Spring Break
New co-op opportunity in Crete
Abigail Raymond
Issue date: 6/2/06 Section: News
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The program, started by Nicholas Vidalakis, is offered to four students per co-op cycle and the $5000 allotment is for the entire six-month period in Crete, an island off the southeast coast of Greece, according to University President Constantine Papadakis.
This opportunity is open to students from all majors, but first preference will be given to students of Cretan descent. According to Marilyn Sobel, the co-op coordinator, one of the goals of this initiative is to help Cretan students connect with their roots. If not enough students with Cretan ancestry take advantage of this opportunity; it will be opened up to students of Greek descent and then to any student of the University, according to Sobel.
When the program was first announced, Sobel said, there were a number of interested students that submitted applications, but interest has waned since then.
The first co-op students to participate in this program are currently abroad and are almost halfway finished with their employment period there. Two applicants took advantage of this opportunity to live and work in Crete.
Caterina Carafides and Genel Canty are the two University students who are currently on co-op in Crete. Carafides is majoring in biology and is working at the General University Hospital in Herakleion, Crete. She is a research assistant in the maternal and child health division of the hospital.
Canty is majoring in film and video, and works for Indigo Visions in Chania, Crete, as a production assistant.
Due to the relative newness of the program, the University does not have many corporate affiliates with which to find jobs in Crete. To help students find co-ops that are suitable and relevant to their interests, the University has formed a partnership with the Technological Educational Institute of Crete. This partnership will allow Drexel students to register at TEI during their stay and will assist them with finding jobs and housing. This will also allow the students to take classes during their stay in Crete. These classes will be mostly focused on the time spent in Greek culture, and will include Greek history and language, according to GreekNews.
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