Centers, Programs & Initiatives
NRC/Title VI
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the II
The International Institute (II) brings together distinguished and diverse faculty and scholars with deep area studies and international expertise to enrich the university's intellectual environment and to provide the U-M community with the knowledge, tools, and experience to become informed and active global citizens. We advance this mission through education, engagement, and innovation.
Established within the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts in 1993, the II stimulates research and teaching on critical areas of the world and on international issues that cut across world regions and disciplines. The institute fosters cooperation among the university's departments, schools, and colleges by developing and supporting international teaching, research, and public affairs programming that help students and faculty see the world through a global lens.
The II houses 17 centers and programs focused on specific world regions and global themes. Our centers rank among the nation's finest in their respective fields of study and bring together faculty experts from across the U-M campus. Currently, the II is home to three National Resource Centers and six centers that award Foreign Language and Area Studies grants with Title VI funding from the U.S. Department of Education. These designations are earned in prestigious national peer-reviewed competitions.
Each year, the II and its centers distribute over $4 million to U-M faculty and students, resulting in approximately 500 awards for international study and research. These awards promote global understanding across the campus and help build connections with intellectuals and institutions worldwide.
We internationalize EDUCATION by organizing lectures, symposia, conferences, courses, and roundtables on global issues, and preparing students for careers in international affairs through undergraduate majors and minors, the Masters in International and Regional Studies (MIRS), and several graduate certificate programs.
We advance global ENGAGEMENT by hosting visiting scholars, lecturers, artists, and performers from around the world and connecting them with the U-M community; offering grants to support international internships, research projects, and fellowships to students and faculty; and providing opportunities for faculty to incorporate international educational experiences into their ongoing courses and other academic programs.
We promote INNOVATION in teaching and research by fostering collaborations across international borders, the schools and colleges of the university, and traditional intellectual and geographical boundaries, incentivizing faculty to generate novel answers to pressing global problems and bold new approaches to international education.
The International Institute is located in Weiser Hall, 500 Church Street, Suite 300, Ann Arbor.
There is limited metered street parking near Weiser Hall on Church Street and South University Avenue. Two parking structures are approximately two blocks away:
Forest Avenue Public Parking Structure
Parking rate is $1.20 per hour.
Palmer Drive Public Parking Structure
Parking rate is $1.50 per hour Monday-Saturday.
On Sundays, park in the blue staff-faculty parking area at no cost.
University of Michigan employees with a U-M parking permit will find the Church Street structure the closest to Weiser Hall, with the Hill Street, Thayer Street, and Forest Avenue structures all within walking distance. Please note that many University parking structures are free and open to the public after 6 pm each day and on Sunday.
For more information about parking at the University of Michigan, please visit Logistics, Transportation, and Parking.