ROME J-Term
January 7 - 24, 2026
FIND OUT MORE….
EMAIL US AND SET UP A MEETING:
Bob Blandford: rblandford@colum.edu
Randy Albers: ralbers@colum.edu
Writers, illustrators, artists, filmmakers, photographers, animators, designers, arts managers, marketers, fashionistas, art historians, and all other interested creatives!
Live in Rome for 17 days and earn 3 credit hours.
Pursue your personal projects and interests in 5 free days during the program.
Experience legendary cultural heritage sites including: Colosseum and Roman Forum, Vatican and Sistine Chapel, Catacombs, Borghese Gallery, MAXXI Museum of Contemporary Art and other cultural heritage sites.
Explore Pompeii in a day trip with a working archaeologist.
Choose one of two courses:
Topics in Writing Abroad: Rome
International Cultural Heritage Management: Rome
Both courses are open to all students. No pre-requisites.
To apply:
International Cultural Heritage Management: Rome
BUSE 415 / BUSE 515 – 3 Credit Hours
Instructor: Bob Blandford – rblandford@colum.edu
Undergraduate and graduate students from any discipline are welcome - the course is designed for you to approach through your area of creative interest…
Rome is home to over 2000 years of human history and culture. You’ll investigate cultural sites, archeological excavations, museums and exhibitions in and around the city while meeting with local archeologists, art historians, and film experts.
You’ll draw on your own creative, professional and academic interests and experience to investigate Rome. Through first-hand observation, research, and reflection, you’ll analyze and propose strategies to engage visitors from diverse backgrounds with the cultural heritage of Rome.
Topics in Writing Abroad: Rome
CRWR 372 / CRWR 672 - 3 Credit Hours
Instructor: Randy Albers – ralbers@colum.edu
This J-session course offers you an intensive immersion in Rome's literature, art, history, and culture that will give breadth and depth to your creative and professional pursuits. You will read fiction, poetry, and nonfiction by noted authors writing in or about Rome along with visiting major sites, including the Colosseum, Vatican and Sistine Chapel, Roman Forum, historic churches, open air markets, catacombs, inspiring museums like the Borghese Gallery, places associated with noted authors such as the Keats-Shelley House and Non-Catholic Cemetery, and a day trip to Pompeii.
Site visits, journal entries on your experiences, responses to assigned reading, and in-class writing workshop activities lead to creating an extended story, essay, performance, hybrid, or mixed media project, which may be done individually or collaboratively. You will conclude with a brief reflection on the effect of study abroad upon your creative and professional development.
This course welcomes undergraduate and graduate students from any discipline. You may focus upon new or ongoing work and need not have traveled abroad previously.
FOR INFORMATION OR TO APPLY:
Please contact Bob Blandford (rblandford@colum.edu) or Randy Albers (ralbers@colum.edu). You can also fill out the study abroad interest form or email Monika Jaiswal-Oliver (mjaiswaloliver@colum.edu).
COSTS:
There are three areas of costs for you to consider:
Tuition: J-term is part of Spring semester. If registering for the Rome course brings you to full-time status (12-18 credit hours), there is no additional tuition cost for Spring semester. (Undergraduates: If registering for the Rome course takes you above 16 hours for the Spring semester, you will pay at the designated college rate per extra credit hour. You must be authorized by the college advising center to enroll for more than 18 hours.)
Special Course Fee:. The special course fee includes housing and breakfasts, all class-related field trips and entrance fees to museums and cultural sites, guides and class speakers, transportation associated with program activities, a day trip to Pompeii, and several special meals and events. Estimated fee: $2900.
Airfare, meals, spending money, etc. These are your responsibility. (Airfares vary widely, depending upon a variety of factors, running from approximately $700 to $1300.)
ACCEPTANCE AND DEPOSIT:
Once you are accepted to the program, a $750 deposit is required to hold your space.