The Berlin Project 2026

Fast Facts

DATES: June 20 - July 12, 2026

GENERAL LOCATION: Berlin, Germany

ENROLLMENT CAPACITY: 20

FOCUS: Photojournalism and Graphic Design

PROJECT COST: $5,995 + airfare

ACADMIC CREDIT: Optoinal 3 units, $450

INCLUDES: Housing, instruction ,travel and health insurance, farewell dinner and special programs, activities and cultural events. Academic Credit is optional. DOES NOT INCLUDE AIRFARE.

The Berlin Project

Guided and mentored by a team of accomplished journalists and professors, students report, write and produce media from the cultural capital of today’s Europe, on topics from art and architecture, to the politics and economics of global migration, to sustainable living in the face of climate change.

Berlin is the political and economic center of the continent and home to a pulsing counterculture. It is an international hub for creative young people while its very stones and street corners hold reminders of its darker histories during the Communist, Nazi, and Prussian eras.

ieiMedia students touring a TV studio in Berlin

“There is nowhere in the world where you have seen such enormous changes in such short times,” said author and journalist Peter Schneider, who has written three books on Berlin. “For the good and for the bad, these enormous changes make the character of the city and of the people who live here.”

Our 3-week summer course focuses on telling the stories of Berliners, Germany and Europe, across media platforms. That includes reporting, writing, photography, video and social media. The beginning of the program features classes in basic skills, such as how to find a story in a foreign culture, how to interview with the help of an interpreter and how to write, edit and produce features.

After a breakfast meeting each day, students head out into the community to interview, often with faculty accompanying them. Together, as a group, we interview writers, filmmakers, journalists and diplomats.

“Berlin, the greatest cultural extravaganza that one could imagine.”
— David Bowie, rock musician

Berlin Beyond Borders

Each year our students produce stories that may appear in Berlin Beyond Borders, a publication on medium.com. These prove to be valuable portfolio pieces that boost student credentials as media professionals when looking for jobs and internships. Students also post to the Berlin Beyond Borders Instagram, Facebook and Twitter feeds.

The City

A city of neighborhoods – nine times the size of Paris in area – Berlin teems with different ethnic groups and affordable eateries, concerts and events. Especially in the summer, locals spill out onto the sidewalks in the cafes of Kreuzberg, Prenzlauer Berg and so many other districts.

A piece of the Berlin Wall, near the former Checkpoint Charlie crossing point between East and West Berlin.

Berlin is Germany’s greenest city with 44 percent of its area comprising waterways, woods, rivers and green spaces. A community-conscious but relaxed vibe can be felt in the many large parks within the city, from the Tiergarten next to Germany’s capital buildings to the former Tempelhof airport which has been reclaimed as parkland. Many choose to discover Berlin on bicycles which can be rented on many street corners and can be taken onto the U-Bahn and S-Bahn lines of the city’s world-class transit system.

“You are crazy, my child. You must go to Berlin.”
— Franz von Suppé, 19th century Austrian composer

With about 170 museums of all types, there are too many landmarks and cultural sites to name. Find sections of the Berlin Wall, which stood from 1961 to 1989, or visit the former Checkpoint Charlie Cold War border crossing, the Topographie of Terror exhibition on the site of a World War II Gestapo jail, or the East Side Gallery, a mile-long mural painted by more than 100 international artists in 1990 when the Cold War ended.

As a group we will spend a day in Potsdam at Sanssouci, the summer palace of German emperor Friedrich the Great and at Cecilienhof, where the four Allied powers negotiated the treaty that ended World War II. We will also watch the sun set over Berlin from the dome atop the Reichstag, Germany’s parliament building, restored and renovated in 1999, after the country reunited.

Cultural and Recreational Activities

The Museum Island, a Unesco world heritage site.
Three world-class opera houses and 150 theaters.
300 art galleries, from major public institutions to avant-garde spaces.
Techno clubs, Cabaret and Varieté venues.
Drag clubs and a vibrant LGBTQ scene.
Lakes for swimming, such as Wannsee, Schlachtensee and Krumme Lanke.
Boat rides along the Spree River and through the city’s canal system.
Saturday outdoor markets in Winterfeldtplatz and Kollwitzplatz.

Weekends

The first Sunday is reserved for a group trip to Potsdam, but students will have Saturday to explore on their own. The middle weekend will be available for free time or a trip to Prague, a five-hour train-ride away. Dresden is a two-hour train ride. And the Baltic seaport of Rostock is also possible as a day trip or overnight. Distances are great, so more extensive tourism in Germany or other parts of Europe should be planned for before or after our 3-week course.

Academic Credit (3-4)

Students have the option to earn three academic credits of an upper-division journalism elective for this course. The credits will be issued by the University of Jamestown, and we will work with you so they are easily transferable to your university. Transfer credit ultimately depends on a student’s home university. The cost for three academic credit is $450 (See the FAST FACTS at the top of the page for Program Cost).

NOTE: Students on a quarter system will be able to transfer as four(4) credits at no additional fee for ieiMedia courses that are listed as three(3) credits. Transfer credit ultimately depends on a student’s home university. Please check with your university for procedures to follow when transferring credits to your institution.

