The semester program includes a five-week intensive language and culture program in the northeastern coastal city of Salvador and four months of classes at the Universidade de S o Paulo. Students going on the semester program can choose either the January June term or the June-early December term. Students on the semester program take a language course and a core course on contemporary Brazil, in addition to a wide range of USP courses. The range of courses includes Portuguese language, anthropology, art, sciences, business, communications, economics, film, literature, history, and sociology. Language study and the core course are not required of academic year students during their second semester.
Internships are also available to academic year students during the second semester.
Past internship have included working at a television station, a specialized research institute, a non-governmental organization, and a trade representative's office. During the five-week course in Salvador, students are housed together in comfortable lodgings, usually a small hotel. Some students may be placed in private Brazilian homes. Two meals a day on weekdays are included in the program fee. In S o Paulo, housing and partial board are part of the program fee.