Indonesia: Arts, Religion, and Social Change

Examine the important roles played by Indonesia’s arts and six officially recognized religions in shaping sociocultural discourses in Bali and Java.

Program Highlights

• Live and study in Tabanan in west central Bali.
• Do independent research in social sciences or an arts practicum.
• Witness Indonesia’s arts up close.
• Enjoy activities and excursions with Indonesian peers.
• Travel throughout Java and Bali.
• Choose between an Independent Study Project and an internship.
• Immerse yourself in the traditions and interpretations of Hindu and Islamic religions and cultures.

Please visit the SIT Study Abroad website for details on program courses (including syllabi), educational excursions, and housing.
 

Independent Study

During the final four weeks of the program, you can choose to use your new language and cultural skills and the academic knowledge you have acquired to complete an Independent Study Project (ISP) on a topic of interest to you or complete an Internship with a local community organization, research organization, business, government agency, or international NGO

Student ISPs on this program have been many and varied over the years, including those based on arts practica and the social sciences. In the social sciences, students have produced high quality works on topics including:

Sample topics:

• Balinese rural women’s reproductive health issues
• Local responses to illegal land use
• The social and ritual organization of “original Balinese” villages in Balinese highland areas
• Street art and youth culture
• The ritual significance of gamelan music and Balinese dance

Internships

SIT internships are hands on and reflective. In addition to completing the internship, you will submit a paper processing your learning experience on the job and analyzing an issue important to the organization you interned with, and/or you will design a socially responsible solution to a problem identified by the organization.

 

Topics and placements may vary according to the availability of each institution.

Sample internship sites:

• Assisting efforts to help street children at Yayasan Kasih Peduli Anak
• Practicing the art of batik at Mustokaweni
• Protecting turtles with the Bali Turtle Conservation Project
• Working in an Islamic boarding school

Key Topics of Study

• The dynamic ways in which Balinese traditional arts, social networks, and the environment are changing in conjunction with the opportunities and pressures of globalization
• Current debates on the future of Balinese culture and society in relation to global pressures such as increased development and international tourism
• The ancient roots of Javanese and Balinese culture and the history of the republican movement that led to the formation of modern Indonesia
• How religion, society, and the arts have developed side by side on each island
• Land, water, ethnic identity, and the environment in relation to tourism in Bali

Money Matters

Be sure to discuss how study abroad costs are handled at your school with your study abroad advisor.  

SIT tuition and room and board fees include the following:

• All educational costs, including educational excursions
• All accommodations and meals for the full program duration
• Transportation to and from the airport, and on all educational excursions
• Health and accident insurance

Scholarships:

• SIT awards nearly $1.6 million in scholarships and grants annually.
• All scholarships and grants are need-based.
• Awards generally range from $500 to $5,000.  
• The SIT Pell Grant Match provides matching grants to all students receiving Federal Pell Grant funding when it is applied to an SIT Study Abroad semester program. 
• Contact the financial aid and/or study abroad office(s) at your college or university to learn if your school’s scholarships and grants and federal and state aid programs can be applied to an SIT Study Abroad program.

Contact SIT Study Abroad

• Visit our website: studyabroad.sit.edu
• Request more information or email us: studyabroad@sit.edu
• Call an admission counselor: 888-272-7881
• Contact a former student.
• Apply to SIT. 

For Further Information: Contact the Study Abroad email alias, studyabroad@montclair.edu Domenica Dominguez, Director of Study Abroad and International Programs, dominguezd@montclair.edu   All students must complete the Montclair State University study abroad application process first to receive approval.  Please click on the "Apply Now" at the top of the page to begin your application.

Office of International Engagement Montclair State University 1 Normal Avenue Montclair, NJ 07043 Tel: 973 655-4216 Fax: 973 655-7654