Entrepreneurship and engaged scholarship — out-of-classroom academic experiences that complement in-classroom learning — are two initiatives at Penn State that are quickly gaining momentum. Through a program led by the College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) and the College of Liberal Arts, Penn State students will have a unique opportunity in summer 2016 to gain entrepreneurial experience as well as immerse themselves in Brazilian culture.
“Students will benefit taking Portuguese classes and learning entrepreneurship for four weeks and then be able to immediately put it to use during two weeks of volunteer work with Brazilian companies and the local government,” said Fred Fonseca, an associate professor of IST who is co-coordinating the program. “They will have opportunity to study and live a different culture.”
The Penn State Summer Abroad Program, “Entrepreneurship in Software and Security: A View of the Start-up Scene in Brazil,” will be offered from May 23, 2016 to July 3, 2016 in Belo Horizonte, the third largest metropolitan region in Brazil with a population of 2.5 million. Students will take a required IST entrepreneurship class (Digital Entrepreneurship, taught in English) and one Portuguese-language class according to their level (beginning, intermediate or advanced). Fonseca is co-leading the program with Dayse Bede, a lecturer in the Department of Spanish, Italian and Portuguese in the College of Liberal Arts. The program is the first IST-lead study abroad opportunity in the college’s history.
According to Fonseca, the Belo Horizonte location offers numerous advantages to students and supports the University’s goals of international collaboration.
Brazil and Belo Horizonte have a tradition of welcoming Americans, he said, and the U.S. has a Foreign Commercial Service Office in Belo Horizonte and will be opening a consulate there in 2016. Belo Horizonte is a young and vibrant city known for its strong economy, industry and sports. Brazil is also among the top priorities of Penn State’s recent initiative, Global Engagement Network (GEN). The program supports Penn State’s “commitment to solving the world's most pressing challenges through a multi-layered engagement of research, faculty, and student collaboration.”
Students in the study abroad program will benefit from Belo Horizonte’s “interesting software scene,” Fonseca said, with over 50 technology start-ups in the nicknamed San Pedro Valley.
Part of the study abroad program is a two-week volunteering opportunity with the local government departments and with San Pedro Valley start-ups. That opportunity, Fonseca said, could be a stepping stone towards a semester-long internship for students.
Classes will be held at ICBEU, the Cultural Institute Brazil-United States, a traditional foundation in Belo Horizonte created 60 years ago to enhance the relationship between Brazil and the U.S. Students will be staying in shared rooms in a local hotel, centrally located within walking distance from classes and close to many cultural points in the city.
The Belo Horizonte study abroad program is open to students of all majors since the entrepreneurship and introductory Portuguese-language classes have no prerequisites. The registration deadline is Feb. 1, 2016. For more information, visit http://startupbrazil.ist.psu.edu; or e-mail Fonseca at fredfonseca@ist.psu.edu or Bede at daysebede@psu.edu.