Course at a Glance
Course: HIST 317K (3 Credits)
Location: Venice, Italy
When: To Be Determined
Register By: TBD
Highlights:
- St. Mark's Basilica
- Ducal Palace
- Rialto Bridge and Marketplace
- Jewish Ghetto
- Venice's neighborhoods
- Ca' Rezzonico
Tuition and Fees:
- $744.00 Undergraduate 3-credit hour tuition cost
- $350.00 Field Study Additional Fee includes: Lodging (3 nights, double occupancy), museum/ticket fees, excursions organized by the faculty
- Not included: Meals, transportation to and from the location, voluntary excursions
Explore the culture and society of beautiful Venice during this field study program at UMGC Europe.
Walk the streets, ride the boats, and taste the dishes that have made Venice world renowned as a center of culture, visited by travelers from around the globe. The Venetian Republic lasted over a thousand years and was an international city of commerce, diplomacy, and art during the Renaissance period. You'll explore the nature of Venice's historical legacy of culture, economy, and society. Leave the crowded tourist zones to visit local neighborhoods, and use the fabric of the city itself (paving stones, street names, cisterns) to understand how Venetians have lived throughout the city's glorious history.
Topics include:
- Venice's origins
- Venetian art and architecture
- Venice and the Middle East
- Venetian politics and power
- Venetian Renaissance and Baroque music
- Venetian society, past and present
May apply for general education requirements in humanities, history major and minor, electives, and Italian Studies associate or certificate.
Faculty member: piergabriele.mancuso@faculty.umgc.edu
Course Details
Pre-Course and Week 1
You will gain access to the online LEO classroom 1 week prior to the start of the course. The official course start date is 18 August 2021. Once you gain access to the classroom, take a virtual walk-through of the course and begin reading assignments.
Wednesday, 18 August, Class Start
- 1730-2130 - Students and faculty log-in remotely via Zoom and attend evening lecture
* All times are approximate
On-site in Venice
Day 1 - Thursday, 26 August
- 1600
- Discussion topics include,
- Rialto area
- Rivus altus (Rialto): Venice historical and geographic epicenter
- Fondaco dei Tedeschi (The German Nation Emporium): architectural features and functions of a historical trading Venetian building
Day 2 - Friday, 27 August
- 0900
- Meet in the hotel lobby
- 1900-1200
- Discussion topics include Saint Mark, Venice's main space and political ideology
- Saint Mark Square: beginnings, transformation,and main architectural features of Venice's physical and political centre
- Porta della Carta; Saint Mark's and Saint Theodore's columns, Venice's institutional door
- Visit the Ducal Palace: Sala del Maggior Consiglio (Major Council's Hall), the Senate Hall, and Venice's magistracies
- 1200-1300
- Lunch break
- 1300
- Visit Saint Mark Basilica, the chapel of the Doge and Venice's spiritual centre
- 1600
- Return to hotel
Day 3 - Saturday, 28 August
- 0900
- Meet in hotel lobby
- 0900-1200
- Discuss Venice in the 18th century: the political fall, the beginning of a Romantic icon
- Museo Correr: the Ala Napoleonica; Venice's historical maritime artifacts
- Visit Ca' Rezzonico, 18th century Venetian Palazzo along the Grand Canal, and learn about the life of a Venetian patrician family
- 1200-1300
- Lunch break
- 1300-1600
- Visit the Museo Correr: Venetian dress codes and luxury textiles
- Return to hotel and class session: Giacomo Casanova's diaries and the meaning of late 18th century Libertinism
- 1600
- Return to hotel
Day 4 - Sunday, 29 August
- 0900
- Check out of room, store bags at reception desk
- Meet in hotel lobby
- 0900-1100
- Discuss the Ghetto of Venice
- Visit to the Ghetto of Venice, first Jewish ghetto in the world Short introduction to the history of the Jews in Venice
- Visit to the Sephardic and Ashkenazi synagogues and the Jewish Museum
- 1100-1200
- Lunch break
- 1200
- Return to hotel for wrap-up Leave hotel
Virtual Meetings
Wednesday, 1 September
- 1730-2130
- Students and faculty log-in remotely via Zoom and attend evening lecture
Wednesday, 8 September
- 1730-2130
- Students and faculty log-in remotely via Zoom and attend evening lecture
Accommodation and Transportation
For your convenience, UMGC coordinates the hotel and excursion arrangements for a field study fee of $350 per student per field study course. This fee will be charged to your student account and covers three nights of lodging (double occupancy room), as well as local transportation costs and entry to all excursions.
The $350 fee does not include travel to and from the city where the course is held. Students must make their own travel arrangements to the course.
Textbooks and Course Materials
Please refer to the current course syllabus found on the schedule for details about course materials.
Registration Details
You may register for the 3 credit field study course with your local program coordinator or online at MyUMGC. Tuition assistance or financial aid can be applied toward tuition costs. For more information, contact the UMGC Field Study Office at CIV +49-(0)631-534-800, or e-mail fieldstudies-europe@umgc.edu.
Before completing your travel plans, please verify with your local program coordinator or the Field Study Office at UMGC Europe Headquarters that the course will be held as scheduled. If you drop/withdraw from a field study course after the registration deadline, you will be charged a fee of $100.
How is a field study course different from a regular course?
A field study course packs all of the 48 contact-hours of other courses into adventure-filled days on location, so you can earn one to three credits at an accelerated pace. In addition, rather than taking place in an education center, a field study course takes place in a historical European city where the subject being studied has its roots. You will visit historical sites and museums as well as participate in lectures that bring it all together for a one-of-a-kind learning experience.
For more information, please visit the Field Study Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page.
Helpful Hints
Before you leave:
- Contact your travel agency concerning insurance coverage for cancellations.
- Contact your health insurance company for information concerning coverage at your destination.
- Familiarize yourself with local laws and customs of your destination country.
- Check the weather forecast for your destination.
- Obtain city maps for your destination.
- Leave contact information with people at home who may need to reach you during the course.
- Make sure your legal affairs are in order and leave a short-term power of attorney with someone you trust.
- Make two photocopies of your passport and the contents of your wallet--leave one copy at home and bring the other with you.
For more information, please visit the Field Study Resources page.