Pre-Departure
After You Are Accepted for Study Abroad
ALL INFORMATION ON THIS PAGE REFERS TO SEMESTER OR ACADEMIC YEAR PROGRAMS. SOME INFORMATION DIFFERS FOR SUMMER PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS.
Once you have been accepted by the Education Abroad Office at OU, the next step is to complete two sets of forms: 1) any documents required by the host institution and 2) OU's pre-departure packet. The OU packet for semester or academic year programs will be available at an appropriate time from the study abroad advisor. It is usually sent as an email attachment. Most outgoing students will need to meet with their study abroad advisor for help completing the "Credit Agreement Form" in this packet. The deadline for return of the completed Pre-departure Packet is on the cover sheet. You cannot be enrolled in your study abroad hours until the packet is handed in.
The host university forms may request information on your major, other interests, health status, medical insurance, language proficiency, course preferences, and passport number. You also may be required to supply pictures of yourself. Many of our partner universities will not issue an acceptance letter until they have received these forms. An acceptance letter from the receiving institution is often necessary for requesting your student visa from that country's embassy or consulate in the United States, if such a visa is required.
Pre-Departure Orientation
All OU students accepted for study abroad are required to attend an orientation program. During the orientation, information will be provided on all aspects of study abroad. Some of the topics covered are "culture shock", safety abroad, visas, medical insurance, enrollment and grades. Parents are welcome to attend, but must RSVP to the Education Abroad office (405-325-1693) no less than 4 business days before the date of the event. If you have an OU academic or organizational obligation that meets during this time, you must contact your study abroad advisor to get an excused absence ahead of time. Orientation information appears in this location at the appropriate time for outgoing students.
Visas
The majority of semester or academic year study abroad programs require the participant to obtain a student visa before traveling abroad. A visa is a stamp in a passport allowing entry into the host country for the designated purpose: tourism, study, etc. The Education Abroad staff are familiar with visa procedures and are available to help students with the process. However, it is ultimately the student's responsibility to compile all required documentation and request the visa from the appropriate embassy or consulate of the host country within the United States.
U.S. Department of State Resources
The U.S. Department of State maintains a number of web publications and web sites with useful information on international travel and study abroad. We recommend that all study abroad participants register with the U.S. Department of State. It is best for semester and academic year participants to wait until you have your new address in the host country. This is the best way to declare where you will be while on study abroad. It allows the Department of State to locate you if there is an emergency situation in your host country.
You may also want to take a look at the new U.S. Department of State Web site for students. It addresses many issues that are unique to student travel and can serve as a useful resource for you.
The Office of Education Abroad refers to many of the State Department publications during pre-departure orientation. Those listed below are referred to during pre-departure orientation and should be read prior to leaving the United States.
Lost and Stolen U.S. Passport Abroad
Assistance to U.S. Citizens Arrested Abroad
Health Issues
To learn more about current health conditions in your host country, please use the following resources. You will be able to find out what vaccinations are recommended or required.
Medical Insurance on Study Abroad
You are required to have medical insurance coverage that is valid outside the United States for the duration of your study abroad program. This insurance must contain medical evacuation and "repatriation of remains" benefits. If you are already covered by medical insurance, please check to see if you are covered for 1) medical emergencies outside of the U.S., 2) medical evacuation, and 3) repatriation of remains in case of death. If you are not covered currently by insurance, or if you find that your current coverage will not work abroad, you may explore the options included on this list of possible providers for international coverage. The University of Oklahoma does not recommend a single international health insurance provider.
Academic Credit
Students on semester or academic year study abroad programs are required to enroll for 12 hours of credit at OU, paying all relevant tuition and fees at their normally assessed rate of resident or non-resident. The information below is taken directly from the Credit Agreement Form that students are required to submit before they can be enrolled in their study hours.
JUNIORS AND SENIORS: Each college or school at the University of Oklahoma has a resident requirement stating that the student complete a certain number of semester credit hours required for a degree on campus. If the student’s study abroad program conflicts with this requirement (e.g. a non-exchange program), the college must waive the requirement. The student should contact his/her college advisor for assistance.
GRADING: When official transcripts are received from foreign institutions, passing grades will be converted to "S" grades and failing grades to "U" grades on your OU record. If the total number of hours enrolled are not completed, the remaining hours will be assigned an "I" (Incomplete). If a transcript is not received upon completion, hours will be assigned an "AW" (Administrative Withdrawal). Warning: an "Administrative Withdrawal" will have a serious impact on Financial Aid recipients. If there is a reason why an official transcript will not be submitted, please notify Education Abroad or the Office of Admissions with the circumstances. If you are participating in another U.S. university's study abroad program and the foreign courses appear on that university's official transcript as their coursework, OU will honor the grades assigned by the U.S. university.
LANGUAGE STUDY: Some foreign institutions will require a language proficiency exam to determine at what level of language study the student will need to begin. If the student is placed in a different level (higher or lower) than the one indicated on the Credit Agreement Form, the student will be awarded OU equivalent courses based on the actual level taken.
AWARDING OF HOURS: Education Abroad enrolls the student at OU in a block of 12 hours of INTL department courses at either the lower or upper division level to represent the course work to be taken at the exchange school. When the student submits a transcript from overseas at the end of the program, Admissions will convert the exchange school course work into semester hours at the ratio discussed and approved prior to departure. The way universities in other countries calculate course credits may vary from the way semester credits are calculated in the U.S. At OU, a semester hour is equivalent to 15 lecture hours or 45 laboratory hours. In many instances, we can calculate OU semester credits for your exchange course work by formulas we have to convert overseas credit systems. In cases where the overseas credit system is not easily convertible to semester credits, we may rely simply on converting their total hours using the 15/45-hour system above. The rule of thumb is to enroll in a course load that is comparable to what a full-time enrollment would be for other students at your overseas university. If questions arise about what an appropriate full-time schedule is when the student arrives at the host school, he/she should contact Admissions with information on his/her courses. If the student completes course work overseas that represents more than the 12 hours in which the student was initially enrolled, the student is not responsible for additional costs for as long as he/she only wishes to receive credit for the initial 12 hours in which he/she was originally enrolled. If the student wishes to receive OU credit for additional work, he/she needs to sort out the eligible coursework with Admissions, based on the formula used to determine the initial course work. The student will then be billed for the additional hours, including the $10 per-credit hour “INTL fee”. If the student did not enroll as a full-time student overseas because of problems encountered finding classes, scheduling conflicts, host university enrollment rules, etc. and wishes to receive a refund of a portion of the original 12-hour OU enrollment, he/she will need to petition the dean of the college at OU, explaining the circumstances that led to his/her partial enrollment. If the students’ petition is approved, he/she will be reimbursed for the number of hours deemed appropriate by the student’s college. It is each student’s responsibility to understand the implications to Financial Aid and scholarships when less then 12 hours are completed per semester. All changes in status should be communicated to the Education Abroad office as soon as they arise. Decisions on the appropriateness of any credit adjustments will be best supported when circumstances can be documented as they occur.
