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It might seem ages away, but January Term of 2025 is just around the corner. It’s not too early to start to think about where you’ll be during the winter of next year — it could be with new friends in a whole new country! Did you know that you can study abroad during winter break?

Here’s all you need to know about AIFS Abroad’s January Term 2025 study abroad programs and why we recommend them: 

What is January Term? 

January Term — also known as J-Term, winter session, intersession, or winter term programs — are terms that, well, take place in January! They’re shorter than regular programs, typically making them more affordable and allowing you to dip your toes in the study abroad experience without committing to a full term.

What program options are available for January Term 2025 with AIFS Abroad?

Salzburg, Austria

As the birthplace of Mozart, the hills are truly alive with the Sound of Music in Salzburg (the film was shot actually here). Take in the cozy, quaint, scenic city nestled in the Austrian Alps, giving off fairytale vibes. At the AIFS Abroad Global Education Center, you’ll be taking a course, “Music in the Age of Mozart,” but your education won’t be restricted to the classroom, as the city is bustling with museums, galleries, and concerts.

Course options include:

• Music in the Age of Mozart

San José, Costa Rica 

Fun Fact: Costa Rica is the most-visited country in Central America, but if you study abroad in January, you’ll be able to beat the summer crowds and the heat, with average temperatures in the high 70ºs! Here you can choose from a variety of different programs, studying healthcare, environmental studies, and business. If you’re ever stressed about your studies, just take in the country’s laid-back vibe known as “pura vida,” which means “simple life” and acts as sort of a chill motto for the Ticos. 

Course options include:

• Introduction to International Business
• Conflict Resolution and Health Care
• Costa Rican Health Care System and Tropical Medicine

Florence, Italy 

Are you ready to have your own Renaissance? The birthplace of the Renaissance in January is just as beautiful as it is during any other season, and there are fewer tourists. We offer a wide variety of course options here for students interested in everything from art, marketing, the Italian language, fashion, and more! The city will become your open-air classroom, with trips to the Gucci Museum and the Accademia gallery where Michelangelo’s Statue of David stands. 

Course options include:

• Introduction to Painting
• Intermediate Painting
• Advanced Painting
• Museums of Florence
• Fashion Communication
• Elementary Italian I
• Marketing Today’s Fashion
• The Marketing of Wine in Italy
• Street Photography
• Food Culture in Italy

Rome, Italy 

How often do you think about the Roman Empire? Well, when you’re there for January Term in 2025, you’ll have plenty of time to think about the cradle of Western civilization. Rome is known for its unparalleled history, archeology, art, and religion, so it makes sense we offer programs in Roman Art, Comparative Religion, and Italian Language, but we also offer programs in architecture and engineering, Italian language and more here! 

Course options include:

• Architecture in Ancient Rome
• Roman Art and Civilization: From Antiquity to the Present
• Elementary Italian I
• Intermediate Italian I
• Intermediate Italian II
• Advanced Italian
• Cross Cultural Psychology
• Comparative Religions
• Italian Culture: Facts, Customs and Traditions

Milan, Italy 

The programs we offer here are mainly about business, and Milan’s business is fashion, which makes sense because it is known as “The Fashion Capital of the World.” You’ll be studying at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, promising a world-class education while living in an ancient city with a contemporary outlook. And if you want to travel to other cities, Milan is ideally located for you to see the rest of Italy and Europe by train.

Course options include:

• Entrepreneurship and Innovation
• Green Management & Sustainability

London, England 

Fancy a trip across the pond? If foreign languages aren’t your strong suit, but you have an interest in art, culture, liberal arts and creative industries, Foggy London town is your best bet for January Term 2025 study abroad program. We offer options at University of the Arts London and our own Global Education Center, but outside the classroom you will watch your textbooks come to life as you visit museums, local co-ops, historical landmarks, and more places that make up the global city’s diverse and expansive creative scene.  

Course options at our Global Education Center include:

• London’s Museums and Galleries
• London: 2000 Years of History
• Global Cuisine and Food Culture in Britain

Course options at the University of the Arts London include:

• Creative Industries London

Paris, France 

We probably don’t need to convince you why Paris is such an attractive place to study abroad, and it’s why we offer programs there at multiple institutions for January Term 2025, covering subjects such as French fashion, art history, business, and communications. While you’re there you will experience all the iconic Parisian sights such as the Eiffel Tower and The Louvre, but also make the city your home through its great restaurants, bustling neighborhoods and the friendly French locals you’ll meet. 

Course options at The Institut Catholique de Paris include:

• Paris — City of Art History an Beauty

Course options at The American Business School of Paris include:

• Financial Accounting
• International Marketing
• Managerial Accounting
• Strategic Management
• International Finance (ABSP)

Course options at the Cours de Civilisation Française de la Sorbonne include:

• Fashion in France 18th-21st Century

Galápagos Islands, Ecuador 

You might be familiar with the Galápagos Islands from one of the most famous study abroad trips of all time — the one embarked upon by Charles Darwin. Our world is changing, and it needs adventurous people like you to learn about and protect it. Our Environmental Studies study abroad program in the Galápagos during January Term 2025 will immerse you in the island’s diverse ecology which inspired Darwin with the hope that you will one day inspire a more sustainable world. 