Students

The program is open to English-speaking college students and recent graduates from any school. Most of our students are journalism, creative writing or communications majors; those majoring in other subjects are welcome as well. Experience working for a college or professional publication is helpful but not required. The program is open to English-speaking students and recent graduates from around the world.Students from many universities have participated in past ieiMedia programs, including:

American University, Arizona State University, Baylor University, California State University Fullerton, California State University Long Beach, Carleton University, Colorado State University, Georgia College and State University, Georgetown University, Humboldt State University, Indiana University, Iowa State University, Ithaca College, James Madison University, Louisiana State University, New York University, Rider University, Rutgers University, Ryerson University, San Diego State University, San Francisco State University, State University of New York at New Paltz, Syracuse University, Temple University, Truman State University, UCLA, University of Arizona, University of British Columbia, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Kennesaw State University, University of Illinois, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Northern Iowa, University of Southern California, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Virginia Tech, and Washington and Lee University. We’ve also had students from Japan, the United Kingdom, Puerto Rico, and Trinidad participate.

Graduates

Graduate students are also invited to apply. We’d be happy to talk with you about supervising an independent project that would qualify for graduate credit at your school – or to offer this experience as a graduate internship.

Faculty Director

Nomi Morris

Nomi Morris is a lecturer in the Writing Program at UC Santa Barbara and director of the journalism track in the university’s professional writing minor. She covered the opening of the Berlin Wall for The Toronto Star newspaper then worked as a correspondent for five years in Berlin, including for the San Francisco Chronicle, CBC Radio and TIME. Morris went on to become Senior Writer for international at Maclean’s, Canada’s national news magazine, and then moved to Jerusalem to become Middle East bureau chief for Knight Ridder Newspapers (now McClatchy). Since moving to Ojai, California, Morris has written for Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, the Los Angeles Review of Books and other magazines and literary journals. She holds an MFA in nonfiction writing and previously taught at the USC Annenberg School for Journalism in Los Angeles, and Brooks Institute in Ventura.

Faculty

Vanessa Guinan-Bank

Vanessa Guinan-Bank works as a bilingual freelance journalist based in Berlin. As a news assistant for the Berlin Bureau of the Washington Post, she covers news in Germany and Europe, including the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. She also writes and produces on arts and culture for various

Barbara Demick

Barbara Demick is an award-winning journalist and author with a specialty in foreign affairs. She was bureau chief for the Los Angeles Times in Beijing and Seoul, and previously reported from the Middle East, Berlin and the Balkans for the Philadelphia Inquirer. She is the author of three books, most

Amara Aguilar

Amara Aguilar is an associate professor of professional practice in digital journalism at USC Annenberg. She previously was the journalism department chair and an assistant professor of journalism at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, Calif., where she advised student news publications and led the journalism programâ€™s mobile and tablet initiatives.

View complete faculty biographies on our Berlin Faculty Page.

APPLICATION, PAYMENTS, AND WAITLISTS

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Our formal deadline has passed, but we are still accepting applications for summer 2025 as long as spots remain available. Please review our application instructions and reach out to admissions@ieimedia.com if you have any questions. We are here to support you through the application process and are so excited to learn more about your interest in studying abroad with ieiMedia! If you have questions about applying, you can also start a conversation with us by clicking the Get Started button. Please refer to the Application Deadline Details for more information.

PAYMENT DEADLINES: see Payment, Cancelation and Refund Policy for information on deposit deadlines and amounts.

ENROLLMENT CAPACITY AND WAITLISTS: ieiMedia projects have a defined capacity limitation for applicants. Since there is a limited number of applicants who can attend, you can only be guaranteed a spot when you (1) have paid your Application Fee and (2) made payments on time according to the Costs and Payment Schedule. If a program has reached capacity OR you have not met the requirements for enrollments, you will be placed on the waitlist until requirements are met and capacity is available.

ACADEMIC CREDIT

Academic credits can be earned for this ieiMedia Project. Requesting course credit is optional. This course offers an option to earn upper-division journalism elective credits. The cost for academic credit is $150/credit. Students choosing this option must indicate so in their application. After applying, student will find procedures in our Student Portal to request academic credit through our school of record, University of Jamestown. NOTE: Students on a quarter system will be able to transfer as four(4) or eight(8) credits at no additional fee for ieiMedia courses that are listed as three(3) or six(6) credits respectively. Transfer credit ultimately depends on a student's home university. Please check with your university for procedures to follow when transferring credits to your institution.

Application Details, Travel Advisory, Financial Aid

Application Deadline Details

Our formal deadline has passed, but we are still accepting applications for summer 2025 as long as spots remain available. Please review our application instructions and reach out to admissions@ieimedia.com if you have any questions. We are here to support you through the application process and are so excited to learn more about your interest in studying abroad with ieiMedia!

If you do not have the necessary access to submit your application, please reach out to admissions@ieimedia.com to speak with an advisor.

Get started now to reserve your place or contact the ieiMedia Director of Admissions at: admissions@ieimedia.com

Travel Advisory

ieiMedia will be monitoring The US Department of State Travel Advisories and will provide status updates to those who sign up for the project regarding important information.

Financial Aid

Students studying abroad for the summer term have limited financial aid options, but Pell grant recipients are encouraged to apply and receive our help in applying for a Gilman Study Abroad Scholarship which can award up to $5,000. Check with your school’s financial aid office and your study abroad offices to find out if other assistance is available. For more information on financial aid, get started by connecting with us here.

QUESTIONS? Contact the ieiMedia Director of Admissions at admissions@ieimedia.com You can also schedule an ieiMedia advising session.

Past information session recordings and slides can be viewed here.