4. Study Abroad and Internship

During your studies in the PGDA programme, you can spend one semester studying abroad. Why consider a semester abroad? One reason could be finding courses or doing research in a country that may be related to your MA thesis. If you are considering a certain country as a case study in your research, then find out if Tartu has a partnership agreement with a university in that country. This could provide an opportunity for you to conduct fieldwork, but also to get to know local experts, perhaps even find a co-supervisor. Another reason may be interest in topics that are not taught in Tartu. For example, specific courses on African politics, international development policy or methods training could be more available elsewhere.

Note that the UT has specific rules about what courses may be taken abroad and how these credits are to be transferred back to your programme. For example, you are required to pass the minimum of 15 ECTS worth of courses each semester to meet the curricular requirements of your degree. You must complete a learning agreement before going abroad, and within that agreement you need to demonstrate which courses will go towards which section of your curriculum.

If you consider studying abroad then we strongly advise you to complete both the Methods Module and the Core Competencies Module during your first year. As a rule, you are recommended to study abroad only during your third semester. Studying abroad earlier (during the first academic year) is not allowed. Requests to study abroad during the fourth semester will be considered on a case-by-case basis if you have demonstrated that the prospects for completing the MA thesis are in good standing or if you expect to take an extension semester. Note that studying abroad may depend on your academic performance: you may be declined from going abroad if your grade point average (GPA) is below a critical level.

Further information about study abroad regulations and the complete list of the UT’s partner universities are available at: https://ut.ee/en/studyabroad. You can also consult our Internship and Study Abroad Coordinator Uta Kührt ([email protected]).

Another way to broaden your horizon is to pursue an internship. From a career standpoint, internships are valued more and more as they offer practical experience alongside university learning and therefore embellish your CV. Within the PGDA programme, internships can be a way of demonstrating the professional skills that were described above as part of the programme’s study process. You should seek to utilise and hone these skills as much as possible during your internship. A list of open internship opportunities is available on the Institute’s webpage: https://sisu.ut.ee/skytteinternship/internship-offers-0.

More information is available in the Internship Manual: https://sisu.ut.ee/skytteinternship/internship-manual.