At the foot of the Andes mountains in Santiago, a bustling metropolis with six million people, the Chile Summer Program provides students with a first-hand look at how Latin America's most dynamic economy is adjusting to a new era of democratic governance, human rights, and environmental challenges. With classes at the Heidelberg Center for Latin America, opportunities for real work experience in law offices and public institutions, and workshops throughout the region, students learn comparative and international law while enjoying the natural wonders and culture of the region.
The Program
Session One: May 22 - June 28, 2013 (classroom courses) – 5 units (or possibly 7)Session Two: June 12 - July 19, 2013 (Practicum Component) – 2 units
Session One is mandatory; Session Two is optional
The Chile Summer Program places students in the heart of Latin America's quest for justice and the struggle over globalization. Whether it is human rights litigation, legal reforms, or economic development, Chile has long been a leader in Latin America. After emerging from the Pinochet dictatorship, the country consolidated its democracy with a new judicial system. In Santiago, a city of more than six million people, students will experience the reform process first-hand with leaders from the legal sector, including human rights advocates, senior police officials, and Supreme Court judges. Workshops and site visits will introduce students to new trends in social justice and the role that expanding free trade has played in Latin America. Courses in international and comparative law, taught by U.S. law professors and leading Chilean scholars and practitioners, will provide frameworks for understanding the globalization of law and legal practice – in the laboratory that Santiago and its environs provide. Excellent ski resorts, thermal baths, wineries, coastal getaways, and top-end hiking are within a ninety-minute drive from Santiago.
Since 1997, California Western School of Law has been the U.S. site for Proyecto ACCESO, a leading rule of law skills training and public education program for Latin America (www.proyectoacceso.com). Proyecto ACCESO has trained thousands of legal professionals in over fifteen countries around the region, placed students in internships in private law firms, law enforcement agencies and public institutions throughout Latin America, and produced legal and public education programs for the Bolivian, Chilean, Costa Rican, German, Peruvian, Paraguayan, and U.S. governments, among others.
The Chile Summer Program is divided into two sessions. For those students staying only in Session One, there is the option to enroll in a total of three courses for five units or in four courses for a total of seven units. Session Two features a mini-internship – the Practical Component field placement for two units. Students may not take more than seven units for the whole Chile Summer Program. The faculty from the law schools that are members of the Consortium for Innovative Legal Education (www.cile.edu) serve as instructors, supplemented by practicing lawyers and sitting judges who provide occasional lectures. There will also be several trips as well as extra-curricular activities that take advantage of Chile's natural beauty and proximity to winter sport activities. Non-program, optional trips to countries in the region may also be organized.
About the Faculty
Program Director: Professor James Cooper, California Western School of Law
The Chile Summer Program is directed by Professor James Cooper, Assistant Dean for Mission Development and Director of International Legal Studies at California Western School of Law, where he teaches International Trade Law, Comparative Law, and the Law of the North American Free Trade Agreement. Professor Cooper is a Fellow of the Cambridge Commonwealth Society and served as a Visiting Scholar at the Center for Iberian and Latin American Studies at University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and a Visiting Professor at University of California, San Diego.
A Barrister and Solicitor, Professor Cooper has worked at the international law firm of Baker & McKenzie, consulted for ministries of justice around Latin America and the United States and German governments and taught in law schools in Canada, Chile, Italy, Mexico, Paraguay, the United Kingdom, and the United States. His work has been commissioned by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation and the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, the leading political foundations in Germany.
He writes for newspapers in Bolivia, Chile, and the United States and has appeared on radio and television in Canada, the United States, Mexico, and other parts of Latin America. Professor Cooper has produced and directed reality TV show pilots in Mexico and Chile featuring U.S. law students and public education campaigns for governments around Latin America.
Professor Cooper has been profiled in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The San Diego Union Tribune, The Los Angeles Daily Journal, and The San Diego Daily Transcript and appears regularly on TV, radio and in print media about Latin America.
Ann Juergens is Professor of Law and Co-Director of Clinics at William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S.A. She is committed to training lawyers in their professional responsibility for the quality of justice, to representing people and small enterprises in community-based practice, and to improving legal education through experiential learning methods. Professor Juergens teaches civil advocacy clinic, professional responsibility, advocacy, and a course on the work of the lawyer in small firms and non-profit organizations. These courses include classroom, client representation clinic, externship and simulation teaching.
