Frequently Asked Questions

We recommend you browse our website for information. Start with our page Steps to Study Abroad for an overview. Your first step will be to attend a First Steps session (offered during the fall and winter quarters). That session will give you an overview of the preliminary steps required for going abroad, as well as the resources our office has for students. We ask that students attend a First Steps session before scheduling meetings, and during that session you will learn more about advising.

We ask that students attend a First Steps session before scheduling meetings. Once you have attended the session, you are welcome to come to advising. We have drop-in advising where you can come to ask more general questions, and we have 1-on-1 meetings where you can go to ask specific questions. If scheduling a 1-on-1 meeting with an advisor, make sure to check the Program Advisor reference sheet available on the appointment booking page to schedule with the appropriate advisor, and be sure to include the program name in the reason for meeting. If you are not able to schedule an appointment with the relevant OIE advisor, please email the advisor directly.

We do not advise students on which program is better for academics, OIE advisors do not know the specific details of your curricular requirements and are not able to review a degree audit for your remaining graduation requirements. Please meet with your academic advisor and department advisor for these details. We recommend pulling up a list of the classes in a specific program of your interest as that may help the process. The program search function in DU Passport allows you to search by area of study, though please note this is not a comprehensive list. You will need to submit course approval requests through the Ofice of the Registrar's course approval (TIERS) system for official review and approval. Please refer to our Earning Credit page for more information.

Cherrington Global Scholars (CGS) benefits are offered to eligible applicants for each academic year! There is no application process and CGS will be awarded automatically if the eligibility requirements are met. The OIE conducts eligibility checks two quarters before you go abroad; please note that we consider the summer as one quarter. More information about CGS can be found on our CGS page and please note that we are able to re-check your eligibility if you reach out to us and believe your eligibility has changed. Please note that CGS is only eligible for DU Partner Programs (DUPP).

Please note that CGS is not a scholarship awarded to students. Information about scholarships can also be found on our Scholarships page. 

There are many scholarships available, and while we do have a list on our Scholarship page of potential options, it is not an exhaustive list. We recommend using our list as a starting point, but also be sure to search for other available scholarships. Many of them have very similar requirements, and the odds are good that one essay can be slightly edited and used for another scholarship application. Consider aspects such as your program’s location (including the region, country, and program provider if applicable), your program’s academic focus, your own identity, etc., to find more scholarships!  

The course, INTZ 2501 Exploring Global Citizenship, is the same no matter what term you take it, and we require students to take it within one year before going abroad. We encourage students to consider taking the course during fall or winter term which might offer more schedule flexibility than having to take it spring before a fall start program. The course will be offered at many different times during the spring quarter but sections often fill up quickly.

No. You are only able to apply for one program per academic term so make sure you thoroughly research what program is right for you. Our page Things to Consider is a good resource to help you in this process and lists several questions you should ask yourself. If we are not able to accept you to your preferred program we will work with you to identify a different program that is available and a good fit.

Your answer should be 100 to 300 words in length and clearly articulate your reasons for choosing a particular program, and the projected benefits for your course of study. Please consider your academic, professional, and personal goals, program structure, support level, course options, and other factors in your response.

For some programs, our office has set the GPA requirement, while for others it is set by the program. Depending on this information, there may or may not be flexibility, so we recommend you reach out to that program’s specific advisor to obtain more information.

If you will meet the requirement before the program begins, you can feel free to mark it “Yes” under the requirement question in your application. Please be aware that this is assuming you will pass the class, and eligibility can change if we are made aware that you did not.

It’s important that you demonstrate a seriousness of purpose, clear objectives, and personal interest in the courses offered by the program.

A student's approval for a particular program depends on a variety of factors. Since each program has its own set of academic and admission standards, students should investigate the requirements of their desired programs before applying.

The Office of International Education receives hundreds of applications each application deadline and it takes several weeks to review all applications. We check for complete applications, eligibility requirements, student conduct standing, confirm numbers with our partners, and more. We ask for your patience. In general, we aim to notify students within 4 weeks. Not all students will hear back at the same time as different programs have different processes. All students will hear back regarding their application. If we cannot accept you to a program we will contact you to discuss other options.

Once a decision has been made on your application, you will receive an email with information about your conditional acceptance and prompting you to log in to DU Passport to either “commit” or “decline” the offer to participate. You have three weeks to submit your response once you have received the email. If you commit, you will be expected to complete all listed checklist items in DU Passport by the deadlines. If you decline the offer, your application will be withdrawn and deactivated.

To place yourself in the best possible position for consideration and selection to a particular program, you should meet the published deadline. However, application extensions are granted when enrollment has not been filled in a particular program. If you wish to apply for a program, you should contact the Office of International Education at duabroad@du.edu.

Students who wish to study abroad with a program other than one of our DU Partner Programs (DUPP) will need to apply for the unaffiliated program option; approval of an unaffiliated program is not guaranteed. Students who would like to study abroad unaffiliated are required submit a petition (as part of the application process) that provides strong rationale for why their unaffiliated program is a better fit for them than anything that DU offers. While part of the reason for an unaffiliated program choice can be location or cost, the main reason must be regarding the academic fit of the program.

With unaffiliated programs, you will not be able to receive or use any DU institutional aid/any DU scholarships for that quarter abroad. You still would be able to use federal loans and the Pell Grant. As for outside scholarships that you may be receiving, you would need to contact them and see if those scholarships can be applied for the quarter abroad.

If you want a course to come back as elective credit, you do not need to submit a course approval form as long as we have a corresponding department here at DU. You will only need to complete a form if you want a course to come back as major, minor, or common curriculum credit.  

