IAU College, Aix-en-Provence
Spend your summer in France with Dr. Brooke Di Lauro at IAU College in beautiful Aix-en-Provence, France. Discover the colorful countryside of the south of France while earning credits towards your degree.
- Experience the beautiful South of France, from lavender fields to artistic history and Mediterranean beaches.
- Stroll around historic Aix-en-Provence, founded in 123 B.C.
- Stop in at Cézanne’s home and studio and hike the Montagne Sainte Victoire which inspired him.
- Celebrate Bastille Day in authentic style.
- Take a day trip to the beach town of Cassis.
- Taste local cuisine in historic restaurants and patisseries.
- Select the experience of your choice from Découverte de la Provence.
- Visit the Farmer’s Market and purchase local delicacies for a picnic lunch a la française.
Summer 2025
May – July (depends on program option selected). Visit the IAU College summer calendar for details:

Program Fee Options*
OPTION 1 – 3 WEEKS: 1 3-CREDIT COURSE: $5,260 (CIE Deposit = $1350)
OPTION 2 – 6 WEEKS: 2 3-CREDIT COURSES or 1 6-CREDIT COURSE: $7,805 (CIE Deposit = $1410)
HUM301C Course Excursion Fee ($450)
Internship
Paris Extension: $1,345
*Due to the variety of program options, exchange rates and the payees, the program fee listed is a close estimate.
CIE Registration and non-refundable deposit due to CIE: March 1, 2025
HUM301C Course Excursion Fee ($450) due to CIE: March 1, 2025
Application due to IAU College by March 5, 2025
Final Balance for tuition and housing will be invoiced directly to students by IAU (estimated $3910)
If participating in the Paris Week Extension, the additional payment of $1345 is due to CIE by March 1, 2025
Use the Make a Flexible Payment option to pay any amount needed.
Online payees have the choice of either credit card or eCheck (ACH) payment. ACH transactions will be charged a flat fee of $0.50 per transaction. All credit card payments will incur a 2.95% service fee. For credit card payments, a minimum convenience fee of $3.00 will be applied to transactions over $20.00 and under $102.00.
Students can avoid fees by paying in-person at the UMW Cashier’s office by cash or check (made out to “UMW”). The Cashier’s office is located on the 2nd floor of Lee Hall.
IAU College Summer 2025 Course Catalog
OPTION 1 – 3 WEEKS: 1 COURSE from either Session B or C: Students will earn transfer credit for a 3-credit course offered by IAU College. UMW’s Dr. Di Lauro teaches “HUM 301C: From Bordeaux to Lyon” during Session C and it is highly recommended that UMW students participate in her course (there is a $450 supplemental fee associated with this course).
*Students are welcome to select an alternate Session B or C course, however, their participation in the additional excursions arranged by Dr. Di Lauro for UMW students cannot be guaranteed unless they are enrolled in her course and have paid the supplemental $450.
Dr. Di Lauro’s Course Description – “From Bordeaux to Lyon: Cultural Landscapes of Southern France”
- Using southern cities as jumping off points, we will explore the culture—history, religion, arts, cuisine—of France. For example, Bordeaux and Béziers (Languedoc) will introduce students to France’s viticulture and Roquefort-sur-Soulzon will be our entrée into the country’s more than 250 cheeses.
- Grasse, the world’s perfume capital, will introduce us to another of France’s main exports. To explore France’s history we will begin with Nîmes (“French Rome”), continue onto Carcassonne (medieval fortified city), Lyon (the Renaissance capital), and then jump ahead to the twentieth century and Vichy and Périgueux which were central, respectively, to the Collaboration and the Resistance during the Second World War.
- To initiate a discussion of the France’s infamous separation of church and state and its current ramifications, such as the 1989 affaire du voile and 2016’s ban of the burkini, we will trace the country’s religious history, beginning with embarkation points for the Crusades (Clermont-Ferrand, Aigues-Mortes) and Toulouse’s place on the Santiago de Compostela pilgrimmage route and continuing with Avignon’s crucial role as the seat of the papacy in the 14th century and the Catholic/Protestant struggles which followed.
- As for the arts, Montignac, Angoulême, site of the international comics festival, will introduce us to French classics such as Tintin and Astérix, and the international film festivals in Cannes and Clerment-Ferrand will provide an entrée into France’s role in world cinema, particularly the Nouvelle Vague.
- Arles’ International Photography Festival, which we will visit, will allow us to explore France’s role in the development of photography, beginning with the daguerreotype and the Lumière brothers and following through to the popular Robert Doisneau.
- Poitiers, known for its Romanesque art, and the gothic cathedral in Limoges will serve as introductions to medieval architecture while our base of Aix-en-Provence, the hometown of childhood friends Cézanne and Zola, will begin our discussion of the art and literature of the nineteenth century.
OPTION 2 – 6 WEEKS: 2 3-CREDIT COURSES or 1 6-CREDIT COURSE – Students may choose to stay in Aix for six weeks to earn a total of 6 transfer credits. Students will enroll in either one 6-credit Session A course or two 3-credit courses from IAU’s Summer Session Catalog (one from Session B and one from Session C).
The program satisfies the Beyond the Classroom or Diverse and Global Perspectives general education requirement by contract with the Faculty Director.
Housing in Aix-en-Provence is generally in a homestay. However, during the summer term homestays are reserved for students interested in developing their French language skills. If a homestay is not available, students will be housed in a student residence.
Students must maintain a minimum 2.5 GPA in order to participate. This program is open to all UMW students regardless of major; UMW students must have completed 12 or more UMW course credits. French language knowledge is NOT required. As per UMW credit transfer policies, a C grade of above is required for courses taught abroad to transfer back to UMW.
An application to IAU College is required via the summer program website by March 5, 2025.
Included in the program fee:
- Accommodations
- Tuition & Fees including IAU College Transcript
- Airport pick-up on arrival day
- IAU College Orientation
- Entrances/fees for all scheduled cultural activities and academic visits
- UMW Education Abroad Fee
- International medical insurance
Excluded in the program fee:
- International airfare
- Local transportation
- Passport, travel authorization, and/or visa fees
- Souvenirs and other personal expenses
- Personal health costs (ex. vaccination fees, COVID-19 testing, etc.)
- Independent site-seeing and entrance fees
- Textbooks
This program requires a moderate to high level of activity, including significant city walking and lengthy hours.
International travel may require immunizations or preventative medicines. Please refer to the US Center for Disease Control’s Traveler’s Health Information Page for recommendations. The UMW Health Center provides free travel consultations by appointment, as well as travel information for UMW students. The Center for International Education recommends that each student have a personalized medical consultation prior to international travel.
Visit CIE’s Scholarships & Funding webpage to learn more about financial options as it relates to education abroad including Financial Aid, 529 Plans, etc.