Professor Juergens has taught in six different countries during her 28 years of law teaching, with an emphasis on justice education and human rights practice. Her experience with international justice issues began with the 1995 U.N. World Conference on Women in Beijing, where she represented William Mitchell Clinics, and took her most recently to Valencia, Spain in July 2011, where she taught a class on Best Practices in Justice Education at the Global Alliance for Justice Education [GAJE] conference.
During the summer of 2010, she taught Lawyers' Ethics and Human Rights Practice in the Galway Program. At the University of Warsaw in May 2009, she taught a class on legal ethics in law school clinics to faculty and students. In December 2008, she led a session at the GAJE conference in Manila on effective client interviewing for social justice. In 2005, she spent 10 days at three law schools in Moldova, teaching faculty and students about experiential learning and ethics.
Professor Juergens is the author of articles on legal education, several histories of early activist women lawyers in Minnesota, and most recently, Valuing Small Firm and Solo Law Practice: Models for Expanding Service to Middle-Income Clients (forthcoming Wm. Mitchell Law Review, Fall 2012). Before teaching, Professor Juergens worked in a community-based private practice, as an associate city attorney in Berkeley, California, and as a VISTA attorney with the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County, California. She received her B.A. degree from Harvard University and her J.D. degree from the University of Minnesota Law School.
Professor Mark Weinstein joined the faculty of California Western School of Law in 1992 and has taught Legal Negotiation, Interviewing Counseling and Negotiation, Civil Procedure I and II, and supervises students in California Western's Clinical Internship Program. Weinstein is a two-time winner of the "Teacher of the Year Award" selected by students, was the Associate Dean for Administration for 5 1/2 years, and was the faculty coach for the school's ABA Negotiation Competition Teams for many years which included winning teams on the regional level and successful participation in the nationals. He has written a textbook on Civil Litigation and articles in the areas of law firm dissolution, clinical internships, and a current work in progress in the area of veterinary lien laws.
Prior to joining the faculty of California Western, Weinstein was a clinical professor at Washington University Law School in St. Louis and the University of Pennsylvania Law School. In addition, he was a partner in a law firm in Allentown, Pennsylvania and was a staff attorney for Central Pennsylvania Legal Services in Reading, PA, and a managing attorney of Lehigh Valley Legal Services in Allentown, PA. Professor Weinstein earned his B.A. degree from Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ and his J.D. degree (with honors) from The George Washington University Law School in Washington, DC. Professor Weinstein has taught in the Chile Summer Program and the Prague Summer Program for the Consortium for Innovative Legal Education. Professor Weinstein has worked in Latin America, lecturing at the University of Chile Law School on US Civil Procedure and Comparative Family Law (U.S., Chile and Germany) and lecturing at the Conference on Civil Procedure Reform, Universidad Mayor, Santiago, Chile, June 2007, on "The Discovery Process in the United States." In Bolivia, he has lectured at the Catholic University of Bolivia, San Pablo in La Paz. He is Co-Director of Session Two of the Chile Summer Program.
Dino Kritsiotis is Professor of Public International Law in the University of Nottingham, where he has taught since 1994. Professor Kritsiotis completed his law studies at the University of Wales College of Cardiff, and at the University of Cambridge, where he obtained his LL.M. in international law with distinction in 1992. He also holds a Diploma of International Humanitarian Law, also awarded with distinction, by the International Committee of the Red Cross in 1993. Histeaching and research interests concern international law and the use of force, international humanitarian law, general international law, as we as the history and theory of international law. He is widely published in these fields.
Professor Kritsiotis is a regular member of the visiting faculty at the University of Michigan Law School, where he has held the L. Bates Lea Visiting Professorship in Law (2005-2008), and he has taught at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and at the University of Cape Town. In 2011, he was a Senior Visiting Fellow at the University of Melbourne, where he taught a seminar entitled "Imperial International Law." In 2012, he was a Visiting Professor at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, and he is a regular faculty member on the University of Oxford's summer school for human rights law. He sits on the editorial boards for the Journal of Conflict and Security Law (Oxford University Press), the Human Rights Law Review(Oxford University Press), Human Rights & Human Welfare (http://www.hrhw.org/) and the African Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law (Juta Publishing).
Courses
Session One starts on Wednesday, May 22, 2013, with the last examination on Saturday, June 29, 2013. In Session One, you may take up to three lecture courses (a one-unit course and two two-unit courses) for a total of five units. There is a five-day break from Thursday, June 6 to Tuesday, June 11, 2013.
