Study Abroad
Study Abroad provides information on educational opportunities in other countries, including study abroad, exchange, international internships, research abroad, and study abroad scholarships. Information sessions are offered throughout the year; students are strongly encouraged to attend a session before seeking staff assistance in selecting the program most appropriate to their needs and interests. Session topics, dates, and times can be found at http://world.utexas.edu/abroad .
University programs available to students include reciprocal exchanges with foreign universities; affiliated studies through other organizations and institutions; faculty-led programs, including Maymesters Abroad; and international study and research. Students pay a $50 fee to defray the cost of processing applications and of tracking study-abroad applicants and students who are abroad; the fee also encourages students to think carefully about the application to go abroad. The application fee is nonrefundable, regardless of whether the student is accepted by or enrolls in a program.
Exchange programs. Exchange programs allow UT Austin students to enroll at a partner university abroad while continuing to pay UT Austin tuition. These cost-effective programs integrate UT Austin students into the host university and provide access to courses applicable to UT Austin degree plans. Students in exchange programs register for a block of coursework in study abroad (SAB). Faculty members in the appropriate academic departments review the student’s work to identify equivalent University courses; Study Abroad staff convert grades from the system used by the host institution into their University equivalents. Courses and grades are recorded as resident credit.
Affiliated programs. Students register for affiliated studies (A S) when they participate in study abroad programs offered by organizations and institutions with which the University has an affiliation agreement. Students enrolled in affiliated studies pay a fee of $400 per semester and are considered full-time students by the University.
After a student takes part in a program offered under an affiliation agreement, University faculty members in the appropriate academic units review the student’s work to identify the equivalent University courses. Courses and grades appear on the student’s academic record, but they are not included in the University grade point average. In some circumstances, affiliated studies credit is treated as resident credit; more information is given in the general requirements for graduation in chapter 1 of the undergraduate catalog.
Faculty-led programs. Academic units may offer courses taught abroad as a part of their regular curriculum. Students who take these courses follow normal registration procedures and are assessed normal tuition and fees. Additional fees are charged to cover program costs.
International study and research. Students may register for international study and research (ISR) if they are conducting research or studying independently abroad. Enrollment requires the approval of the student’s faculty sponsor, graduate adviser (for graduate students) or departmental undergraduate adviser (for undergraduates), and Study Abroad. The approval may cover up to four consecutive long-session semesters and contiguous summer sessions.
Students enrolled in international study and research pay a fee of $400 a semester and are considered full-time students by the University.
Students who register for international study and research are not guaranteed credit for work completed abroad. Students must consult with the departmental undergraduate adviser or the graduate adviser and with the Graduate and International Admissions Center to determine whether credit will be granted.
Financial assistance. Financial aid, including loans, scholarships, and grants, may be applied toward the cost of study abroad. If study abroad costs exceed the on-campus cost of attending the University, and if the student is eligible for additional aid, the Office of Student Financial Services will repackage the student’s aid award based on the budget submitted by the Study Abroad program coordinator, with one exception: Students registered for international study and research abroad are not eligible to receive federal financial aid; however, they may use scholarships and grants awarded by the University and outside agencies.
Information about other funding opportunities for study abroad is available on the Study Abroad Web site, available at http://world.utexas.edu/abroad/funding/ . The office administers the campus competition for a number of local and federal grants and scholarships, including the IIE Fulbright and the University's International Education Fee Scholarship (IEFS).
Overseas insurance. Ensuring that UT students have adequate health and safety support while abroad is a primary goal of the University. All students participating in approved international activities as stipulated by the Student Travel Policy for International Locations (Appendix N)
are required to pay the International Insurance Coverage Fee. This fee has been established to ensure that all students are systematically and comprehensively covered by an international health insurance policy, an emergency services policy and a general liability policy. The fee is non-refundable and is scaled to correspond to the length of international activity. Students are also encouraged to maintain their domestic health insurance coverage.