff and transported to the hotel for 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. 


Chile, Santiago