Prague, Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is centrally located in Europe and is a gateway to other major cities, making it an ideal place to study abroad. Prague has been the political, cultural, and economic center of the Czech state for more than 1100 years. It is the capital and also the largest and most populous city in the Czech Republic. Currently, it has more than 1,230,000 inhabitants. Prague is one of the major tourist destinations in Europe and attracts millions of visitors each year.

Historic Old Town

The official language of the Czech Republic is Czech. All students will take a two-week intensive Czech course in the beginning of the program to prepare them for the rest of the semester. Prague is a cosmopolitan city and it is common to hear English, German, Russian, and other languages spoken.

Within Prague, students move around the city on foot or by public transportation.  Prague has an excellent and relatively safe public transportation system which includes a metro, trams, and city buses.  Students may purchase a discounted three-month student transport pass upon arrival.

Brief History of the Czech Republic
October 28, 1918 The independent Czechoslovak Republic was established after the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy.

March 15, 1939 Nazi German armies invaded Czechoslovakia.

May 1945 At the end of WW II, the Red Army reached Czechoslovakia and the nation fell within the Soviet sphere of influence.

February 25, 1948 Communists supported by the Soviet regime in Moscow carried out a coup d’état in Prague.

August 21, 1968 The armed forces of the Warsaw Pact member states occupied Prague and Czechoslovakia remained a Communist country under the Soviet influence until November 1989.

November 17, 1989 A student demonstration in Prague started the Velvet Revolution, which led to the world-reknown peaceful fall of the Communist regime. The Communist government resigned.

January 1, 1993 The Czechoslovak Federal Republic split into two independent states, the Czech Republic (Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia) and the Slovak Republic (Slovakia). This peaceful splitting is known as the Velvet Divorce. Vaclav Havel was elected the first president of the independent Czech Republic.

May 1, 2004 The Czech Republic joined the European Union.