This Burch Field Research Seminar will provide students with an understanding of the European Union’s historical and institutional development, current priorities, as well as its role on the world stage. Through engagement with experts from both within EU institutions and advocacy, non-profit, and research organizations involved in the policy process, students will examine current issues such as migration, democracy, climate, trade, foreign affairs, security and defense, and the U.S.-EU relationship.

Current challenges facing the EU will also inform a Model European Union simulation, which will take place at the end of the seminar, allowing students to engage with contemporary policy debates within the EU. An online orientation session with representatives from the EU Delegation to the U.S. will take place before departure to Brussels to introduce the EU’s current priorities. 

Summer 2027
May 22 - June 19