For students staying Session Two, the mini-internships start on June 13, 2013 and, hence, you will not have to enroll in the International Trade Law during Session One.
Students in the Chile Summer Program may enroll only for a maximum 7 units of academic credit.
The Chile Summer Program will feature the following courses:
Introduction to Latin American Legal Culture (1 unit) Professor James Cooper, California Western School of Law
Chile has long been the darling of modernization theorists and development economists who subscribe to the Washington Consensus – a blend of economic policies that favor free markets, privatized state services, and low tariff barriers. The Chileans are early adapters of many technologies and often integrate U.S. and European (namely British, French, German, and Spanish) influences, including legal culture. Santiago, Chile is truly a laboratory for many reforms – economic ones like privatization of pensions to legal ones like oral trials and a strongly independent judicial system. This course will examine how Chile has received legal transplants, adopted its own legal processes, and transformed itself into the stable, modern, and increasingly equitable state in a region of less successful neighbors.
This course takes advantage of the longstanding relationships enjoyed by California Western School of Law for over a dozen years. As part of the Introduction to Chilean Legal Culture course, we will learn from U.S. Embassy personnel, members of the National Police, Attorney-General's Office, Public Defenders' Office, members of the judiciary, and the Ministry of Justice. Trips to a former human rights torture center, a justice center (at which new oral trials are taking place), a police academy, and other sites may also be part of the course.
Introduction to Latin American Legal Culture Syllabus
International Human Rights and Latin America (2 units) Professor Ann Juergens, William Mitchell College of Law
Lawyers engaged in the work of securing human rights for clients are committed to a cause larger than themselves, and often to causes larger than individual clients as well. Valiant commitment can raise tensions with certain of the legal profession's ethical norms, though these norms vary among countries and tribunals. This course will explore the ethical and practical questions that are critical in any law practice that aims to strengthen human rights.
These questions include the appropriate role of the advocate in pressing the larger cause that is posed by an individual client case, how one counsels a client on these issues, and how to recognize the potential conflicts between an attorney's own social justice goals and those of her clients. We will compare access of the public in various countries to their justice systems, conditions for "cause lawyering," and the impact of technology and globalization on lawyers' ethical practice. The course will include training for and simulations of counseling a client, negotiations, arguments before an ethics tribunal, and other lawyer activities.
To the extent that a field trip to a lawyer's disciplinary board hearing is feasible, we will engage in that as well. Student assessment will be based on their classroom exercises and participation and on a 3000-3500 word paper that will be due after the end of classes. No previous course in professional responsibility is necessary.
Int'l Human Rts & Latin America Syllabus
Spanish for Lawyers (2 units)
Designed for students who anticipate working with Spanish-speaking clients in their legal careers, this course will provide students with the ability to interview and counsel Spanish-speaking clients; draft letters to Spanish-speaking clients; represent Spanish-speaking clients in court; identify essential legal terminology and acquire cultural competence and intra-cultural communications skills.
A basic speaking and reading knowledge of the Spanish language is required.
Many reading materials will be in Spanish. As such, students should have some command of the language before enrolling in this course.
Free and Fair Trade in the Americas (2 units) Professor James Cooper, California Western School of Law or Professor to be named
Free trade has not been a total success in Latin America.
In fact, many of the prescriptions for economic development promoted by the United States, the World Trade Organization and regional trade blocs have not resulted in tangible results for the majority of Latin Americans.
This survey course introduces students to the major issues of free trade in the Americas – from human issues like social dumping to health and public safety concerns over cross border pharmaceutical sales.
We provide a detailed examination of border security, corporate practices and other governance issues.
We examine competing jurisdictions, new forms of sovereignty, and the rise of the surveillance society.
We dissect the U.S.-Chile Free Trade Agreement and the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act and explore the alternative regimes being offered by MERCOSUR, the Southern Cone Customs Union and the Venezuelan-led ALBA, the Bolivarian Accord for the People of Our America.
With Session One, you will have experienced a fun, educational but intense month with your classmates. Then comes Session Two:
Practical Training Experience: The Practicum Component of the Chile Summer Program (2 units) Professor Mark Weinstein, California Western School of Law
The Practicum Component of the Chile Summer Program provides one or two units of credit to students who work in the field (without pay) and experience a legal sector environment (private law firms, government agencies or ministries, Public Defenders or Attorney-General's Office, National Police and other field placements).
