Syllabus: Traveling Classroom

Fall 2025
By Nithya Ramcharan ’25

ANTH 450 
International Research Experience: Bangkok, Thailand

DEPARTMENT
Anthropology

DESCRIPTION
This course, part of Rice’s Gateway faculty-led immersion programs, extends classroom learning beyond the campus by introducing students to independent research conducted in an international setting: Bangkok, Thailand. The course is limited to a dozen students.

Anthropology 450, co-taught by anthropologist Eugenia “Nia” Georges and doctoral candidate in anthropology Tim Quinn, combines an on-campus classroom experience with an international research field trip in Bangkok, Thailand. In the first part of the semester, a dozen Rice social sciences majors studied the political, health, social and environmental issues of Thailand’s capital while working on detailed research proposals. During spring break in March, the students embarked on a weeklong, fully funded trip to Thailand, where they met Thai students and faculty, attended lectures, conducted interviews and toured cultural spaces. 

“When they land in Thailand,” Georges says, “they go and go and go.” Quinn, who lives in Bangkok, served as a knowledgeable guide for the students during the week. Leveraging his connections with local universities and organizations in Bangkok, he provided  students with valuable contacts for their research. 

“For Nia, it’s more of a methods course that she teaches, and for me, it’s a Thai studies crash course,” Quinn says. “It’s about getting you through the process of what doing research abroad looks like in a really tight time frame.” 

Students pursued a variety of research areas by diving deep into topics as varied as the obligatory service requirements in Thai medical schools and the pandemic’s impact on elephant reserves. Sarah Vu ’27 combined her interests in sports law and social policy to study the discourse surrounding child Muay Thai fighters. “I learned an incredible amount just by observing the body language and facial expressions of the people I spoke with,” Vu says.  

Josh Gill ’25, whose project revolved around migration to Thailand, is continuing his research in Japan through a Wagoner Scholarship. “I would definitely say ANTH 450 was the most thought-provoking, rewarding and life-changing class I took at Rice,” he says.

The development of the course was spearheaded by the late Lyn Ragsdale, former dean of the School of Social Sciences, who “wanted to open up possibilities for international research experience to Rice undergrads,” Georges said. In recent years, thanks to the generous support of the Frances Anne Moody-Dahlberg Gateway Program, Ragsdale’s vision of international research is even more accessible.

Rice’s faculty-led immersion programs are funded by the Moody Gateway Program.