The next application deadline is Feb 14, 2027
See other program dates

T

his program introduces you to key intellectual and cultural developments in modern and contemporary Brazil, examining major themes such as race, gender, sexuality, religion, media, technology, politics, and popular culture, situating Brazil within broader global and comparative contexts.

Learn how historical processes—such as colonialism, slavery, modernization, and democratization—have shaped Brazilian society and continue to inform contemporary debates. Particular attention is given to cultural production, especially popular culture, as a lens through which to understand the social, political, and aesthetic dimensions of different historical moments.

Connect classroom discussions on social and cultural dynamics to lived realities, from museums and cultural institutions to street life and local communities. This immersive context deepens critical understanding, challenges preconceived notions, and fosters a more nuanced, embodied perspective on Brazil’s historical and contemporary transformations, ultimately enhancing both intellectual engagement and cross-cultural awareness.

  • Deepen Understanding: Engage with values and traditions of a culture or civilization through primary sources as a means to broaden your outlook.

  • Learn Beyond the Classroom: Combine seminar study with field visits to unique locations, meetings with local experts, and other cultural activities.

  • Expand Your Horizons: Develop intercultural competencies, acquire skills in critical thinking, and cultivate deeper self-awareness while engaging with global perspectives.

Eligibility and Application

Eligibility

  • Currently enrolled undergraduate students in good academic and disciplinary standing from Columbia University, Barnard College, and other institutions
  • Students from all majors are encouraged to apply
  • Minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA. Students must also maintain a 3.0 GPA during the semester before going abroad

How to apply

Want to apply? Click the “Start Your Application" button at the top of this page. If the button doesn't appear, the program is not yet accepting applications. You will be asked to set up a short profile, which will allow us to send you relevant information about your application. Once you’ve created a profile, you will see a checklist of items that you will need to submit. These generally include:

  • Application questionnaire(s)

  • Personal statement

  • Official transcript(s)

  • An interview may be requested

  • Home School Approval/Clearance: If applying from another university, please check with your home university's study abroad office about applying for permission to attend the program and to transfer the credit.

Academics

All students will be enrolled in the following course:

PORT 3490: Brazilian Society and Civilization, 3 points

João Nemi Neto, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Latin American and Iberian Cultures at Columbia University and Director of the Portuguese Language Program

Taught in loco in Rio de Janeiro, this course introduces students to the intellectual and socio-cultural issues traversing fields such as politics, race, religion, class, aesthetics, and popular cultures that are paramount to understanding Brazil. Taking place directly within one of Brazil’s most vibrant cultural, economic, and political epicenters, we will explore the development of Brazilian socio-cultural phenomena beginning with foundational texts of the colonial period and moving through the nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first centuries.

These include explorations of geographic frontiers, utopias of modernity, the formation of urban spaces, slavery and its abolition, indigenous cosmologies, and aesthetics and politics, among others. Living and learning on-site, students will actively approach the formation of Brazilian civilization and develop the analytical tools to understand the intricacies underlying the dynamics of Brazilian society in the contemporary moment.

Throughout the course, Brazilian modernity will be related to broader and historically comprehensive civilizational mechanisms and globalizing processes. We will investigate how modern Brazil participates in movements that reconfigure its socio-cultural composition against the background of global histories. Class discussions and immersive experiences in Rio will serve as platforms for posing questions, developing research interests, and building analytical methodologies.

This on-the-ground setting enables students to explore further aspects of Brazilian culture and civilization, ultimately positioning Brazil as a paradigmatic site that affords unique, firsthand modes of engagement with the contemporary world.

  • Approved as a Global Core course

  • Fulfills requirements in Hispanic Studies major or minor and/or the Portuguese minor

  • For other majors/minors, please check with your department to understand if this course can meet their requirements.

  • Pending approval by the Committee on Instruction

Note: The University reserves the right to withdraw or modify the courses of instruction or to change the instructors as may become necessary.

Program Dates

The tentative program dates are the following:

Students arrive and check into housing: June 5

Orientation: June 6

First day of classes: June 7

Last day of classes: July 2

Students check out of housing and depart: July 3

All students are required to attend the orientation which will provide an introduction to life in Rio and other important information. The program will be intensive and students should expect to devote much of their time to their classes, coursework, and attending the specially planned co-curricular and extra-curricular activities. A more detailed schedule will be provided at a later date. Any personal travel should be scheduled outside of the program dates.

Program housing is available only while the program is in session.

Grades and Transcripts

Click here for the Columbia summer program grading policies.

Upon successful completion of the program, grades are entered into Columbia's online grading system.

Credit is not granted to students who do not complete the full program.

All courses taken on the program are converted to an American grading scale and transmitted to students as follows:

  • Columbia Students: Grades appear on SSOL and your transcript as semester grades from courses taken at Columbia. For more information, please see the section on Academic Credit in Steps to Study Abroad.
  • Barnard Students: Credit completed on summer Columbia-Led programs is considered transfer credit. Transfer credit grades are not posted to your Barnard record. For more information and to obtain approval for credit transfer, please visit the Barnard Registrar's Transfer Credits page > Summer Course Approval section. To order an official transcript, please visit the Columbia University Registrar's Transcript page.
  • Non-Columbia Students: You can request electronic transcripts online through Columbia's Office of the University Registrar.