As part of the Practicum Component, students participate in several seminars featuring readings and class discussions.
Daily journals by participants are also required.
A limited number of field placements for English speakers will be available in addition to many field placements for Spanish speakers.
The Practicum Component of the Chile Summer Program Syllabus
An Uncensored History of International Law, Professor Dino Kritsiotis
I am most pleased to inform you that Professor Dino Kritsiotis from the University of Nottingham has kindly agreed to come to the Chile Summer Program this year. A Zimbabwean national and one of the leading critics of international law, Professor Kritsiotis will be teaching his course "An Uncensored History of International Law: Some Thoughts from the Americas", a variation on courses he has taught at the University of Michigan Law School, University of Melbourne, and the University of New South Wales, Sydney over the years. This two-unit course shall be featured in the Chile Summer Program in lieu of International Trade Law during the second part of Session One.
Dino Kritsiotis is Professor of Public International Law in the University of Nottingham, where he has taught since 1994. Professor Kritsiotis completed his law studies at the University of Wales College of Cardiff, and at the University of Cambridge, where he obtained his LL.M. in international law with distinction in 1992. He also holds a Diploma of International Humanitarian Law, also awarded with distinction, by the International Committee of the Red Cross in 1993. Histeaching and research interests concern international law and the use of force, international humanitarian law, general international law, as we as the history and theory of international law. He is widely published in these fields.
Daily journals by participants are also required.
Professor Kritsiotis is a regular member of the visiting faculty at the University of Michigan Law School, where he has held the L. Bates Lea Visiting Professorship in Law (2005-2008), and he has taught at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and at the University of Cape Town. In 2011, he was a Senior Visiting Fellow at the University of Melbourne, where he taught a seminar entitled "Imperial International Law." In 2012, he was a Visiting Professor at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, and he is a regular faculty member on the University of Oxford's summer school for human rights law. He sits on the editorial boards for the Journal of Conflict and Security Law (Oxford University Press), the Human Rights Law Review(Oxford University Press), Human Rights & Human Welfare (http://www.hrhw.org/) and the African Yearbook of International Humanitarian Law (Juta Publishing).
An Uncensored History of International Law Syllabus
Chile Summer Program Grading Policy 2013
For the courses offered in Session One, students will receive a numerical grade. These grades will be forwarded to each law school. (A description of the grade values will also be sent to each law school.)
It is up to each law school to determine how they will record the number grade on student transcripts. Students should check with their respective law schools to determine how the Chile Summer Program grades will be applied and recorded.
For CWSL students, any grade of 74 or above is a "C" and shall serve to act as a "credit." CWSL will make the actual grade available to the students, but it will not appear on their transcript. For the Practicum Component in Session Two, the grades for all students will be pass/fail. For the courses in the program, there will be push points awarded.
Facilities
HEIDELBERG CENTER FOR LATINO AMERICAThe Heidelberg Center for Latino America is the University of Heidelberg's Center of Excellence funded by the German Government. It is housed in a beautiful French-styled mansion in an exclusive neighborhood in Santiago.
Classes will meet Monday to Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. daily with a short break in between classes (during which you will be provided snacks and coffee), leaving the afternoons open for cultural events, sightseeing, reading, library visits, or research. There may be classes scheduled on Saturdays or Sundays, depending on programmatic needs.
The Heidelberg Center for Latin America, headquartered in Santiago, Chile, will secure living arrangements for students. There will be multi-bedroom flats – two and possibly three bedroom apartments – with kitchen, one or two bathrooms, living room, cable television, and Chilean high speed Internet access. Internet and other services sometimes take days to repair. Students can move into their accommodations on Tuesday, May 21, 2013.
Students in the Chile Summer Program Session One must leave their accommodations by July 3, 2013.
Students in the Chile Summer Program Session Two must leave their accommodations by July 21, 2013.
The Accommodation Fee will be refundable up to thirty days prior to the start of the Chile Summer Program and will be nonrefundable thereafter.
The $500 security deposit may be forfeited if the accommodations are not left in the same condition as received and if a student overuses the utilities (heat, water, electricity) beyond normal usage. Because a student will be sharing the accommodations with at least one other student, any damage or overuse of utilities will be allocated equally to each occupant.
The Chile Summer Program is held during the autumn season for South America. In May, the average high temperature is 64 degrees Fahrenheit and the average low temperature is 41 degrees Fahrenheit with an average precipitation of 2.3 inches.
