Policies & Requirements

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to set forth policies and procedures necessary to promote international understanding by exposing our students, faculty, staff, and community partners to people, cultures, and viewpoints outside of their comfort zone resulting in respectful engagement of different people cultures, and viewports.

  • GPA Requirement Policy
  • Dual Enrollment Student Policy
  • Transfer Student Eligibility Policy
  • First Year Student Policy
  • Incorporation fo Education Abroad into Degree Plan
  • Prior Residency in Foreign Country听
  • Minors Under the Age of 18
  • Education Abroad Fee
  • Travel Avisory/Warning
  • Transfer Credit
  • Non-TSU Students
  • Disciplinary Issues

GPA Requirement Policy

The minimum grade point average for participation on a TSU education abroad approved programming is:

  • 2.0 overall combined for summer or other short term;
  • 2.5 overall combined for semester/academic year;

Exceptions can be requested using the official petition form submitted through the Office of International Programs and Academic Global Engagement (IPAGE)/International Education & Global Learning (IE&GL) and the Office of Academic Affairs. Consideration is only for participants whose GPA is within range of achieving the minimum GPA prior to the actual departure of the program.

Please note:

  • GPA must be from a college or university
  • This must be an established GPA - at least one full semester completed prior to receiving pre-approval to a study abroad program (full semester is 12 credits minimum)
  • Transfer students, please see the Transfer Student policy

Dual Entrollment Student Policy

IPAGE/IE&GL does not permit dual-enrollment students to apply for education abroad programs. Students may study abroad as beginning the summer after their freshman year at TSU. Dual-enrollment students are not classified as freshman and do not meet the GPA policy that states "at least one full semester [must be] completed prior to receiving preapproval to a study abroad program" as listed in the GPA Policy section of this page.

Transfer Student Eligibiliity Policy

Transfer students who have not yet completed a term at TSU who wish to apply for an education abroad program must also meet the following criteria in order to participate:

  • Transferred at least 12 credit hours to TSU
  • Must complete one full-time semester at TSU prior to studying abroad
  • A transfer GPA of at least a 2.5 for ALL programs
  • Applied to TSU and has been accepted as a degree-seeking TSU student
  • Does not have a judicial affairs record from transfer institution

First Year Student Policy

First year students who have not yet completed a term at TSU who wish to apply for an education abroad program should set up a meeting with the Director of International Education to discuss the limited options. It is highly recommended that students establish a TSU GPA before applying to participate on an education abroad program and many program types actually require it. IE goals for First Year students are Cultural Competence Assessment and obtaining a US Passport.

Incorporation of Education Abroad into Degree Plan

IPAGE/IE&GL does not recommend that students prolong their academic experience to study abroad, but rather encourage them to plan early and accordingly to incorporate education abroad into their degree plan. Students pursuing a secondary degree may be given lower priority in the selection process. Students must demonstrate an academic rationale for participating in more than one official TSU Education Abroad program (in particular semester and year-long programs). However, students are not permitted to remain a second year on the same academic-year program

Prior Residency in a Foreign Country

IPAGE/IE&GL will not approve participation in education abroad at locations where students have completed secondary education or where they have lived and/or worked within eight years ofmatriculation at TSU. Students who wish to take courses at universities in their home countries will be asked to petition the International Education Advisory Board. Students must present a strong academic rationale for the program and address the issue of cultural competency. Please contact the OIA/IE for more information on the petition process.

Minors Under the Age of 18

IPAGE/IE&GL does not permit students under the age of 18 or high school students to participate in semester or year-long education abroad programs. Students under the age of 18 and high school students are also not eligible to participate on winter or summer programs run by an TSU Affiliate (3rd party provider) (ISA, CIEE, USAC, LAC, KIIS, or CCSA).

For TSU Faculty Lead programs, students must be 18 years of age at the time of participation. However, students may complete the application process when they are under the age of 18 with the understanding that a parent/guardian signature on application and enrollment forms may be required. In special cases, students under the age of 18 may participate with the permission of the faculty leader/program director. OIA/IE does not recommend the participation of minors and family members of the faculty leading a TSU Faculty Lead Programs.

Education Abroad Fee Policy

All Education Abroad participants may be requested to pay a $100 Non-refundable Application Fee per program. This fee contributes to the broad range of services available to the participant before, during, and after the program including but not limited to advising, application processing, orientations, emergency support, and maintaining TSU student status while abroad. Program Fees must be paid according to the fee payment timelines established by the program director. Once these program fees have been paid for travel and in-country logistic support these fees will only be refunded to participants if the airlines and in-country logistical organization provide refunds back to the TSU programs.

Travel Advisory/Warning Policy

TSU does not permit travel to countries or portions of countries where the U.S. Department of State and/or CDC currently advises against travel or tourism by US Citizens. The U.S. Department of State maintains current Travel Warnings on their website.

Transfer Credit Policy

Students participating on semester and academic year education abroad programs typically transfer back a maximum equivalence of 18 U.S. credit hours per semester to TSU. Students participating on summer education abroad programs typically transfer a maximum equivalence of 12 U.S. credit hours for the entire summer term. The amount of credit transferred to TSU depends on the international credit transfer conversion for each program. Students who earncredit that calculates in excess of 18 U.S. credit hours per semester and in excess of 12 U.S. credit hours for the summer term will transfer back all credit earned abroad.

Non-TSU Student Policy

The majority of education abroad programs are meant for degree-seeking TSU students. Any Non-TSU student (including TSU students who will graduate before the program departure) who want to participate on an education abroad program (academic or non-academic) should consult with the Director of International Education regarding possible options.

If approved by the program director, non-degree seeking and/or non-TSU students must follow the same procedures and policies as degree-seeking TSU students with regards to their education abroad program (i.e. completion of required forms, participation in the pre-departure orientation, etc.) and the program director should assign specific roles and responsibilities in support and enhancement of the education abroad experience.

Non-degree seeking and/or non-TSU students do not qualify for any TSU funding, including IPAGE grants for TSU faculty-led programs.

Disciplinary Issues Policy

All education abroad participants must follow the same guidelines/policies provided by the TSU Judicial Affairs Office while on-campus. Any education abroad student who is involved in a disciplinary issue abroad will also face possible sanctions after returning home, including revocation of the Education Abroad Grant or referral of the case to the University鈥檚 judicial board depending upon the severity of the charge. The Program Director/Faculty Leader is responsible for documenting disciplinary issues. Only written documentation of disciplinary issues will be accepted in Judicial Affairs proceedings.

Excerpt from Judicial Affairs documentation to education abroad participants:

鈥淚t means that even when you are not physically on campus we still hold you accountable for your actions.听 You are an TSU student no matter where you go or what you do.听 You are part of our Big Blue Family community and we expect you to act as such and represent TSU to the very best of your ability. In layman鈥檚 terms it means you can get in trouble with TSU if you do anything illegal or violate one of TSU鈥檚 policies while you are studying abroad.听 Being out of the country does not mean you are no longer accountable for your actions.听 Messing up abroad CAN mess up things here and possibly affect your status as a student.鈥�

In addition to GPA criteria, an TSU Judicial Affairs check will be required for each听education abroad participant.听 The OIA/IE and/or Vice Provost for Academic Affairs can also deny a student鈥檚 participation based on behavior reports and removal from a previous education abroad program.

A Judicial Affairs check will be required for each education abroad participant. OIA/IE and/or Vice Provost for Academic Affairs can also deny a student鈥檚 participation based on behavior reports/removal from a previous education abroad program.

REFERENCE

Office of International Affairs 鈥� International Education Operational Policies & Procedures, Appendix A-N.

Updated 7/2020





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