Life in Rio

Housing

Housing will be organized for the program duration. More information will be provided at a later date.

ACTIVITIES

The program will include course-related activities such as visits to museums, cultural sites, and guest lecturers by local experts. Other activities designed to introduce you to the city of Rio will be organized.

LOCATION

Your classes will take place at the Columbia Global Centers | Rio, a hub for Columbia programs and initiatives relevant to Brazil. Established in 2013, the Center works in collaboration with local universities, non-governmental organizations, and public institutions to design cross-cutting, innovative programs that aim to improve the understanding of global challenges through a transdisciplinary, transcultural and applied perspective. Ongoing events, lectures, and seminars hosted by the Center build a lively and engaged community of local and international alumni, students, and faculty.

The Center is located in Centro, Rio de Janeiro’s downtown district. This central location places it within the city’s historic and commercial core.

People

Program Director and Instructor:

João Nemi Neto, Ph.D. (he, ele, él) is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Latin American and Iberian Cultures at Columbia University in New York, where he teaches courses in Portuguese language, Brazilian and Lusophone cultures, queer theories and gender identities.

His writing deals with sexuality, effeminophobia, and LGBTQAI+ representation on television and cinema. He also studies queer pedagogy, language, and gender identities in foreign language teaching. His latest book is “Cannibalizing Queer: Brazilian Cinema between 1970 and 2015” (Wayne State University Press, 2022). His latest publication is “The Role of Language in Including LGBTQIA+ Identities in the Foreign Language Classroom” (IGI Global, 2023). He has also published with Daniela Jakubaszko articles on queer theory and Brazilian telenovelas.

He is currently working on a new book about inclusive language and gender identities in the classroom. He has published articles on Queer Cinema, Queer Pedagogy, and Brazilian telenovelas.

João is also a writer and translator. His latest novel is “Os dois piores anos da minha vida,” published in 2021 in Brazil (Quase Oito Editorial). His most recent translation is a collaborative work with Ben De Witte: “In the Name of Desire” by João Silvério Trevisan (Sundial, 2023). As a poet, he wrote Corpos (Giostri Editores, 2017) and collaborated with a collective of Latin American writes for The US without us (Sangria Editores 2015 and “Tente Entender o que tento dizer. Poesia: HIV/ AIDS” organized by the poet Ramon Nunes Melo.

Graduate Program Coordinator: TBA

Financial Considerations

Summer 2027 Tuition & Fees*

Please see our cost breakdown for detailed information.

*Tuition and fees are subject to the Board of Trustees' approval and may change.

Financial aid and scholarships

If you receive financial aid during the academic year, you may remain eligible for financial aid when you attend a summer Columbia-Led Program as long as you take a minimum of 6 points.

CC/SEAS: Contact the CC/SEAS Financial Aid & Educational Planning to understand if any of your federal financial aid may cover enrollment costs for a summer program. Please note the Columbia Grant is not available for summer studies.

General Studies: Contact the GS Office of Educational Financing to understand if any of your financial aid may cover participation in a summer program.

Other students should contact their home school financial aid offices.

For more general information and resources on financing your time abroad, please see the pages below:

GLOBAL LEARNING SCHOLARSHIP

The Center for Undergraduate Global Engagement (UGE) offers the Global Learning Scholarship (GLS) to support Columbia students so they may enhance their undergraduate education by participating in a summer global learning opportunity.

Eligibility:

You are eligible for the Global Learning Scholarships (GLS) if you are:

  • A Columbia College, Columbia Engineering, or General Studies student who demonstrates financial need

  • All other students are not eligible for the GLS

Application and Timeline:

Students apply for the Global Learning Scholarship (GLS) and the Columbia-Led summer program with two separate applications.

Scholarship applications are due: February 14, 2027 (closes at 11:59 pm EST)

GLS applicants must also submit a completed program application by the program application deadline OR no later than the following: February 14, 2027 (closes at 11:59 pm EST)

To apply to the Global Learning Scholarship (GLS), please click here.

OTHER SCHOLARSHIPS

For a list of other scholarships specific to study abroad, please visit our Financial Considerations page > Fellowships and Scholarships for Studying Abroad section for more information. Of note are the:

Withdrawal Policy

To learn about the financial consequences of withdrawing from the program, please review the Summer Withdrawal and Refund Policy here.

Resources for Accepted Students

After being accepted to the program, we will share information and email communications regarding the next steps. We understand that there will be a lot of steps to complete, so please utilize the resources below to help you get started:

Speak to an Adviser: Want to learn more? Make an appointment to chat with the adviser for this program! You can also email them with any questions, or to arrange a meeting if you are unable to make the listed times.

Applying: Make sure to review the dates and deadlines section at the bottom of the page.

Resources: View our Steps to Study Abroad page to see advice on Where to Begin, how to Prepare to Go, and what you need to know when Returning from Abroad. We will share many resources with you throughout the application and pre-departure process for preparing to study abroad.

We recommend reviewing the following before you apply:

Once accepted, make sure to review the Prepare to Go page for more resources and information about preparing for your experience abroad.