Norway: The New Norway (HECUA)

In less than fifty years, Norway moved from being one of the poorest and most homogeneous countries in Europe to one of the richest in the world with a population that is increasingly multicultural. Toway, 25% of Oslo residents are not of ethnic Norwegian background. This HECUA program investigates the dramatic changes in Northern Europe by critically analyzing the development of the Norwegian welfare state through a wide range of topics, such as globalization theories, nation-building and national identity, governance and political party systems, European integration, histories of racialization, international aid politics, sexuality, and environmentalism. 

The program was formerly known as the Scandinavian Urban Studies Term, and while now taking up many issues beyond classic urban studies, the program is firmly rooted in the home base of Oslo. In Oslo, meetings with political party and community organization leaders give students first-hand insight into policy-making and community organizing in Norway. Central questions include the following:

• How has national identity in Norway been shaped and reflected by art, film, literature and social movements?
• How have art, film, literature and social movements reproduced and/or challenged conventional understandings of what it means to be Norwegian?
• What are the contemporary challenges and opportunities for the Scandinavian welfare states in general and the Norwegian social democracy in particular?
• How might the Scandinavian welfare states adept to the challenges of multiculturalism, European integration, and globalization?

The program is based in Oslo, Norway, a compact, increasingly multicultural city nestled between the Oslo Fjord and mountains, and is associated with the University of Oslo. Classes are held on campus. Optional Norwegian language study offers deeper insight into Norwegian culture. Those with prior Norwegian language study who choose to continue will be placed in a Norwegian class by exam. Students intern for four to six hours each week with a local organization, placing them on the front lines of political, social, and cultural debates in contemporary Norway.

Learn more about the HECUA: The New Norway program.

Credits: 4.5 Knox credits for successful completion of the fall semester (fall only)

Advisor: Professor Todd Heidt and Professor Gabe Raley

Click here to apply to study off campus.