Year Abroad: Albanian at the University of Tirana
The capital of Albania since 1920, Tirana is the cultural, manufacturing, and financial hub of Albania. The city is home to the University of Tirana and is connected by rail to the sea-side city of Durrës.
The University of Tirana (Universiteti i Tiranës) has seven faculties that include the humanities, natural sciences, and medicine. The University of Tirana has roughly 14,000 students.
Semesters run October 1 - January 31 and February 15 - May 31. Participants may attend either semester alone or enroll for a year-long, two-semester program.
Each semester, participants take eight credits of Albanian and six credits in the history and culture of Albania and the Balkans. Participants are registered as ASU students and qualify for up to 14 hours per semester of ASU residence credit. Credit and grades for University of Tirana classes appear on ASU transcripts.
The program is open to upper division and graduate students with a GPA of at least 3.0 who have completed two semesters of Albanian. Candidates not at this level should consider attending the ASU Critical Languages Institute the summer before participating in this program.
ASU provides a resident director to help students arrange housing and local travel, register for courses, negotiate the University of Tirana system, etc. The resident director will provide students information and applications for suitable housing and arrange access to student and faculty restaurants or other meal plans. Suitable housing might include university residences, dormitories, private apartments or room and board arrangements with families.
Program costs include tuition, fees, and supplemental instructional costs of approximately $3,590 per semester. Additional expenses include passport and visa fees, insurance, personal expenses, and room and board, estimated at $4,300 per semester. (Actual figures may be higher or lower depending on program enrollment and exchange rates.)
Most ASU scholarships, grants, and loans can be applied to this program. Students should consult with financial aid counselors. The Center for Global Educational Services provides scholarships available on a competitive basis. Students are encouraged to apply for fellowships supporting study and research in the region.
CLI study abroad students are registered at ASU and qualify for up to 14 hours per semester of ASU residence credit. Upon completion of the semester, the ASU course credit and grade equivalency of each course will be assigned to the student's ASU transcript.
Apply on line through the Study abroad office. Applications are due March 1 for the fall semester program and academic year program and October 1 for the spring semester program.
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Elizabeth Miller, Elementary Albanian 2007
I took Elementary Albanian with Linda Meniku, then went on to study Albanian at the University of Tirana on the 07-08 academic year program. As one of the first American students to study at UT, I faced the necessary challenges of acclimating to the system, but the language skills that I acquired at CLI and the help and support from staff members were absolutely invaluable to my studies and experiences. In Tirana, I had the opportunity to work with various foundations and non-governmental organizations to write my BHC thesis about the UNESCO World Heritage site in Butrint, Albania. In organizations where many staff members only spoke Albanian and in libraries where the only research material was written in Albanian, I couldn't have gotten very far without the language skills and support of CLI.