Immersive Experiences

Students who choose study abroad for their immersive experience will travel beyond Vanderbilt to deepen their skills, enhance their knowledge, expand their horizons, and increase their sense of independence and self-confidence. Whether studying abroad on programs or through other opportunities, students develop professionally and academically, interculturally, and personally. Some possible ways to engage include:

• Fully immerse in Spanish in Seville, Santiago, Buenos Aires, and more
• Compare European and US medical systems in Copenhagen or France
• Investigate climate change and its effects in Patagonia and Antarctica
• Excavate the Roman seaport at Caesaerea, Israel, as part of a Maymester course
• Study mechanical engineering in Torino, Italy, center of Italy's automotive industry

Students pursuing innovation, arts, and design may want to develop the next life-changing phone application, find a groundbreaking solution to a global problem, direct a play, create a work of art, or write a best-selling novel. Innovation, arts, and design at Vanderbilt is supported by many partner offices and academic departments, including but not limited to:

• The Wond’ry Center for Innovation & Design
• The Curb Center for Art, Enterprise, & Public Policy
• Blair School of Music
• Department of Art
• Theatre Department
• Cinema and Media Arts
• Vanderbilt Libraries
• Student Media

Undergraduate research can take place in any discipline and can occur on campus, in the field, abroad, or at another institution. Opportunities include faculty-directed or mentored bench science, fieldwork, data science, literature review, creative arts-based research, technology research, etc.  Please note: shadowing or other primarily observatory practices may not qualify as an immersive experience.   

Faculty Mentors

Undergraduate research experience and culminating projects must be overseen by a Vanderbilt University faculty member. Advisers in the EL&IV can help students with a plan to find research mentors and decide what kind of undergraduate research they may want to pursue. Students should work with their faculty advisor to determine if their proposed research requires approval by the Institutional Review Board.  

Culminating Projects 

Students who conduct undergraduate research present at one of the Vanderbilt University Undergraduate Research Fairs as their culminating project.  

Helpful Links for Students Considering the Research Pathway: 

• The Vanderbilt Undergraduate Summer Research Program is a popular way to complete an Immersive Experience within the Research Pathway. 
• Research within the Vanderbilt School of Medicine must follow a specific workflow. 
• Vanderbilt’s Human Research Protection Program and definition of Human Subjects Research. 

Both paid and unpaid internships are invaluable opportunities for students to gain research or work experience, grow their knowledge of the profession and themselves, build professional connections, and ultimately determine if the field is right for them. Students who complete an internship often have a competitive edge in the workplace.

Undergraduate students are encouraged to learn about their options and opportunities by scheduling a coaching appointment with an expert in the Career Center!

Please note: shadowing or other primarily observatory practices may not qualify as an immersive experience.

Different from service learning or volunteer work, community and civic engagement require ongoing and intentional interactions between the student and the people or entity that are central to their immersive experience.

• Through civic engagement, students benefit a community or region through direct or indirect work. Examples include voter registration, advocacy and education, and political involvement.
• Community engagement involves direct or indirect work with an entity or group that provides a service or product to a group or community.

Civic and Community Engagement at Vanderbilt is supported by many partner offices, including but not limited to:

• Government and Community Relations
• Student Organizations, Leadership, and Service (SOLS)
• Career Center
• Black Cultural Center
• Margaret Cuninggim Women’s Center
• The K.C. Potter Center

Leadership and professional development training provides students with opportunities to practice critical skills in leadership and team building, identify the qualities, behaviors, values, and standards of a specific profession, and effectively adjust to existing experiences and situations.  

Pre-professional training, project development and management, and formalized leader training or certifications: 

• Giving and receiving feedback 
• Leading diverse teams 
• Managing challenging situations 
• Allocating resources 
• Navigating constraints 

Please note: shadowing or other primarily observatory practices may not qualify as an immersive experience.