NEWS AND MEDIA RELATIONS

Speaking of name changes, the UC Davis News Service is now News and Media Relations.

“We believe this new title more accurately reflects our primary functions,” said Keith Sterling, director. “Due to our generation of news content, we are known as News Service to many across the UC Davis campus. In addition, we are the funnel for media inquiries to the university and work closely to ensure a positive and cooperative relationship with all members of the press.”

News and Media Relations is part of the Office of Strategic Communications.

The purpose and destinations are the same: leaving UC Davis for a quarter, or a summer or a year, to study in other countries.

Only now, students have a new starting point: UC Davis Study Abroad, the new name for the Education Abroad Center.

The program also has a new website (and a new URL), with large feature photos and links to the myriad opportunities for overseas study: UC Davis’ own Quarter Abroad and Summer Abroad programs; the UC system’s Education Abroad Program; and independent programs.

The name change took effect Nov. 1 after more than a year of research into Internet search habits (how students and others look for study abroad), Web traffic patterns, naming conventions among peer institutions and ongoing discussions with campus constituents.

“The goal is to improve visibility among students and constituents by way of a name that is more intuitive and descriptive,” said Zach Frieders, associate director of UC Davis Study Abroad.

Also, “we hope the move will discourage the shortening of our name to an acronym — a frustrating practice that confuses students,” said Frieders, citing as an example the similarlity of EAC to the UC system’s EAP.

“This is particularly true in the study abroad field, which has become an alphabet soup of provider names,” Frieders said. “The hope is our new name will be clear and concise, and help us to stand out among other options for study abroad.”

UC Davis already stands out as the only campus in the UC system with “campus-based” study abroad opportunities during the academic year, meaning that UC Davis faculty members design and lead Quarter Abroad programs, and students receive regular UC Davis credit.

The Quarter Abroad schedule for 2014 includes programs in Taiwan (“Pharmaceutical Chemistry in Taipei”), United Kingdom (“British Culture and Internships in London”), Argentina (“Spanish Language and Culture in Mendoza”), Australia (“Australian Writing and Internships in Sydney”), France (“French Language and Culture in Paris”), Italy (“Italian Language and Culture in Florence”) and Mexico (“Latino/a Health Internship in Oaxaca”).

UC Davis Summer Abroad programs also are built around UC Davis courses and led by UC Davis faculty. The 2014 catalog covers 32 countries with 51 programs, including “Turkey: Classical and Underwater Archaeology,” “Sustainable Energy Technologies” (South Korea),  “Public Health and Community Medicine in Delhi,” “Vietnam: Then and Now,” “Berlin Culture Before and After the War,” “The Politics of Global Inequality” (Switzerland),  “Shajespeare — Live!” (United Kingdom), “Community Politics and Development in the European Union” (Germany and Italy), “Brazilian Literature, Culture and the Arts” and “Cuba — Narratives of Resistance.” 

The UC Education Abroad Program catalog comprises summer, quarter, semester and yearlong offerings in 42 countries, with two more to be added in 2014-15: Dominican Republic and Indonesia.

UC Davis Study Abroad: 207 Third St., Suite 120, Davis, (530) 297-4633 or studyabroad@ucdavis.edu.

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