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The College of Visual and Performing Arts offers a number of semester-long and short-term study abroad experiences in partnership with Syracuse Abroad, which consistently ranks among the highest quality international study programs in the United States.

VPA students most often study abroad in London, England; Florence, Italy; and Prague, Czech Republic, but Syracuse Abroad boasts over 100 programs in over 60 locations. Current students should consult with their VPA academic advisor in the college’s Office of Academic and Career Advising for more information about study abroad opportunities that best fit their curriculum.

School of Art

Florence, Italy

  • Syracuse University’s Florence Center offers the Florence Center: Studio Arts program, which allows undergraduate illustration and studio arts students the opportunity to research and explore creative and innovative approaches to making art while living in a city with one of the world’s greatest artistic patrimonies. You typically study in Florence in the spring semester of your third year.

London, England

  • Students in the B.S. program in studio arts may also consider taking liberal arts courses in the spring semester of their third year at Syracuse University’s London Center.

Venice, Italy

  • Offered intermittently, the Venice Biennale Intensive is a ten-day immersion into the global contemporary art scene. The Venice Biennale is arguably the most important visual art event in the world. It is unrivaled in terms of providing students a living portrait of the global art world.

Department of Communication and Rhetorical Studies (CRS)

Due to the flexible nature of the program, undergraduate CRS students have various study abroad opportunities through Syracuse Abroad. Your VPA academic advisor can help you find the right option for your interests.

School of Design

London, England

  • Students majoring in communications design, design studies, environmental and interior design, and industrial and interaction design may choose to study design through Syracuse University’s London Center in the spring semester of their third year. The design program offers participants the opportunity to take courses in collaborative design and contemporary design history, complemented by studio and academic electives, in a world capital renowned for its cutting-edge design.
  • Fashion design majors may participate in our World Partner Program with the London College of Fashionin the spring semester of their third year. Students take a full semester of courses in fashion design alongside other international and British students.

Florence, Italy

  • Students in design studies, environmental and interior design, and industrial and interaction design have the option to study design in Florence through Syracuse Florence during the spring semester of their third year. They take courses in collaborative design and contemporary design history, complimented by studio and academic electives.

Copenhagen, Denmark

  • Environmental and interior design students may consider our World Partner Program DIS Copenhagenin the spring semester of their third year. You will choose from a range of course options, including international business, justice and human rights, sustainability in Europe, urban design, and global economics, among many others. This program is competitive and requires students to apply early.

Please note: Design studies majors have various study abroad opportunities in the spring semester of their third year through Syracuse Abroad. Current students should consult with the design studies program coordinator for approval.

Department of Drama

London, England

  • The London Center: Acting at Shakespeare’s Globe program is an exceptional opportunity for acting and musical theater students to experience all that London has to offer. This program is taken in the fall semester of the third year.
  • Stage management and theater design and technology majors may take advantage of Syracuse Abroad’s World Partner Program with Rose Bruford College. Courses provide hands-on experience and training in the technical aspects of theater, including performance sound, creative lighting control, lighting design, stage management, and theater design. Students typically study in London in the spring semester of their third year.

Florence, Italy

  • Theater design and technology majors may spend the spring semester of their third year at Syracuse University’s Florence Center. You’ll have the opportunity to participate in internships through theater or opera venues in addition to being exposed to the city’s rich cultural resources.

Edinburgh, Scotland

  • The course Edinburgh Fringe Festival (DRA 386) culminates in mounting and performing a production at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland. Students rehearse the production during the spring semester in Syracuse and perform at the festival in Edinburgh in early August. Offered every other academic year.

Department of Film and Media Arts

Florence, Italy

Bologna, Italy

  • In the summer program Italian Film Studies and Filmmaking in Bologna, film students will attend the world’s most famous classic film festival, Cinema Ritrovato, while immersing yourself in all aspects of film. This program is based on a total filmmaker/film studies approach in which you’ll study Italian film history, visual strategy, pre-production planning, and production. You’ll generate ideas based on the study of Italian filmmakers such as Rossellini, Zampa, Fellini, Bertolucci, and Antonioni, and incorporate what you learn into your own worldview and filmmaking interests.

Venice, Italy

  • Offered intermittently, the Venice Biennale Intensive is a ten-day immersion into the global contemporary art scene. The Venice Biennale is arguably the most important visual art event in the world. It is unrivaled in terms of providing students a living portrait of the global art world.

Prague, Czech Republic

  • Syracuse Abroad’s World Partner Program through CET allows undergraduate film majors to study at FAMU, the Film and Television School of the Academy of Performing Arts, in the fall semester of their third year. Film majors interested in 35mm filmmaking can pursue a master workshop that includes 35mm film production. The program includes language and culture study and an array of electives ranging from film history and film studies across genres to visual theory to practical workshops in acting and directing.

Berlin, Germany

  • In this semester-long residency, M.F.A. students work with a local resident faculty; have studio visits with local artists, curators, and writers; and have bi-weekly virtual meetings with faculty. Each student engages the Berlin art world as they develop a professional network and professional skills.

Please note: Art photography undergraduates have opportunities to study abroad through Syracuse Abroad. Current students should consult with their faculty advisor.

Setnor School of Music

London, England

  • Setnor School of Music undergraduate students may study at Syracuse University’s London Center in the spring semester of their second year. Music industry majors also have the option to study in London in their third or fourth years for an abroad experience more focused on internships and other opportunities.