Mission Statement

ASE seeks to provide academically ambitious liberal arts undergraduates, of diverse backgrounds and from a range of US institutions, with a distinctively English study abroad experience that will have a lasting positive impact on their lives and, through them, on the lives of others.

Utilising the exceptional academic, professional, social, cultural and natural resources available in the UNESCO World Heritage City of Bath – as well as in Oxford, Stratford-upon-Avon and other key locations in England and Wales - the Programme offers extraordinary opportunities for curricular and co-curricular learning. Through ASE, students are encouraged to take an active role in designing a study abroad experience uniquely tailored to their own interests, passions and academic needs.

ASE aims to inspire in its students an enduring love of learning, in its various forms, by fostering intellectual curiosity, social and cultural adventurousness, and the ability to read, write, think and communicate in ways that are nuanced, critical and creative. Regular opportunities for cross-cultural encounters, and with different social, historical, political, intellectual and personal perspectives are integral to the Programme’s design. We seek both to help students investigate, value and cultivate their singularity, and to reflect thoughtfully on their connectedness to others, in the hope that this awareness can be turned to positive personal and social advantage.

In all things, we strive to contribute to the shared goal of helping students become ‘informed, open-minded and responsible people who are attentive to diversity across the spectrum of differences’*.

* Global Learning Value Rubric, Association of American Colleges and Universities