Since 2015, Global Immersion courses in Loyola Marymount University’s (LMU) Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts (BCLA) have changed the way students learn about the world. Through on-campus courses, which include a weeklong trip abroad, students combine classroom learning with real-world global experiences.
The roots of the Global Immersion program trace back to a pivotal moment in 2013 when Jennifer Ramos, professor of international relations, taught at the LMU London Study Abroad semester program. While abroad, she learned of a sharp uptick in protests in Northern Ireland — a region still grappling with the aftermath of the Troubles. Seeing an opportunity for her students to study history in the making, Ramos, with the help of Cheryl Grills, then BCLA associate dean and professor of psychological science, secured funding for a short trip to Northern Ireland to explore the conflict and ongoing peacebuilding efforts. This spontaneous decision to alter the course’s trajectory sparked what would soon become an annual tradition.
“Being in Northern Ireland during such a pivotal moment helped my students better understand the complex history and witness the aftermath of the Troubles firsthand,” Ramos said. “We met with various stakeholders in the community and gained a more nuanced perspective on the peacebuilding process, making it a profound learning experience that no textbook could replicate.”
Seeing how impactful even a short trip could be for students, Ramos lobbied for the development of a program to expand the opportunity for others. In 2015, Richard Fox, who at the time was an associate dean and professor of political science, and is now BCLA’s current dean, formalized the Global Immersion program, creating a framework for faculty to use immersive travel as a teaching tool. Prior to this, faculty were taking students abroad for one-off immersion experiences, often designed as short-term, standalone opportunities. The concept quickly gained momentum, and since then, more than 40 courses have sent students to 17 countries, including Cuba, Costa Rica, Greece, Ghana, and Japan.
Unlike traditional semester-long study abroad programs, students prepare in class, delving into the subject matter, reading relevant materials, and engaging in discussions that deepen their understanding of the culture or region they will visit. This pre-trip coursework ensures that students arrive with foundational knowledge, ready to connect what they’ve learned in the classroom with the realities they encounter abroad.
Upon returning to campus, students reflect on their journeys through final projects and discussions. These debrief sessions allow them to synthesize their experiences, drawing connections between the academic content and the lived experiences they encountered. In one course, “The Artist and the Machine,” history students created an online history exhibit for a nonprofit they visited on their trip to Manchester, England. Working with archival materials, they shared the history of a Victorian-era social reformer whose ideas are in practice today in a youth arts nonprofit program. Through the project, students reflected on what they learned in England and reciprocated that knowledge with the people and groups they visited.
Global Immersion courses are not just about visiting new places—they’re a pedagogical tool. Faculty members choose destinations and design courses that align with specific learning outcomes, creating an academic synergy between in-class learning and international experiences. Deanna Cooke, director of engaged learning in BCLA and associate clinical professor of psychological science, explained that the goal is to “place in context the theories, the lessons, the readings that students are learning in class.” The immersive experience encourages students to engage with the material more viscerally, fostering critical thinking and a deeper understanding of global issues.
Whether studying “Modern Greek Playwrights” in Athens or exploring “African and Black Psychology” in Ghana, each trip allows students to gain firsthand insights. In Costa Rica, for example, students in an “Education and Global Issues” class learned from local experts like Mark Wainwright, author of The Mammals of Costa Rica: A Natural History and Field Guide, which deepened their understanding of socio-environmental global issues by experiencing environmental education in action.
According to Professor Bernadette Musetti, “Mark’s storytelling captivated our group, and when we visited the Cloud Forest Reserve, our students learned that Mark wrote the field guides being sold,” she said. “Stories told with a passion for a particular subject matter help us to understand the world around us and are a powerful teaching strategy.”
For Ramos, one of the most rewarding aspects of Global Immersion is witnessing the “aha” moments when students connect with communities abroad. “You can see it in their faces when they engage with people, hear their stories, and see their coursework come to life.”
In addition to academic development, these immersive courses shape students’ perspectives and often act as a gateway to longer and deeper international experiences, such as internships and graduate programs abroad. Many students also return home with an increased sense of empathy, social awareness, and a commitment to social justice.
Political science major Ginny Laskodi ’19, who traveled to Northern Ireland with Ramos, reflected, “The trip was incredibly eye-opening. You always hear people talk about the Troubles as if the people in Northern Ireland have completely healed from the violence. They haven’t. Innocent people were murdered in their neighborhoods because of their religious and political identities. You can’t possibly heal after that just because a peace agreement was signed. There needs to be active work in the community, and it was amazing to see the locals work toward peace in their unique ways.”
Other students, like Dakota Connor ’16, who participated in one of the immersion courses in Cuba, said, “Cuba didn’t change. I changed.”
Global Immersion courses also provide a sense of community that enhances the learning process. Traveling as a group allows students to share experiences, build relationships, and support each other as they navigate new cultures and environments.
As the Global Immersion program celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, it continues to evolve and expand its reach. This spring, courses will explore topics ranging from “Medieval Religious Thought and Practice” in England to “History and Psychology of the Holocaust and Genocide” in Poland.
In reflecting on the program’s success, Ramos encapsulates the essence of Global Immersion: “These courses are the perfect nexus of liberal arts, cura personalis, and global learning. They highlight the human connections that transcend borders, and contribute to an education that fosters a life of meaning and purpose.”
By Alison Mullin, Associate Director for Academic Communications, Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts, Loyola Marymount University