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Courses Taught in:	English
Field of Study:	Anthropology
GPA Requirement:	2.0
Class Standing:	Sophomore
NC State Students Only:	No
Type of Enrollment:	Group
Research Opportunities:	Yes

Program Description:
Contact a Program Ambassador to find out more information about this program

May 28 – July 2, 2013 (tentative)

Program Description

Thailand (known around the world as "The Land of Smiles") is a thriving Southeast Asian nation. Thais display deep respect for their monarchy and the values of Buddhism. Thailand is blessed with a tasty cuisine, magnificent temples, and idyllic beaches. Over the course of the Field School students will be based for varying periods in three locations (Bangkok, Hua Hin, and Udon Thani) that cover the breadth of Thai society, from rural to urban and from poor to wealthy. In addition to scheduled program excursions there will be a significant amount of time for students to create their own independent travel itineraries to visit places of significance such as Buddhist temples, museums, beaches, forests, and entertainment venues.

Students will learn about Thai culture and society and about significant regional Southeast Asian social issues while they simultaneously learn to conduct cross-cultural ethnographic (anthropological) research in a true field setting.

Early application is advisable for all NC State Summer Programs.

Locations

The Thailand Anthropology program will be located in the three following sites: Bangkok, Hua Hin, and Udon Thani. Bangkok is a very large city, larger than any city in America except New York City. We will stay in a small neighborhood that retains the flavor of a traditional Thai neighborhood. While tourism is a large industry in Thailand, tourists are conspicuously absent from the neighborhood where we will live. Hua Hin is a quiet rural beach town on the western shore of the Gulf of Siam, southwest of Bangkok. Hua Hin is extremely popular with European tourists, and was historically the destination of the Thai monarchy as a weekend retreat. Udon Thani is a medium-size provincial capital city in Northeast Thailand. While not a powerful tourist attraction, Udon Thani is home to a large number of permanent resident foreigners.

In addition to these formal program locations, students will have individual opportunities to visit locations of their choice both during and following closure of the program. Students are encouraged to take advantage of the fact that they are already in Thailand and to remain in the country a few days extra and travel independently.

Courses (tentative)

Two courses will be offered as part of the Thailand Summer Field School.

ANT 395 Traditional Cultural and Modernization in Southeast Asia 

This course will introduce students to significant social and cultural aspects of traditional Thai culture, as well as to the larger Southeast Asian region.  The course will also examine the impact of modernization on those aspects of traditional culture. In addition to traditional classroom instruction and reading, students will have opportunities to interact with guest speakers, as well as local residents of the community. All such local guest will be fluent in English. While students inevitably will learn some basic Thai phrases during the course of the field school, no language competence other than English is required.

ANT 419 Ethnographic Field Methods

This course will introduce students to the practice of ethnographic field research. The emphasis will be on qualitative methods of data collection for the purpose of cross-cultural understanding. In addition to learning methodology, students will put that knowledge into practice in observing and interviewing a diverse array of informants. Students also will be introduced to a range of ethical issues pertaining to field research. Working at various times individually and in small teams, students will produce a mini-ethnography on a topic of their individual choice. This class will be of value to students who anticipate living, working, or studying in a different culture where they will have to devise strategies for navigating cross-cultural environments.

Prerequisites

Instructional Format

There will be no single, formal classroom.  We will meet in casual settings such as restaurants, cafes, parks and similar locations.  This will provide an opportunity for you to familiarize yourself with your general surroundings and bring you closer to where your exercises for the day are to be conducted.  In addition to traditional classroom instruction and reading, students will complete field assignments that will demand interaction with local residents of the community.

Accommodations

In Bangkok, students and the Program Director will be housed in an apartment building located in Phayathai district of the city. Ideally (and this has been the case in the past), each student will be assigned a single studio apartment, typically with a refrigerator, toilet, shower/bathtub, air conditioning and television, though television will include limited local programming, plus CNN, BBC and Australia Network.  Students also may purchase optional wireless internet access in their rooms.  The apartment complex boasts round-the-clock uniformed security services, and amenities including a restaurant, a small convenience store, a hair salon, a swimming pool, and a massage therapist’s service.  We will make every effort to stay in the same apartment complex.  The apartment has three levels of 24-7 security.

In Hua Hin, we stay at Baan Khachathong.  BK is located in the center of the town within easy walking distance of restaurants, clubs, shops and the beach. It has round-the-clock security.

