P R I N C E T O N - I N - A S I A
Princeton-in-Asia (PiA) is a non-profit foundation committed to providing bright and motivated people with a vivid "Asian experience." There is currently a compelling amount of interest among recent American university graduates in working abroad, particularly in Asia. Since 1898, the PiA Internship Program has been driven by a determined ambition to develop a needed symbiosis between two parties separated by 10,000 miles: the Asian institutions that require the teaching and/or professional skills of Americans, and the qualified Americans who are willingly eager to provide their services.
PiA's mission is to foster cross-cultural understanding between Asians and Americans. The organization achieves this goal by providing young Americans with various opportunities to live and work in Asia. The first PiA "internships" consisted of a handful of Princeton University graduates who went to China in the early 1900s to do relief work and teach English; the program has since expanded considerably to other parts of Asia. In 1996, PiA placed 78 interns (roughly 70 percent of them Princeton graduates) in ten countries, including Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam. Currently, about two-thirds of the interns teach English, anywhere from primary school to university level. PiA also offers non-English teaching positions in Kazakhstan (economics) and Singapore (math, biology, communications). Other host institutions include NEC Logistics in Tokyo, Japan (computer consulting work).
PiA's Home Office is located on the Princeton University campus. Princeton-in-Asia is independent from the University and depends on corporate and private donations to fund its campaign.