New master's dual-degree program with European universities

Contact:
Ray Barclay, Bumpers College Global Studies Program
rbarclay@uark.edu

Sept. 25, 2008  

The UA department of agricultural economics and agribusiness is cooperating with the University of Florida and a consortium of six universities in Europe to offer a dual degree program which results in an M.S. degree in agricultural economics and an M.S. degree in rural development.

Named the Atlantis Program, the UA is the lead institution on the U.S. side, according to Dr. Lucas Parsch, UA associate professor in agricultural economics and agribusiness. He says students enrolled in the transatlantic program can earn an M.S. degree in agricultural economics from the University of Arkansas or the University of Florida and an M.S. degree in rural development from a consortium of universities in Belgium, France, Germany, Spain, Slovakia and Italy.

“This is a great opportunity for students to add an international perspective to their education, which will certainly improve their career prospects in our global economy,” Parsch said. “Faculty members will be able to develop relationships with European colleagues for research projects, and the experience will also make us better teachers.”

Students selected for the program, Dr. Parsch says, will receive $1,000 a month for up to one year for travel and living expenses while attending European universities. Arkansas and Florida students will pay tuition only at their home campus and will spend up to one year in at least two of the European universities. Requirements for the two degrees can be met in about 21 months. Parsch says the program also pays expenses for European and U.S. faculty members to spend time at the host universities.

The program at Arkansas and Florida is funded for four years by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The European consortium is funded from the European Commission.

The Atlantis Program is one of two Trans-Atlantic programs available to students in the department of agricultural economics and agribusiness. Since 1998, Parsch says his department provided a master's degree exchange program with the Scottish Agricultural College in Aberdeen from 1998 to 2003. Then in 2006 the department established a similar graduate exchange program with the University of Ghent in Belgium. The Ghent program is for only one degree and can be completed in 12 to 15 months.

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