The Hopkins Semester

Establish the “Hopkins Semester” of intensive study

This is an optional, semester-long, mentored, immersive experience, providing a high-level synthesis of concepts learned during students’ first and second years of coursework. Design projects, artistic endeavors, research projects, commercial ventures, professional internships, and community-based projects all serve as possible means to achieve the learning goals intended.

Progress

• The first Hopkins Semester in DC ran in Spring 2024 under the umbrella theme of “Policy and International Studies” with a blended curriculum of research and coursework undertaken in the context of cohort-based experiential learning based at 555 Penn in DC. The program is made possible by the Bernstein Family Semester Fund and the generosity of donors David H. Bernstein, A&S ’57, and Pat Bernstein.
• A Hopkins Semester in LA is being explored as an outgrowth of an intensive Intersession trip led by the Program in Film and Media Studies, bringing together coursework, industry internships and experiential learning, as well as alumni mentorship.
• Policies regarding students’ engagement in non-course-based work including research and independent study are being considered for revision to permit a greater flexibility for students to engage in these experiences during a Hopkins Semester.
• An application process for students to propose a faculty-mentored Hopkins Semester of their own design is being developed with a plan to launch the application process by Fall 2024.
• Plans are underway to develop a new, more ambitious mandate for the Global Education Office to encompass immersive, experiential learning opportunities.