At EPIIC's core is the year-long, multidisciplinary course on a global political theme taught under the auspices of Tufts' Experimental College. Undergraduate and graduate students of diverse nationalities, viewpoints, experiences, and interests, participate in this rigorous colloquium that stresses critical, analytical and normative thinking.

Students are encouraged to confront the ambiguity and complexity of EPIIC's annual global theme through a multi-disciplinary examination of the issues and controversies that the topic reflects. They are taught the subject under investigation not only by a broad range of distinguished academics and practitioners, but also as active participants in defining the issues through classroom presentations and discussions, extensive readings, and independent research.

There is an emphasis both on individual progress and on the collaborative effort -- in essence, an intellectual team. Students produce tangible outcomes to their studies through their individual research papers or projects, the International Symposium, the Professional Workshops, the MediaForum, the Citizens' Panel, the Electronic Book, and the Inquiry simulation.

OUTWARD BOUND

Within the first month, the class travels to the Hurricane Island Outward Bound School in Maine. There the students engage in team-building activities and lectures with guest speakers for a weekend. This reinforces the collaborative learning process and accelerates the students' interaction, necessary to the development of an intellectual team. More...

COMMITTEES

Each student is responsible for tangible products and participates on two of the following committees: Program, where they debate and decide the themes, panels, and speakers for the international symposium; Multimedia, where they produce a CD-Rom on one aspect of the annual theme; Inquiry, where they design and run the high school simulation program; Special Events, where they discuss and organize professional workshops such as the MediaForum and the Citizens' Panel among other events; and Public Relations and Logistics. More...

PRACTITIONERS/SCHOLARS-IN-RESIDENCE

This initiative bridges public and university intellectual space, bringing practitioners and scholars in the field to the campus to spend extended periods of time with students, lecturing to the EPIIC colloquium, giving public lectures, and consulting with students on their individual research concerns. In its inaugural year, the practitioners were Jack Blum, former U.S. Senate investigator who uncovered the B.C.C.I. corruption scandal, among others and Sidney J. Zabludoff, the former Deputy Chief of Narcotics Operations at the CIA.

ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT

Many of EPIIC's students also distinguish themselves academically. Recently, they have won Fulbright Fellowships, Phi Beta Kappa honors, highest thesis honors, the Philosophy Prize, the Sociology Prize, the Houston Prize in Economics, the Victor Prather Prize for Outstanding Scholarship, the Borghesani Memorial Prize for Outstanding Scholarship in International Relations, and shared departmental honors in Political Science. EPIIC students also have been awarded the university's Hale Prize for academic excellence and compassionate service, the Cowdery Memorial Prize for outstanding leadership and high principles, and the Multi-Cultural Service Award.