Global
Our students prepare to live, work, and make a difference in a global economy. From devising award-winning economic solutions, to readying foreign Olympians to become leaders within their professional sporting organizations, they prepare for working, exploring, and serving communities around the world. Gaining an understanding of complex, cross-cultural issues requires that students have experiences that broaden their view of the world as they know it.
Ready for the World, an international and diversity awareness initiative, is designed to propel our students forward in today’s society by supplying them with a worldview shaped by a culturally diverse campus and opportunities to explore the world. It internationalizes the course curriculum, increases global competency of faculty and staff and study abroad opportunities, and gives students the edge to tackle global, societal challenges in all academic disciplines.
This globally focused program is elevating our standards and is truly making our students "Ready for the World."
UT researchers find when students study a second language in normal university classes and then follow up with as little as one semester of immersion experience abroad, their brains also begin to process that second language in a way that is very similar to native speakers.
Going Global
Living and studying in a foreign country is an eye-opening adventure. Each year, nearly a thousand—and that number keeps growing—UT students from all majors travel to more than fifty countries. After returning, they enrich our campus community on levels from the personal to the academic.
Students have access to a multitude of scholarship opportunities from UT colleges and groups on campus, totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars. The Center for International Education alone awards more than $250,000 in annual scholarship funding, making the global experience available to any interested student.
Study abroad programs are also getting more popular. Each year, dozens more students than the previous year decide to push their boundaries.
Our Programs Abroad coordinators ensure each student is matched with an experience he or she desires. Incentives including increased scholarship funding, specialized academic programs, and a variety of foreign experiences to choose from take the guesswork out of studying abroad.
We are paving a simple path for our students to achieve success in today’s globalized society. You can do it, too—we’ll show you how!
Serving and Learning
In addition to studying abroad, many of our students volunteer their time and knowledge in foreign communities.
Each year, in association with Nourish International, a UT student group spends the summer serving global communities.
Our annual Jazz for Justice Concert benefits music and arts programs in the post-conflict reconstruction of Africa’s Great Lakes region.
We are also proud to host a Peace Corps regional recruitment office on campus, where students can find opportunities to make a difference in developing countries. We are currently ranked in the Southeast’s top five Peace Corps institutions because of our students’ willingness to serve.
Furthering our academic impact abroad, the Center for the Study of Youth and Political Conflict, directed by world-renowned scholar Brian Barber, works to repair the lives of adolescents impacted by political violence in countries such as Egypt, Burundi, and Palestine.
Home Away from Home
We are proud to have more than 1,500 international students and scholars who call UT Knoxville their home away from home. Our international students bring unique insight into our classrooms, inspire intercultural tolerance, and expand our knowledge base on global issues. International campus events are brought to life by the cultural traditions of our international students.
The Center for International Education is a catalyst for the globalization of our campus community and serves international students and scholars. The administration actively recruits new international students to grow UT’s community, both on campus and around the world.
Every week our International House brings the world to campus with an ongoing series of international events. Sample authentic cuisine and learn traditional dances at culture nights, listen to inspirational guest speakers from around the world, and delight in the food, crafts, and acrobatic displays of the biannual international festival.
Prospective international students can view admission requirements, an estimate of expenses, scholarship opportunities, test scores, and application deadlines—everything you need to know about applying to UT is right here.