In June, the average high temperature is 58 degrees Fahrenheit and the average low temperature is 38 degrees Fahrenheit with an average precipitation of 3.10 inches.
Bring a sweater and your snowboard.
Extra-Curricular Activities
Between Session One and Session Two and after Session Two, there is an opportunity for students to travel in the region. These additional trips are student-planned and outside the Chile Summer Program. In the past, they have included the following:
- One-day or two–day trips for skiing/snowboarding (weekend trips to Valle Nevado)
- A multiple-day trip to the Chilean northern desert (San Pedro de Atacama) or a multiple-day trip to Bolivia (La Paz, Lake Titicaca), or a multiple day trip to Brazil or Peru.
- A multiple-day trip to Buenos Aires.
Tours and Off-Campus Activities That Are Part of the Academic Program
The Chile Summer Program may include a number of tours such as the following:- A guided tour of Parque de la Paz (Villa Grimaldi) in Santiago de Chile
- A guided tour of the Centro de Justicia to watch new oral trials
- A guided tour of a Chilean prison for juveniles or police academy
- A guided tour of the Chilean Supreme Court
- A workshop with Chilean legal sector leaders including the Public Defender and Prosecutor of Santiago de Chile
- A guided one-day tour of Valparaiso/Viña del Mar with a possible wine tasting opportunity.
Tuition and Fees
| Non-refundable Application Fee | $250.000 |
| Refundable security deposit for accommodations 1 | $500.00 |
Session 1:
| Tuition Fee (5 units at $690 per unit) | $3,450.00 |
| Tuition Fee (7 Units at $690 per unit) | $4,830.00 |
| Nonrefundable Accommodation Fee 2 | $1,300.00 |
| Cultural Fee 3 | $350.00 |
| Housekeeping Fee 4 | $100.00 |
| Administrative and Electronic Accessibility 5 | $150.00 |
Session 2:
| Tuition Fee (2 units at $690 per unit) | $1,380.00 |
| Nonrefundable Accommodation Fee 2 | $900.00 |
| Cultural Fee 3 | $250.00 |
| Housekeeping Fee 4 | $100.00 |
| Administrative and Electronic Accessibility 5 | $150.00 |
1- Each student will be required to sign an inventory/checklist upon check-in certifying the condition of the apartment and its contents at check-in. Refunds will only be issued after check-out and inspection of apartment. The security deposit for housing is at risk of forfeiture if the apartment is not left in the same condition as it was found and if there are overages of the utilities (heat, water, electricity) beyond normal usage. If any problems arise with my housing, the student will notify the Program Director within 24 hours.
2- The housing will be in a shared two or three-bedroom apartment. The apartments will feature Chilean high-speed wireless and cable TV. Because there are no landlines provided in the apartments, the Program will provide to each student one local prepaid cellular phone with five thousand Chilean pesos worth of minutes, which can be used for local and international calls and text messaging. Students are responsible for purchasing additional telephone cards thereafter as needed. If the telephone is lost, stolen, damaged or misplaced, students are responsible to purchase a replacement telephone. The Accommodation Fee will be refundable up to thirty days prior to the start of the Chile Summer Program and will be nonrefundable thereafter.
3- The cultural fee covers costs for the Santiago and Valparaiso city-countryside tours and several hosted events (i.e. welcome, mid-program, and closing dinners).
4- Each apartment will be cleaned several times during the program. However, students are still responsible for keeping their apartments well maintained.
5- Photocopiers and desktop computers with internet access will be available during normal business hours (9:15 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Friday) at the Heidelberg Center for Latin America. This fee includes the Reader for the Introduction to Latin American Legal Culture course.
All fees/costs are to be paid in U.S. dollars. These fees do not include airfare, traveling expenses, costs associated with sightseeing (except for those covered by the Cultural Fee), meals, books (except for the Reader for the Introduction to Latin American Legal Culture course), or other materials for the program. All costs not specifically included in the charges above are the sole responsibility of the student. ATM machines are located around Santiago, but only dispense Chilean pesos and are subject to surcharge, exchange, and other fees.
Registration
The Chile Summer Program is open to all students enrolled at American Bar Association-accredited law schools and who are in good academic standing. Please talk to your law school's administration concerning the requirements for the transfer of academic credits from the Chile Summer Program.It is the policy of California Western School of Law to provide equality of opportunity in legal education for all persons, including faculty, other employees, applicants for admissions, enrolled students, and graduates, without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, age, handicap or disability, or sexual orientation.
