In 2010, Dr. John E. Van Sant led a study away group focusing on the history and culture of Japan.

History department students traveled to Japan with Van Sant in May 2010. The two-week study away program included two courses on Japanese history and culture. They visited cultural and historic sites in Kyoto, Nara, Osaka, and Hiroshima, and visited two universities where the UAB students could interact and exchange ideas with Japanese university students.