Course options include:

• Ecosystems and Biodiversity in the Galápagos

Berlin, Germany

Willkommen to Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, the city’s oldest university and host to 29 Nobel Prize winners, including Albert Einstein. AIFS Abroad students can take a variety of courses here during January Term in the Humanities and Social Sciences. You’ll get an extra crash course on Germany’s checkered history just by walking around the city, as its streets pay homage to when it was once divided. You’ll love German culture during wintertime, too! In January traditional beer gardens are filled with locals who are happy to show you gemütlichkeit, a feeling of warmth and friendliness. 

Course options include:

• Cultural Crossroads: Mapping Identity in Germany
• Exploring Berlin Museums – Memory, Collecting and Display
• Urban Neighborhoods in Transition – The Case of Berlin
• German Language (Elementary to Intermediate)
• Nazi Germany – Rise and Fall
• Human Rights Violations in Germany: Gender, Colonial Crimes, and Transnational Corporations
• Introduction to International Economic Law
• Global Governance: Power, Structure, and Agency

Stellenbosch, South Africa 

While your friends are huddled up at their parents’ houses for winter break, you could be on safari photographing elephants or visiting a large-scale wine export company from one of South Africa. These are possible through AIFS Abroad’s business and photography programs in Stellenbosch, a small college town near Cape Town, South Africa’s capital city. 

Course options include:

• Doing Business in Southern Africa
• Travel Photography

Lisbon, Portugal 

One of the oldest cities in Europe (dating back to 205 BC), Lisbon is home to one of its more future-focused business schools, Instituto Universitario de Lisboa (ISCTE) International Business School, where we send business students during January Term. The school is in its lively center, giving you easy access to its historic buildings and nightlife. 

Course options include:

• Cross Cultural Communication and Negotiation

Barcelona, Spain 

Here you’ll be studying either art or business at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, ranked among the top five universities in Spain. But there’s so much to learn about Spanish culture from this city, whether you’re visiting the Gothic quarter or in the crowd at Camp Nou, where the world-famous FC Barcelona football team play. 

Course options include:

• Spanish Art and Cultural Heritage
• International Business

Salamanca, Spain 

Looking to improve your Spanish? The first grammar book of Spanish, “Gramática de la Lengua Castellana,” was written in this university town, so it makes that we have a Spanish language program at University of Salamanca, the oldest university in Spain and its leading national institution. Between classes you can take a Flamenco class or hunker down with a book in the jaw-dropping Plaza Mayor. 

Course options include:

• Intensive Advanced Spanish
• Intensive Elementary Spanish
• Intensive Intermediate Spanish
• Intensive Superior Spanish

Granada, Spain 

Looking for a unique experience? For January Term 2025, we offer a study abroad program in Granada focused on the many ways in which Islamic culture has influenced Spain. The city was part of the last Moorish kingdom to fall, after all! You’ll explore topics like Arabic-Andalusian cuisine, which is said to have originated in the region between the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries when Muslims, Jews, and Christians lived together in peace.

Course options include:

• Spanish and Islamic Civilization and Culture

Study & Travel (Multi-Destination) – European Art and Culture 

Why pick just one location when you have the option to do a multi-destination program? For students interested in art, it may be difficult to choose just one European city to learn about, so don’t! With this program you will spend 3 nights in London, 4 nights in Paris, 2 nights in Nice, 2 nights in Milan, 2 nights in Venice, 3 nights in Florence and 3 nights in Rome studying the masterpieces of art history. 

Course options include:

• European Art, Culture and Society

Study & Travel (Multi-Destination) – Fashion Marketing 

If you’re a student of fashion, it may be more interesting to see how the fashion industry differs in different countries and in different cities. This program will have you spending January traveling to different European fashion hubs with 6 nights in London, 5 nights in Paris, 4 nights in Milan and 4 nights in Florence.  

Course options include:

• Fashion Marketing and Communication

Why should you choose a January Term study abroad program?

There are many benefits of choosing to study abroad during your winter break. Here are a few that you should definitely consider.

1. You get a taste of life abroad. 

Some students worry that if they study abroad, they’ll be away from home for too long and miss their families and friends. With a January Term, you’ll just be away for a few weeks, allowing you to get the living abroad experience, without the FOMO. And if you like your time there, maybe sign up for a full semester next year! 

2. It’s cost effective  

January programs are shorter and therefore cheaper, which is great news for students worried about affordability. You may also be eligible for grants or scholarships to study abroad in January. Make sure you check with your school’s study abroad office to see if you qualify for any financial aid. 

3. You won’t miss any time on campus. 

College is the time when it feels like you and your campus friends are the cast of your own TV show. But what if your character is written out of a few episodes? With a January Term program, you won’t miss any sports, activities, social events or memories made with your college pals, and you’ll be back in time to start Spring semester with them! 

4. You’ll avoid peak tourist season. 

Many study abroad program locations have their busiest periods during basically any other time besides early January, so if you go during winter break, you’ll likely not experience the lines at major sightseeing attractions, which means more time with them for you! Plus, AIFS Abroad programs include a range of excursions and cultural activities to help you pack the most adventure possible into your January Term experience. 

5. You’ll stay productive during the break. 

After winter break, it’s sometimes hard for students to get back into the swing of things after all the binge-watching and lounging during the holidays. With a January Term study abroad program, you can get ahead on your credits and one step closer to graduation.  

If you’re looking to step out of your comfort zone this winter break, consider an unforgettable study abroad program during January Term. 

Leave behind the chilly winter blues at home and join AIFS Abroad in a new country and city this January. We have programs for a wide range of majors and travel destinations available!