As participation in the Chile Summer Program is limited, it is best to apply early.
If you have questions about the Chile Summer Program, please contact the Program Director, Professor James Cooper, at California Western School of Law at jcooper@cwsl.edu or by telephone at (619) 525-1430.
Coursework and Credit
Students in the Chile Summer Program must take three courses during Session One of the Chile Summer Program (May 22 to June 28, 2013) for a total of five units. Students may opt to be part of the Session Two Practicum Component (June 13 to July, 2013) during which they must take a two unit Practicum Component (mini-internships). The entire Chile Summer Program consists of a total of seven units. Students who enroll in Session Two must have completed Session One of the Chile Summer Program.
Students enrolled only in Session One may also opt to take another two-unit course for a total of seven units.
Students will receive a number grade for their coursework. It is up to the student's home school to determine whether the grade will be converted to a letter grade or will be reported as pass/fail. Students should discuss this with their home school.
Students will receive a number grade for their coursework. It is up to the student's home school to determine whether the grade will be converted to a letter grade or will be reported as pass/fail. Students should discuss this with their home school.
Cancellation or Changes in the Program
If the Chile Summer Program is cancelled, registrants will be notified in writing. All tuition and fees paid to California Western School of Law will be refunded within 20 days of the date of cancellation. If the Chile Summer Program is significantly altered, registrants will have the option to withdraw from the program without financial penalty.
The program is subject to change. If for scheduling purposes the course instructors need to be reassigned, the Director will use his best efforts to make arrangements for a similar international or comparative law course.
If the U.S. State Department issues a Travel Warning or Alert covering the Program dates or destination prior to the start of the program, registrants will be promptly notified and all tuition and fees paid to California Western School of Law will be refunded within 20 days of the date of the U.S. State Department Travel Warning or Alert.
If during the program the U.S. State Department issues a Travel Warning or Alert covering the Program dates or destination or the program is terminated, registrants will be refunded all tuition and fees paid, except for the Accommodation and Cultural Fees utilized prior to the date of termination or withdrawal. Amounts to be refunded for Accommodation and Cultural Fees will be calculated on a pro rata basis.
Withdrawal from the Program
Except as described in the "Cancellation or Changes in the Program" section above, students who withdraw from the program after the first day of classes will have their tuition reassessed. The reassessment will include a charge for tuition earned by CWSL based upon the Earned Tuition Schedule shown below and the students' last date of attendance. If a student withdraws after the last date on the Earned Tuition Schedule, no refund will be issued.Chile Summer Study Program Earned Tuition Schedule
Session 1:
| 22 May - 24 May | 10% |
| 25 May - 27 May | 20% |
| 28 May - 30 May | 30% |
| 31 May - 4 Jun | 40% |
| 5 Jun - 13 Jun | 50% |
| 14-Jun - 15 Jun | 60% |
100% earned thereafter
Session 2:
| 13 Jun - 17 Jun | 10% |
| 18 Jun - 19 Jun | 20% |
| 20 Jun - 24 Jun | 30% |
| 25 Jun - 27 Jun | 40% |
| 28 Jun - 2 Jul | 50% |
| 3 Jul - 4 Jul | 60% |
100% earned thereafter
Return of Title IV Funds is a federally mandated policy applicable only to students who receive federal financial aid and who withdraw, drop out, are dismissed, or take a leave of absence prior to completing 60% of the program. The tuition of students who reduce units and remain enrolled is subject only to the tuition reassessment policy above. The Return of Title IV Funds calculation will be made by the student's home school to determine how much aid, if any, must be returned to Title IV loan programs. The tuition reassessment policy will be applied after the Return of Title IV Funds procedure is completed. In some cases, the student may owe his/her home school money for the Title IV funds returned to the lender in excess of any credit balance on the student's account.
The home school of any student who withdraws from or does not attend the program will be notified of the student's last date of attendance.
Frequently Asked Questions
1 Are the same classes that were offered last year is being offered in this year?
No. For 2013, we have five courses in the first part of Session One. Everyone must enroll in a one-unit course Introduction to Latin American Legal Culture and Professor Ann Juergens' course on Human Rights and Latin America for two units. In the second part of Session One, there are two more courses, and students must select at least one of these two: A two-unit Spanish for Lawyers course or a two-unit International Trade Law course.