In Udon Thani, we stay at the Silver Reef Hotel, though the city is in the heartland of Northeast Thailand (Isan) and is nowhere near any beach or reef!  Due to constraints on the availability of accommodation, students may be required to share rooms in Udon Thani. This may also be the case in Hua Hin (but very unlikely in Bangkok).

Meals

The program fee covers all meals, based on the assumption that students choosing to visit Thailand will be equally interested in eating Thai food.  Therefore, the program budget assumes that all meals will be Thai, and will be consumed in small "Mom and Pop" restaurants.  Dining in more expensive restaurants, or at American fast food restaurants, will require that students bear the extra costs of such food above and beyond program costs.  Such Western fast foods are no less expensive in Thailand than in America. Two or three meals each day at such places will be considerably more expensive than the Thai meals that are included in the program cost.

Excursions & Events

The following lists indicate possible excursion activities.  Some of these excursions will be included in the program cost, while others will not and must be arranged as independent travel.  Admission fees and transportation costs related to required excursions are included in the program fee.  The lists below also include travel destinations enjoyed as independent excursions arranged by students, either independently or in small groups, in previous NC State summer Anthropology field schools in Thailand.  These trips are optional and students must bear all costs associated with them.  The field school schedule is arranged in such a way that participants will have most weekends and a four-day block of time in which to visit locations of particular interest to them but which are not be included in the program plan due to insufficient time.

Recommended excursions in Bangkok:

The National Museum contains exhibits illustrating the history and culture of Thailand. There is a small gift shop and a cafeteria at the Museum. 

H.R.H. Princess Sirindhorn Anthropology Center is a unit of Silpakorn University. It was established under the auspices of Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn. It contains exhibits illustrating the history of Thailand. It occasionally stages special exhibits and is home to an excellent library. 

Yok Yor (group participation required) is a restaurant along the western bank of the Chao Phraya river that operates a dinner boat cruise each evening.  It is very popular with Thais, but largely ignored by tourists who prefer to spend much more money to eat on much larger boats. The boat cruises up and down the river past the city Skyline which displays brightly lit and beautifully crafted Buddhist temples as well as modern high-rise hotels and condominiums. 

Ta Wan Daeng (group participation required) is a Bangkok nightspot popular with the Isan people of rural Thailand.  It is a reminder of their home provinces, complete with very good food and a lively stage show that focuses on Isan culture.

Wat Phra Kaew (The Temple of the Emerald Buddha) is one of the most significant cultural sites in contemporary Thailand.  It is at this temple that the King of Thailand annually performs rites at the change of seasons, when he drapes fresh robes over one of the Buddha statues.  The Emerald Buddha is one of the most revered cultural objects in Thailand. 

The Grand Palace dates back to the arrival of the fleeing remnants of the ancient royalty of Thailand following the Burmese sacking of Ayutthaya. It is a collection of quite spectacular buildings, but is now largely a museum and a venue for State occasions.  The royal family lives in a newer location (Chitralada Palace).

Wat Po (The Temple of the Reclining Buddha) is also the site of the leading school of traditional Thai massage.

Chatuchak (required) Weekend Market operates only on Saturday and Sunday.  It is a crowded and bustling collection of individual stalls somewhat reminiscent of an American flea market, albeit an incredibly overgrown one!  If you can't find it here, then it is notavailable in Thailand.  Sadly, that often includes endangered species such as gibbons and many rare species of birds and snakes.

The Jim Thompson House is a museum devoted to the life and activities of a rather shadowy American whose activities were mysterious (he has been rumored to have been a CIA agent, for instance) and whose disappearance remains equally mysterious.  His fame in Thailand includes his role as a prominent silk merchant.  Students may also wish to visit the Jim Thompson Silks shop at the intersection of Surawaong and Rama IV Roads in the Silom District of the city.

Field School participants will be expected to visit a great many other locations during the course of completing their field assignments.  Such additional day excursions will be arranged when students are onsite in Thailand.  The program is flexible enough that individual interests and tastes can largely be accommodated.

Recommended excursions outside Bangkok

Ayutthaya (group participation required) is an ancient capital of Thailand.  It was sacked and largely destroyed by invading Burmese in 1767.  At that time the royal family fled to Bangkok and established their new stronghold on an artificially created island (Rattanakhosin) bounded on the west by the Chao Phraya River and a series of constructed canals on the other sides.  Ayutthaya is a World Heritage site that has been painstakingly restored by archaeologists from Silpakorn University in Bangkok.

