Reading the City: Parisian Spaces

Study in Paris will take place May 25-June 7, 2026.*

Please note that this program includes a second eight-weeks spring semester course that will meet on campus, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12:45-2:00pm.

*All travel dates are tentative and subject to international travel restrictions.

Course Title: HON-H251: Reading the City: Parisian Spaces

Academic Director & Instructor:  Alison Calhoun

Syllabus Description:

Travelers lucky enough to travel to Paris usually manage to visit its iconic sites, but they rarely explore the extent to which Parisian spaces are also literary spaces. This seminar will consider that the allure of Paris, the world’s most visited city after Bangkok and London, is generated not only by the beauty of its urban landscape, but by the space’s unmatched tie to the art of writing. Students will explore how the geography of Paris is both physical and textual, meaning we can “read” the city when we experience it materially, and we can “read” the city when we engage with writing that strives to emulate urban spatiality. This seminar seeks to teach students from a wide range of disciplines to engage with the relationships between city and art, space and thought, science and culture. During the second 8-week course, students in this seminar will read texts about seven different Parisian spaces (one space per week). Alongside these readings, assignments will include an experiential element in which students are asked to “experience” (visit, test out, spend time in, etc.) the Bloomington equivalent of the type of space in question. Both types of assignments prepare students for the on-site, experiential component to be completed after the end of the semester during a two-week visit to Paris. In addition, in consultation with the Professor, each student will devise one research project (tied to the course theme) requiring on-site work during free days or free time in Paris. Grades will be based on weekly reading reactions, regular presentations on the objects of study, a journal students will keep during their time abroad, and an independent research project on a chosen topic to be turned in several weeks after the trip.

• Daily course excursions to different sites of the city, including:
  
  • Latin Quarter
  • Notre Dame
  • Louvre Museum
  • Opéra Garnier
  • Iconic Paris Métro Stations
  • Père Lachaise Cemetery
  • Day trip to the Versailles Palace
  • Arc de Triomphe
  • Cluny Museum
• Optional Excursions
  
  • Eiffel Tower
  • Paris Catacombs 
  • Seine River Boat Tour
  • Musée D'Orsay
  • Montmartre

Program participants will stay in a student residence in Paris. The accommodations are conveniently located near shops, public transit, and program excursion sites. 

Program Fee - $2500*

The program fee includes airport transfers in country, accommodations in Paris, some meals, transportation to and from all excursion sites, entry fees to all museums and historical sites, student travel insurance, and administrative fees

*Program fee is subject to change due to unforeseeable circumstances.

IUB Tuition

If you are enrolled as a full-time student during the spring semester and enroll in HON-H251 as part of your block credits, there is no additional tuition cost to participate in Reading the City: Parisian Spaces.

Additional Variable Costs

Variable costs are paid before and after you arrive in France as you pay for roundtrip international airfare, some meals, snacks, personal expenses, and independent travel outside the program. 

Note: The program fee will appear on your bursar bill and is paid directly to IU. See the program fee sheet for more details.

Scholarships

All admitted program participants are awarded an automatic HIEP Hutton Honors Study Abroad Scholarship of $500 applied directly to the program fee. No separate application is required.

Additionally, applicants to Hutton Honors Study Abroad programs may be considered for additional merit and need-based scholarships. If finances will be a barrier to participating in your study abroad experience, we invite you to apply for these awards. Please submit your application no later than your program's final application deadline.

Note: Program participants are not eligible to apply for the HIEP Grant.

Please see the IU Education Abroad Office website for more information on other available scholarships and financial aid opportunities.

IU OVST Getting Started Handbook

FAQ about COVID-19 Disruption