2 What Chilean school does your program coordinate with?
The Chile Summer Program is housed at the Heidelberg Center for Latin America, part of Germany's University of Heidelberg. California Western School of Law and the Heidelberg Center have partnered in post-graduate programs in the past with Argentine, Chilean, Mexican and Paraguayan universities.
3 Will the courses be in Spanish or English?
The courses are in English. The field placements in Session Two's Practicum Component do not require Spanish language, but it sure would help to speak some Spanish. There are a limited number of English-speaking field placements available in the Practicum Component.
4 Do we have to know Spanish at all?
No. Please stay on for Session Two and take our Spanish for Lawyers course.
5 Do I need to fill out a petition to visit another school along with a letter of good standing?
To apply for the Chile Summer Program, please fill out an application, send it with a non-refundable $250 check and a letter from your law school's administration that you are in good academic standing. It is up to each student to make sure that the courses he/she is taking in the Chile Summer Program is transferable for academic credit.
6 Do we have to submit the letter of good standing along with the application or can they be turned in at different times?
The letter of good standing can be submitted at a later time, but an application is not complete until all parts of the application are submitted.
7 Is it possible for us to bring our family along?
The Chile Summer Program is a very intense educational experience. It is not recommended that family members come along. With limited space for housing and field trips, we are not encouraging family members to join students.
8 Do we have to look for our own accommodation?
No, we include accommodation in the cost of the program.
9 How do can we know whether the housing is in a safe area? Do we do our own research?
We will be housing students in safe neighborhoods. Santiago de Chile is an urban center with over 6 million people and suffers crime like other major cities around the world. Students receive instruction about what neighborhoods to visit and which to avoid. They also attend an orientation session during which they learn how to avoid being victims of crime.
10 How early can we get accommodation?
Accommodation may be available for students starting May 20, 2013. There may be accommodations a day or two earlier than this date, but at an additional charge, payable to the Heideberg Center for Latin America. Please keep us informed as to your arrival dates to Santiago as we will pick you up at the airport and take you to your accommodations. Students must move out of their accommodations the day after the Session in which they are registered ends.
11 Should we arrange for our own transportation?
If you are arriving at the airport in Santiago de Chile and you inform us well in advance of your arrival (and keep us apprised as to any changes, delays, etc.) we will arrange for you to be picked up at the airport.
12 Will the apartments come all furnished with bedding supplies and towels?
Bedding and towels will be supplied as will cutlery and cooking utensils.
13 Do we need Visa to get into Chile? If so, is it a tourist visa or a student visa?
You can enter Chile on a tourist visa which costs approximately $US140 and can be obtained at the airport after you land in Santiago de Chile.
14 Do we need to get any kind of vaccination, an HIV test or doctor report?
No. If you require a special diet, please inform us so we accommodate you in the hosted meals and receptions and endeavor to house you with those who have similar diets (ie. Halal, Kosher, vegan, etc.).
15 What is the fee for the Visa?
It is approximately $US140 but is subject to change.
16 Should I bring a check to pay for the Chilean visa on arrival or plan on withdrawing cash from ATM?
In 2012 you could use a credit card at the Santiago airport for the visa. This should not have changed. It is always good to travel with some cash (US cash). ATMs are located in the airport (in Chilean pesos) once you exit the immigration and customs area.
17 Would you recommend travelers' checks?
You can use travelers' checks, but ATMs are located throughout Chile. There is often an administrative fee for using ATMs and often a commission for using travelers' checks. In advance of your trip, please alert your credit card companies and banks that you will be traveling and where so they do not block your account while you are away.
18 Do you have to make our own travel arrangements or is it made by California Western School of Law?
Students are responsible for making their own travel arrangements to and from Chile.
19 How much will it cost for the flight?
The cost can vary depending on airplane fuel prices and the value of the U.S. dollar. The airfare can cost between $US 1200 and $US 1600 for an economy class return ticket.
20 Would you recommend more business casual or professional business attire?
Chileans are formal people so professional business attire is necessary for Session Two. Depending on where you are interning, there may be casual workplaces. It is important to bring to Chile a few business suits to wear during Session Two's Practicum Component.
21 Can we use our cellular telephone there?
It depends on your service. We will be supplying every student with a cellular telephone and 10,000 pesos of pre-paid minutes to start.
22 Do I need my computer?
Bringing a laptop computer is a good idea. There are ten desktop computers with Internet access at the Heidelberg Center, open during normal Chilean business hours, and available for students to use.
