The University for Continuing Education Krems, Austria, the Austrian Marshall Plan Center for European Studies at the University of New Orleans, and the Austrian Embassy in Washington DC, and have agreed to jointly implement a new course on American politics and society to commence in November 2024.

A Memorandum of Understanding between the partners was signed in Washington, DC on September 12, 2023, by Rector Friedrich Faulhammer and Dr. Christina Hainzl for the University of Continuing Education Krems, by Dr. Marc Landry, Director, for the Austrian Marshall Plan Center for European Studies at the University of New Orleans, and by Deputy Chief of Mission Hans-Joachim Almoslechner for Ambassador Petra Schneebauer and the Austrian Embassy.

The new course includes two unique on-the-ground modules in Washington, DC and New Orleans, Louisiana. Students will spend approximately five days in each city in order to gain in-depth insights from local experts within a specialized curriculum, which will be preceded by both in-person and online preparatory instruction in Austria.

The program will enhance students’ understanding of the United States during a time when “…the complex global challenges of today require students to have operational knowledge about other countries. As a global leader, the United States plays a particularly significant role,” explained Dr. Christina Hainzl, who directs the program at the University for Continuing Education Krems.

“We strive to provide a cutting-edge program that engages students with unique insights on location in the United States. In visiting two unique cities like Washington, DC and New Orleans, participants will be able to appreciate the cultural differences within the United States. This will be instrumental in their formation of an unbiased opinion devoid of preexisting stereotypes, ” added Dr. Hannes Richter, co-initiator of the program at the Austrian Embassy in Washington, DC.

In addition, Dr. Marc Landry emphasized the importance of international programming for The University of New Orleans: “Having students here on the UNO campus from the University of Continuing Education Krems will make an important contribution to the internationalization of this public university in a unique global city.”

The course is administered by the University for Continuing Education Krems, who will co-organize the on-site modules in Washington, DC and New Orleans with its local partners.

All students at accredited institutions of higher education in Austria will be able to enroll. The seminar consists of two courses consisting of 3 ECTS credits per course. Through both the virtual/classroom module in Austria and the 10-day on-site program in the U.S., students can obtain a maximum of 9 ECTS credits, pending acceptance of transcript by their home institution/department.