Chon Buri is home to a Buddhist temple that boasts a sculpture garden illustrating the fates of people who behave badly in this life.

Muang Boran (group participation required) is a cultural theme park that presents exact (though sometimes scaled-down) replicas of significant structures from around Thailand.  You can tour the park on foot, on bicycle, or by hopping and off the small open-=sided trams which move constantly throughout the park.  The trams are free (actually, included in the admission charge.). 

Recommended excursions outside Hua Hin

Khao Sam Roi Yot is a National Park accessible by foot or by boat.  The boat is fun, and the overland trek can be quite demanding if you are not in top physical shape.

Khao Takiab is a beautiful Buddhist temple and monument.

 The “Monkey Temple” is a good place to feed a few dozen voracious monkeys who will be very glad to see you. 

Beaches, miles of them, are everywhere.

Recommended excursions from Udon Thani

Ban Chiang (group participation required) a “working” museum and archaeological excavation that is home to some of the world’s earliest pottery production.

Nong Khai is a delightful Thai town on the southern shore of the Mekong River.  Temples, crafts, and a dinner cruise on the Mekong are a few of the attractions here. 

Vientiane, is the capital of Laos. a small country to the north of the Mekong River and Nong Khai, Thailand.  It offers markets, temples, and excellent French bakeries (a colonial legacy).

Individually Organized Travel Weekend

This activity is designed to allow a block of four days, over a weekend, for individual students or small groups of students to arrange travel to places in Thailand that do not fall within the program design.  In the past, students have gone to the beaches near Phuket, the island of Koh Samet, Chiang Mai in the north for “adventure travel and trekking, and Kanchanaburi for national parks and historical sites.  The more active and daring participants in past field schools have gone zip-lining through the forest in Chon Buri province (to the east of Bangkok, a day trip). 

All independent travel should be arranged in consultation with the Faculty Director, and a formal itinerary must be submitted prior to undertaking such travel in order to guarantee the possibility of immediate contact in an emergency situation.  There are excellent travel agents in both Bangkok and Udon Thani that are very experienced in assisting young travelers.

Flight Information

Participants must make their own travel arrangements to and from Thailand.  The Faculty Director will provide advice whenever possible.

Visa Requirements

Individual visa requirements may vary, depending on the passport on which you will be traveling.   All program participants must obtain a tourist visa to enter Thailand. That visa will be issued for a valid period of 60 days in Thailand.  The cost of a tourist visa is determined by the number of times you plan to enter Thailand.  Please contact the Faculty Director for further information prior to attempting to obtain any visa to enter Thailand.

Financial Aid

Financial aid may be available to help qualified NC State students meet the expenses of NC State study abroad programs. Students from other institutions should contact their home institution study abroad and financial aid offices for information. For additional funding, NC State students should consider applying for a study abroad scholarship from the Study Abroad Office.

Program Fee

The program fee is $3,575.00, plus airfare.  The fee is all-inclusive:  accommodation, meals, transportation, excursions, admissions, and six academic credits (see description above).

For more details on program cost information, see the above Summer Budget Sheet.

Faculty Director

The Thailand Field School program is led by North Carolina State University faculty member William E. Wormsley, Teaching Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at North Carolina State University.  Dr. Wormsley has been conducting research in Thailand nearly every year since 1989. He has taught anthropology at Silpakorn University in Bangkok and at Webster University Thailand in Hua Hin.  He has held a Fulbright Senior Scholar Award to teach and conduct research in Thailand.  He also has received a John F. Kennedy Fellowship for teaching and research in Bangkok.

For further information contact:

Dr. William Wormsley at the dedicated email address for the Thailand anthropology program (thaifieldschool2010@hotmail.com).  

The University reserves the right to alter the program format and/or costs in case of conditions beyond its control. If the program is canceled or a student withdraws, a refund of program costs may not be available in all cases. Please refer to the Study Abroad Office Refund Policy for details. Contact us at: study_abroad@ncsu.edu

Term	Year	App Deadline	Decision Date	Start Date	End Date
Summer	2013	03/15/2013 **	Rolling Admission	05/28/2013	07/02/2013
NOTE: Note: These dates are tentative. Please consult with the faculty director for final dates. (Students are advised to not make travel arrangements until formal acceptance is provided and confirmation of programs dates is received.)
** Indicates rolling admission application process. Students will be immediately notified of acceptance into this program and be able to complete post-decision materials prior to the term's application deadline.
Indicates that deadline has passed