23 Do we need an electric converter, If so, what voltage?
You will need converters for electronic appliances. You may also need a transformer if your electrical appliance does not allow for 220V.
24 When and where do we buy the reading materials from?
We will send you a list of books for your classes (other than the Introduction to Latin American Legal Culture) in advance which you should bring to Chile with you. The books will not be for sale in Chile. The Introduction to Latin American Legal Culture reader will be provided to you at the welcome reception on May 22, 2013. The cost for this reader is covered in your tuition and fees.
25 When will the grades be released and how is it released?
Grades will be released in September. The transcripts are sent to the students and a copy is also sent to their home schools in case of a visiting student.
26 How are the grades recorded?
For the courses offered in Session One and Session Two, students will receive a numerical grade. These grades will be forwarded to each law school. (A description of the grade values will also be sent to each law school.) It is up to each law school to determine how they will record the number grade on student transcripts. Students should check with their respective law schools to determine how the Chile Summer Program grades will be applied and recorded. CWSL students only get credit, no actual grade. For the Practicum Component in Session Two, students will receive a pass or a fail.
27 How do we pay for the security deposits and what is the refund policy?
Security deposits are taken from your fees and will be refunded in August or September upon the final report for each apartment from the Heidelberg Center for Latin America. s
Testimonials
Student Evaluations about the Chile Summer Program
A Marathon Summer in Chile
by Rafael Hurtado
The Commentary, published on September 1, 2012
"It's a marathon." Those are the words that Professor Cooper used to describe the Chile Summer Program to the 18 of us that were just beginning an experience of a lifetime. And a marathon it was.
The two-month long program was an incredibly intense period of continuous life changing events that not only shaped our stay in South America but also added a remarkable chapter to each and every one of our lives. These "life changing events" were as trivial as learning how to work the coffee machines in Castaño, while some were as emotional as listening to a former torture victim share his story at the very place where it happened.
Professionally, the program gave me more than I could have expected. Not only did we learn about human rights, international law, and Chilean legal culture, we also had the unique opportunity of seeing it all play itself out right before our eyes. One such opportunity was the day that my roommate Adriana and I were invited to attend a Senate committee hearing with Chile's Attorney General. At the hearing, we saw the heads of several government agencies present their views and recommendations on the five-year-old Chilean juvenile penal system. Included in this hearing was a representative from the United Nations that was there to assess whether Chile was living up to its responsibilities under the Convention on the Rights of Child. To top it all off, after the hearing, the Attorney General himself gave Adriana and me a ride to Café Turri, a local restaurant that overlooks the colorful hills of Valparaíso and the Pacific. The squid in its ink and the seafood ravioli were delicious.
Educationally, the program allowed us to study under world-class professors that challenged us in their very own particular ways. Professor Cooper completely immersed us into a completely different legal culture; Professor Bahla expected us to rise up to the extremely difficult level of trade law (even if we had had a few too many Escudos the night before); Professor Williams instigated some heavy, yet interesting, debates; Professor Lopez equipped us with the necessary vocabulary to be able to function at our respective internships; and Professor Brooks had his students chuckling while they read his creatively thoughtful fact patterns that were based on them.
Students will receive a number grade for their coursework. It is up to the student's home school to determine whether the grade will be converted to a letter grade or will be reported as pass/fail. Students should discuss this with their home school.
And now the good part – some good ol' South American fun. The program took 18 law students from across the United States and dropped them into the huge Chilean metropolis that is Santiago. Bellavista, Michele, Riggo Bar, Harvard, Karaoke Pio Nonno, Escudo, Pisco Sour, and Terremotos are all terms that bring a flood of countless memories to each of us in the program. All of us were very different and many times had conflicting views and ideas. Yet somehow, the 18 of us created a huge group of inseparable law students that grew to become our very own Chilean family. We struggled to learn the Chilean vocabulary together, we ate endless amounts of ham sandwiches together, we studied together, we debated together, we traveled to Caribbean resorts together, we trekked through the Peruvian jungle together, we navigated the streets of Buenos Aires together, we dealt with life issues together and, most importantly, we laughed together.
All 18 of us crossed the program's finish line having learned something new about ourselves as law students, professionals, roommates, travelers, revelers, Americans and as people. We made life-long friends and lived through an unforgettable adventure that I already miss. As my good friend Adriana said, "Do you think other groups have had as much fun as us?" I strongly doubt it.
