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DepaeThe new conditions of the study abroad "market" have impelled us to rethink the costs and benefits of a small, selective US-based program, such as Duke in Berlin. The principal advantage, we argue, is an environment of "academic intimacy," a generous teacher/student ratio, which in turn fosters additional undergraduate research and internship opportunities. We identify faculty involvement (on both sides of the Atlantic) as a key factor for all aspects, ranging from early recruitment to post-study abroad fellowship and graduate/professional school opportunities. Central to the study abroad experience, we propose, is not the annual cohort of students who venture off to Berlin for various lengths of time, but the department itself: for its students, instructors, curriculum, and even extra-curricular activities are the chief beneficiaries of these reciprocal relationships. Viewed in this manner, the three Duke-in-Berlin programs (fall semester, spring-summer semester and six-week summer options) not only enhance, but significantly structure the undergraduate German experience, creating a richer educational environment even for those who do not participate directly.