The Philadelphia Center Information

The Philadelphia Center is an experiential education program founded in 1967 by the Great Lakes Colleges Association, Inc. (GLCA) and since then, approximately 6000 students have participated in our program. We are managed by Hope College in Holland, Michigan and we continue to be recognized by the GLCA, Inc. The Philadelphia Center is a full-service, experience-based program committed to undergraduate education. We offer a structured educational environment for undergraduate students in the context of an urban setting. The Philadelphia Center is committed to helping students develop an understanding of urban issues and a clearer view of personal objectives, values, and abilities in relation to a field of work. Our multidisciplinary approach integrates professional work, academic seminars, and independent living experiences in urban communities and offers opportunities in most fields and disciplines of study and in most kinds of organizations and institutions. The Philadelphia Center is dedicated to helping undergraduates find their personal and professional direction in life after graduation. Each fall and spring semester The Philadelphia Center attracts 60 -100 students from the GLCA member colleges (Albion, Antioch, Denison, DePauw, Earlham, Hope, Kalamazoo, Kenyon, Oberlin, Ohio Wesleyan, Wabash and Wooster) as well as from a number of colleges not in GLCA (Alma, Davidson, Hanover, Hartwick, Lafayette, Otterbein, Susquehanna, Whitman, and many others) . Each of these institutions has approved The Philadelphia Center as an off-campus study option for their students, and allows the transfer of academic credit from Hope College for The Philadelphia Center experience.