Study Away: Trinity-in-Buenos-Aires
in association with IFSA-Butler

The Trinity-in-Buenos Aires program, in association with IFSA-Butler, provides students of all Spanish language abilities, an opportunity to study and live in this vibrant Latin American city.  Whether you have just begun Spanish, need to fulfill your language requirement or are a more advanced speaker, this program has a great deal to offer.

The City

Often called the “Paris of Latin America,” Buenos Aires is a beautiful and dynamic city where Latin American and European influences merge in a unique blend of architecture, music, literature, dance and cuisine.  Walking through the streets of Buenos Aires immediately gives you a sense of Argentina’s fascinating political and social history and its diverse cultural life. San Telmo’s colorful architecture, La Boca’s famous tango dancers, and Palermo’s beautiful parks are just a few of the interesting “barrios” in Buenos Aires. Though each street-corner has its own intimacy, with its local shops and people, the city seems endless when it comes to its museums, bars and restaurants, clubs, theaters, galleries, and concerts. The diverse art and music scenes are flourishing.  Yet even in this huge city, the friendliness of the Argentines provides students with many opportunities to practice and improve their Spanish.

Studying in Buenos Aires
The program offers a diversity of strong academic, cultural, and co-curricular opportunities, as well as a strong cultural immersion experience.

There are two program options in Buenos Aires – one for students with advanced Spanish language skills and another for students with intermediate Spanish skills.  Students who have 5 semesters of college-level Spanish or the equivalent will study on the Advanced Program. Students who have 2–3 semesters or the equivalent will study on the Intermediate Program. Students who have 4 semesters of Spanish or the equivalent can do the Trinity intensive pre-semester language and culture program in Montevideo, Uruguay (see description below) to prepare them for the advanced option.

As part of the program, every Trinity student will be enrolled in the Trinity Core course, Buenos Aires: The Urban experience, Human Rights and Cultural Production, and do an internship or service learning project for credit that will be administered and taught by a Trinity College on-site faculty member. Students will be placed in NGOs, or other institutions where they will work closely with the Argentine people and explore an academic topic of interest related to their placement. Possible topics include human rights, education, government and democracy, radio production, corporate social responsibility, and the arts.

Students will receive their remaining credits enrolling in courses at one or more of the program’s four host universities. 

The Universities

The Universidad de Buenos Aires, or UBA, is the oldest public university in Argentina and is consistently ranked as one of the top universities in the country.  UBA, a large, urban university, is free to Argentines, and represents a wide cross-section of people.

Universidad del Salvador, or USAL, is an urban university with a commitment to personalized education that is ranked as one of the best private universities in Latin America.

Universidad Torcuato di Tella, or UTDT, focuses on social science and draws students from throughout South America with its reputation as a small, private and highly selective institution.

Universidad Católica Argentina, or UCA, is a private university of about 15,000 students with a campus in the center of Buenos Aires; it is known for its small classes and personal attention.

Academics at a glance
Advanced Spanish Program Track

• Trinity Core Course
• Trinity Internship Course
• IFSA-Butler Advanced Spanish Language and Argentine Culture Class
• 1-2 regular university courses

Trinity students in the Advanced Program will take a Language and Culture Class through IFSA-Butler and 1-2 direct enrollment courses together with Argentine students at one of 4 universities in Buenos Aires.  If a Trinity student has a high level of proficiency and the approval of the Trinity faculty member, the student may substitute the IFSA Language and Culture Course with an additional direct enrollment course.

Intermediate Spanish Program Track

• Trinity Core Course
• Trinity Service Learning Project and Course
• UCA Intensive Intermediate Spanish Language Course
• UCA Latin American and Argentine Literature Course 
• 1 additional UCA Latin American Studies Program course

Trinity students in the Intermediate Program will be based at the Universidad Católica Argentina. They will take an Intensive Intermediate Spanish course at the UCA, the UCA Latin American and Argentine Literature course, and an additional UCA course in the Latin American Studies Program.  Classes will be taught in Spanish, but will be designed for intermediate-level students.