Study Abroad

Studying Abroad junior or senior year is a celebrated Tufts tradition but requires advanced planning for Human Factors’ students. The Tufts Human Factors program is specialized and many requirements cannot be fulfilled at other institutions. This shouldn’t discourage students from choosing to study abroad, but the groundwork should be laid out before junior year.Internationally, Human Factors and Engineering Psychology are commonly referred to as Ergonomics. There are subtle differences between the areas of Human Factors Engineering and Engineering Psychology being studied in the US and those being studied abroad. These differences will give students the opportunity to learn Human Factors from another perspective. Also, most foreign institutions offer complete programs of study rather than a collection of separate courses.

Before Junior Year

The Human Factors Program uses a prescribed progression of courses to ensure a solid understanding on which to build skills and experience. Students wishing to study abroad should consult with their major advisor sophomore year about planning their course progression so that prerequisites are covered.

Choosing a Program

None of the pre-approved Tufts programs offer Ergonomics, so programs and courses must be approved individually by an advisor. Ergonomics programs are likely to be found in Germany, England, Switzerland, Israel, and Australia.   Although there are certainly many more, two programs that have been fruitful in recent years are the DIS (Danish Institute for Study Abroad) in Copenhagen and the University of Sydney.

Once a student has chosen a foreign university, he or she should obtain a description of this school’s Ergonomics program. All transfer credits must be approved before the student leaves Tufts. The foreign courses that a student wants to count in substitution for the requirements of the BSHF degree must be approved by the Director of the Program and the Department Chair.

After Choosing a Program

After choosing and approving a program, students will take a study-abroad leave of absence to participate in their study abroad program. For Study Abroad forms and information about fees and finances, see the Tufts Study Abroad Page for Non-Tufts Programs.