The DIS Psychology & Child Development program is designed for students majoring in psychology, child development, education, sociology, human development, social work, and related fields. It offers you

• Reflective and analytical skills linking theory with practice through observation in Danish childhood and youth institutions and an interdisciplinary approach
• Real-life insights into the complex issues of diversity, integration, and education
• An understanding of the Danish philosophy and practice of working with children at risk or with special needs

Why study Psychology & Child Development in Denmark?

• Danish early childhood education focuses on social cooperation, child-initiated play, taking risks, and expressive activity rather than on academic skills
  
• Childcare is a guaranteed entitlement for every child in Denmark
• The Danish government heavily subsidizes high-quality, comprehensive childcare for infants and children from 6 months to 7 years old
• Approximately 90% of Danish mothers are active on the labor market, meaning that a majority of children are in daycare from an early age
• DIS students study and gain a first-hand understanding of what Danes consider ?a good childhood?
  

DIS places strong emphasis on combining classroom work with experiential learning so that you walk away with applicable, real life, cross-cultural skills for the global job market.  

Students spend one full day per week in a Danish daycare center, preschool or kindergarten working with the children and pedagogues, documenting observations in a journal, for a total of approximately 50 hours.

In addition, your DIS experience will include:

Study Tours All Students

• Denmark/Sweden (Short tour). This regional study tour in Denmark and Southern Sweden enriches your coursework through visits to schools, local authorities, child advocacy groups, psychological organizations and more. Historical and cultural visits also included

• The Netherlands (Long tour). Compare the US, Denmark and Holland in terms of education & policy. Multicultural Context students visit high-density immigrant areas, a receiving school for refugee children, teacher training colleges and local authorities working with integration issues. Special Needs students visit schools, specialized organizations, advocacy organizations and more. Dutch cultural and historical visits also included

• London (Long tour). Visits to family support groups, pre-schools for at-risk children, after-school programs for special needs children, psychological associations and more supplement the coursework in Copenhagen and allow for cross-cultural comparisons. Cultural and historical visits also included

• Stockholm/Helsinki (Long tour)

Study Tours Full Year Students

• Stockholm or Berlin (Short tour, spring) An introduction to one of Copenhagen's sister Scandinavian capitals, visiting parliament for a session with national politicians, seeing important historical and art museums, and experiencing the general Scandinavian ambiance

• Free choice of long DIS study tour dependent on your Research Project interests

Field Studies may include

• Different types of preschools and kindergardens and playgrounds
• Crisis intervention center for children at risk
• Special school for children with autism
• Community minority youth projects

For more information, contact us at dis@umn.edu or visit us online at www.dis.dk