URochester students learn, work, and research across the globe

Students don’t have to make the journey abroad alone. URochester faculty often go abroad—for work and for plays.

English 252: Theatre in England is a four-credit course led by Katherine Mannheimer, professor and chair of the Department of English, that sends students to the British capital for two weeks over winter break to attend and discuss around 20 plays in theatres across the city. The syllabus includes Shakespeare and work by up-and-coming playwrights. Recent highlights have included Antony and Cleopatra, Oedipus, The Importance of Being Earnest, and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

In between morning classes and attending all of those plays, students visit the British Museum, the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, and other cultural sites. The annual trip is open to undergraduates and graduate students regardless of major.

“I’ll remember this experience for the rest of my life,” says Brittany Broadus ’24, who was an English and psychology double major. “From the start of the class to the very end, I felt like I was living in a dream.”

ROC Galapagos has been a semester-long program for undergraduates offering hands-on field research and intense learning in evolutionary biology, ecology, and conservation. Based in Ecuador, with field work in the Amazon rainforest, the Andes mountains, and the Galapagos Islands, students have taken in-person formal courses from URochester professors, conducted field surveys, and collected data on topics such as invasive species and endemic wildlife.

“My experience was incredible,” says Christine Bresnahan ’25, who majored in ecology and evolutionary biology. “I loved living with my host families. I got to grow my Spanish and learn about their country’s culture and history. And the life skills I learned were invaluable.”