HELP! Touring Universities in Columbia.

[Anonymous]

My child is interested in attending university in Columbia, specifically Externado and UniAndes. They are looking for someone to talk to about the universities and possibly give a tour. Does anyone know these universities? Or how to go about this? They have emailed the schools and have just gotten auto replies. They have also gone on Reddit looking for help. We are desperate as we leave for a spring break visit too Columbia on March 30.

[Anonymous]

Do they want to go to a four year program or study abroad in Colombia?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child is interested in attending university in Columbia, specifically Externado and UniAndes. They are looking for someone to talk to about the universities and possibly give a tour. Does anyone know these universities? Or how to go about this? They have emailed the schools and have just gotten auto replies. They have also gone on Reddit looking for help. We are desperate as we leave for a spring break visit too Columbia on March 30.

*Colombia

Is the student already fluent in Spanish?

Is the student planning to work in the US after college? There is no reason to spend four years in Colombia. Do a semester or year-long study abroad instead. Or a summer. It is a possibility, but with caveats.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do they want to go to a four year program or study abroad in Colombia?

All four years. Wants to enroll on degree track.

[Anonymous]

Is the student a US citizen? The warning would be to stay out of trouble, away from demonstrations and such.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child is interested in attending university in Columbia, specifically Externado and UniAndes. They are looking for someone to talk to about the universities and possibly give a tour. Does anyone know these universities? Or how to go about this? They have emailed the schools and have just gotten auto replies. They have also gone on Reddit looking for help. We are desperate as we leave for a spring break visit too Columbia on March 30.

*Colombia

Is the student already fluent in Spanish?

Is the student planning to work in the US after college? There is no reason to spend four years in Colombia. Do a semester or year-long study abroad instead. Or a summer. It is a possibility, but with caveats.

They speak Spanish fluently and really enjoyed Bogotá when we visited a couple years ago. They want the experience of living there and want the good archaeology programs that these schools have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do they want to go to a four year program or study abroad in Colombia?

All four years. Wants to enroll on degree track.

Major?

Do they intend to come back to US for work?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do they want to go to a four year program or study abroad in Colombia?

All four years. Wants to enroll on degree track.

Major?

Do they intend to come back to US for work?

Major is archeological studies. Open to staying in South America to work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My child is interested in attending university in Columbia, specifically Externado and UniAndes. They are looking for someone to talk to about the universities and possibly give a tour. Does anyone know these universities? Or how to go about this? They have emailed the schools and have just gotten auto replies. They have also gone on Reddit looking for help. We are desperate as we leave for a spring break visit too Columbia on March 30.

*Colombia

Is the student already fluent in Spanish?

Is the student planning to work in the US after college? There is no reason to spend four years in Colombia. Do a semester or year-long study abroad instead. Or a summer. It is a possibility, but with caveats.

They speak Spanish fluently and really enjoyed Bogotá when we visited a couple years ago. They want the experience of living there and want the good archaeology programs that these schools have.

Makes sense

[Anonymous]

Spelling the country correct would be a great start.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Spelling the country correct would be a great start.

Here is a cookie for knowing how to spell it. Too bad you have literally nothing else to contribute. I guess you got a little dopamine hit?

[Anonymous]

I clicked on this to find out when they opened a university in Columbia. Sadly disappointed that it's still just the mall and Merriweather there.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn’t encourage my kid to go to college in Latin America. Don’t get me wrong. They are great universities in most countries, and from what I have heard, Los Andes is fantastic. However, a degree from an American University carries much more weight over there. I grew up in South America, and my American degree from a no-name regional University from the States was well-regarded when I returned to work.

If it were my son, I would suggest getting a degree here, do study abroad in Colombia, try to get funding to do research over there after graduation.

[Anonymous]

I think the fact that you need to ask this here means that you aren’t close to understanding enough about the Colombian system to encourage your child to do this. And yes, not knowing how to spell it is part of that impression of mine.

Maybe your kid really is such a unique person that they could make this work. But they are going to have to do it themselves via immersion in the culture. To expect that you can just go to college in Colombia as some kind of, I don’t know, hacking the system because UVA is too competitive, is totally unrealistic.

If your kid actually wants to do this, I’d suggest relocating to Colombia for a gap year and figuring it out from there.

[Anonymous]

I got interested in OP's question.

OP, it seems like there are very few Americans studying in Colombia. I found an estimate of a few hundred that was a bit out of date.

I looked up to see what is hot in Colombian archeology right now and found mentions of a very complex environment including massive new discoveries, indigenous politics, and even some archeological sites that are gang-controlled.

Here are some links that look interesting.

I did trace some mentions back to a PhD student now studying in Texas who is a Colombian and a grad of UniAndes. Your child might be able to reach out to this person and get some friendly advice.

I hope you are seriously interested, but even if not, I had fun reading about some new archeological discoveries.

https://www.sacredtreks.com/betoma-sierra-nevada-archeological-site-colombia/

https://www.sacredtreks.com/trip/bunkuany-trek/

Daniel Rodríguez Osorio - Curriculum Vitae
https://utsa.academia.edu/DanielRodr%C3%ADguezOsorio/CurriculumVitae
https://www.doaks.org/about/people/ay-2024-2025/daniel-rodriguez-osorio
https://wennergren.org/article/wif_daniel-rodriguez-osorio/