If you don’t see courses for a specific program in the Registrar’s TIERS system, it could be for a variety of reasons (i.e. course approvals expired, students haven’t submitted course approvals, the list has not updated, etc.); however, it does not mean that courses with the program cannot be approved for specific DU credit. It just means that you will need to submit your own course approvals. Our page Earning Credit provides additional information regarding course approvals and credits from abroad coming back to DU.

You can do this anytime, but we recommend starting early. It can take 5 weeks to get a response. Plan accordingly!

Before the DU study abroad application deadline – special situations

• You need to meet a specific degree requirement abroad
• You’re looking at programs with a set or very limited curriculum

You can’t change program choices after submitting your application. Submitting requests now gives you time to make changes before submitting your application if the classes you need aren’t approved.

After you’ve been conditionally approved for a specific program – most popular

• We recommend doing this 2+ quarters before you study abroad
• Fall start programs: Do this before the end of Spring Quarter, as some faculty approvers aren’t available in summer to review requests.
• Programs that don’t make course options available in advance: Talk to your faculty advisor about what types of classes the department can accept, limitations to approvals, and what criteria they’ll use to evaluate courses. Then, when your course options become available, make educated guesses as to what your department is likely to approve. You still need to get explicit approval for each course through the online approval process below. 

While abroad or after you return – not recommended

• Whenever possible, we strongly recommend avoiding this option.
• You aren’t able to switch classes at this point if your request is denied.

It depends on the program and classes that you enroll in. Credits per class and total credit loads will vary among programs. For undergraduates, if you plan to attend a semester-long program, it's likely you'll earn between 18-24 credits. As a semester is 15 weeks, and a quarter is only 10 weeks, you generally should expect to earn about a quarter and half worth of credit while abroad. See the Global Grading & Credit Scale to understand how your credits from your DU Partner Program translate to DU.

Some departments at DU have restrictions on how many credits you can transfer in towards a major, minor, or other requirement, so please check with your department to find out!

Study abroad courses are NOT pass/fail. You must earn a letter grade in order for DU to accept the credits (limited exceptions are made for courses that are only offered on a pass/ fail basis by the host institution. See the DU Study Abroad Policies for more information). When you participate in a DU Partner Program, your grades from abroad will not be factored into your DU GPA, but they will be displayed on your transcript. If you have questions about credit or grade equivalencies for your study abroad program, please check with your OIE advisor.

• If you participated in a DU faculty-led program, courses taught by DU faculty members will be factored into your DU GPA.
• If you participated in an unaffiliated program, your classes will be listed in the transfer credit portion of your DU transcript without the grades.
• Graduate schools may refigure your undergraduate GPA to include the grades that you earned abroad.

DU Partner Program (DUPP)

All credits will transfer back as resident credit from DU Partner Programs (DUPP). Grades and credits are transferred back to DU differently depending on the country and program you are studying in. The Global Grade and Credit Scale found on our Earning Credits page, will give you an idea of how they will transfer back for a specific program. The grades do not factor into your cumulative DU GPA, but the grades will appear on your transcript. 

Please note, the scale will only give you an idea of how credits will transfer to DU, but final grade and credit transfers can only be determined once we get an official transcript from your international institution. 

Unaffiliated

Credits come back to DU as transfer credit. They count against transfer credit limits and DU's transfer credit limits and the requirement that your last 45 credit hours be resident credit. For DU to accept your abroad credits you must earn a letter grade (i.e. pass/fail grades are not accepted). You must earn the equivalent of a "C-" or above for all courses taken on an unaffiliated program to receive credit at DU. Specific DU departments may require a higher grade to satisfy major/minor requirements with courses taken abroad. Check with the specific academic department for details. 

If you want a course to come back as elective credit, you do not need to submit a course approval form for it as long as we have a corresponding department here at DU. You will only need to complete a form if you want that course to come back as major, minor, or common curriculum credit.  

If you don’t see courses for a specific program in the Registrar’s TIERS system, it could be for a variety of reasons (i.e. course approvals expired, students haven’t submitted course approvals, the list has not updated, etc.); however, it does not mean that courses with the program cannot be approved for specific DU credit. It just means that you will need to submit your own course approvals. Our page Earning Credit provides additional information regarding course approvals and credits from abroad coming back to DU.

On DU Partner Programs, you must earn a "D" or above for a course to count toward a general elective or as fulfillment of a university requirement other than your major. The department of your major or minor may require that you earn a higher grade to satisfy one of their requirements with a course taken abroad (most commonly the equivalent of a "C" or above). Check with your department for its policy.

For all courses taken on an unaffiliated program, you must earn the equivalent of a "C-" or above to receive credit at DU for the course. Again, the department of your major or minor may require a higher grade for the class to transfer towards the major/ minor requirements.

No. If you participate in a DU Partner Program, all attempted coursework will be reflected on your DU transcript, including any "F's." You will not earn credit for failed courses.

For fall quarter programs, most grades for Southern Hemisphere study abroad programs will be posted in January and February, and most Northern Hemisphere grades will be posted in February and March. Generally, it takes 2-3 months after the completion of your study abroad program for the credit to transfer to DU. Some programs may take longer.

It is not too late to get a course approved for a DU requirement; however, remember that the course may not transfer as you were hoping. Follow the steps above to submit your approval request as soon as possible so that you can adjust your academic schedule accordingly.

The Office of International Education does not manage any interterm programs, as those all go through University Academic Programs (UAP). For any questions, I recommend reaching out to UAP at uap@du.edu, consulting their website, or reaching out to your specific department/the professor leading the program.