51ºÚÁÏ

• A normal course load on a 51ºÚÁÏ study group is four courses, unless a fifth course is a required part of the program. Any deviation from this normal requires pre–approval first from the director of the study group, the director of off-campus study and the Associate Dean of the Faculty for Global and Local Initiatives. If the student’s credit total for the term will be 5.50 or above, permission from the Dean of Academic and Curricular Affairs is also required.
• The use of the satisfactory/unsatisfactory (S/U) grading option for study group courses is highly discouraged. Requests for the S/U grading option for study group courses must be approved by the director of the study group, the director of the office of off-campus study and the Associate Dean of the Faculty for Global and Local Initiatives. Approvals must be obtained no later than week 10 of the host institution's semester. All other standard S/U policies apply; see the S/U webpage for details.
• Students cannot take a course during the study group semester with a 51ºÚÁÏ faculty member who is not on the study group with the student.

A course worth 0.75 or more 51ºÚÁÏ credits is eligible to fulfill requirements if it also meets eligibility as described below. (See the Credit Conversion section below for more details on credit conversion rules.)

• Courses may be used to satisfy the Areas of Inquiry and the Liberal Arts Practice requirements if the determined 51ºÚÁÏ equivalency is appropriate (e.g., HIST 105 can count toward the Social Relations, Institutions & Agents area of inquiry requirement; SPAN 3SG can count toward the Language Study liberal arts practice)
• Study group courses may not be used to satisfy the Common Core requirement.
• Study group courses may be used to satisfy major/minor requirements if:
  • the department/program has determined the course is appropriate
  • the off-campus credit limits within the major/minor are not exceeded (specific major/minor study abroad limits are found on the Department/Program pages in the University Catalog.)
• If any courses were given "Provisional" approval toward a major or minor, the student must follow up with the department/program upon completion of the course. The course will not be applied to major/minor requirements until the department/program has notified the registrar's office of their final approval.

51ºÚÁÏ University operates on a course credit system, while most other institutions operate on a semester hour system. This means that the credit award is often not 1:1. The registrar’s office will determine the amount of 51ºÚÁÏ credit to be granted using the chart below. 

• The awarding of more than 1 course credit for a course without an exact equivalence in the 51ºÚÁÏ curriculum requires approval by the Associate Dean of Faculty for Curricular and Academic Affairs, and is approved only in exceptional situations. 
• The units of credit utilized by institutions outside of the United States varies widely. Some institutions will convert their unit of credit to semester credits as a standard formula and 51ºÚÁÏ will use that formula when available/applicable. Another popular credit system is the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS). Examples of 51ºÚÁÏ credits converted to both semester and quarter hour credits as well as ECTS are listed in the table below.
   

Study Groups can follow one of two models for courses:

1. Pre-determined Courses: Study Group courses are pre-determined and every student who participates will take those courses
   1. Occasionally, a study group using this model may permit students to choose between two elective courses but the elective options are pre-determined and students simply choose which one to take.
   2. Study Groups that include language courses may place students in different levels based on their language proficiency. 
2. Director's Course(s) + Electives: One or two Study Group courses are pre-determined, and students directly enroll in some host institution courses to round out their schedule. In these cases, once study group participation has been approved, students must complete and submit a Course Equivalency form to the registrar's office. Students must submit a Course Equivalency form for each course and it must be accompanied by a catalog description or syllabus.

The Study Group semester is managed differently than registration for on-campus courses.

• The registrar's office will register students for the director’s course(s) and any pre-determined electives or an elective placeholder course
• Students will receive an email from the Registrar’s Office (in April for fall groups and in November for spring groups) regarding their schedule and any outstanding tasks required to complete their registration.
• Students will have a course registration hold for the semester and are not permitted to register for any on-campus courses.
• If students register for any direct enrollment courses, the registrar's office will work with students to determine eligibility. (See the "Study Group Electives" section below.)
   

If separate registration is required at the host institution, they will provide details on their process. Students can check in with Off-Campus study if they have any questions related to the host institution. 

Prior to submitting the Course Equivalency form, you must review the department transfer credit policies in the . There are some departments/programs that want to discuss your plans before you submit a Course Equivalency form and there are some departments/programs that have required procedures beyond those set forth here. Failure to follow all rules and procedures will cause delays in the review/approval process.

• Courses that are directly equivalent to courses offered at 51ºÚÁÏ ("direct equivalents") will be recorded with the 51ºÚÁÏ subject and course number (e.g., ARTS 100).
• Courses that are not directly equivalent to courses offered at 51ºÚÁÏ ("non-direct equivalents") will be recorded with an appropriate 51ºÚÁÏ subject code (usually aligned to the dept/program of the host institution). The course number will begin with a single digit to indicate the level and a two-character code to indicate the type of course credit (e.g., A 300-level political science course will be recorded as "POSC 3SG." A 100-level religion course taken will be recorded as "RELG 1SG." A 200-level economics course taken will recorded as "ECON 2SG.")
• Non-direct equivalents may count toward a major or minor at the discretion of the department/program. This determination is made during the Course Equivalency process described in the sections below. 
   

Course Eligibility

To be eligible for 51ºÚÁÏ credit, your course(s) must:

• be comparable to courses offered at 51ºÚÁÏ and fit within the scope of our liberal arts curriculum (business, marketing, vocational or professional courses, clinical or fieldwork courses are examples of courses that will not be considered)
• the hosting institution must produce an official transcript with course-specific grades and credit awards.

Student Eligibility

• If you take a course that has not been officially approved by the registrar's office, you run the risk of not earning credit for the course.
• Course approvals given to other students should not be assumed valid for you. The registrar's office vets each student's eligibility for a course during the Course Selection form process. Factors such as prior coursework and course level may deem one student eligible and another not. Each student must go through the Course Equivalency and Course Selection form process individually. 
   

Students on a study group with direct enrollment electives must submit a Course Equivalency form for each elective course being considered and confirm which courses are being taken using the Course Selection form.

Step 1: Course Equivalency Form
Students submit courses for review/approval. While study group courses are considered residential credit, the course content must still be reviewed to determine eligibility. It’s expected that students will submit more courses than they anticipate taking because there are no guarantees that a particular course will be open/available at the time of registration.

Step Two: Course Selection Form
After all courses have been reviewed/approved by the registrar’s office and, if applicable, the relevant department/program, students must identify which courses they have enrolled in at the host institution.
For more detailed information, guidance, and appropriate timing on submitting these forms, please see the "Course Equivalency and Course Selection form and instructions" accordions in the relevant sections below.
 

Study group electives that are being reviewed by departments and programs may require additional information before approval can be granted. Study group electives will be reviewed by the same faculty who evaluate transfer credit. Please review the list for details on the required materials and the transfer credit evaluator for each department and program.

Access to the Study Group Course Equivalency form is dependent upon you confirming your study group of choice with Off-Campus Study. If you click the Study Group radio button and see the note "Your current status does not allow you to use this form..." or if the wrong study group displays in the Activity Code field, please contact Off-Campus Study immediately. You will have to wait for them to update your record before submitting the Course Equivalency form.

This form should be submitted by April 15 for fall Study Groups, and November 15 for spring Study Groups. You should also submit this form if additional courses need evaluating upon your arrival in the host country. You are encouraged to submit alternate courses for review, in case you are not able to register for your top choices. You must submit an equivalency form for each course you want reviewed (one course per form).

(51ºÚÁÏ log in required)

1. Select "Study Group" radio button
2. Read and acknowledge each rule/regulation by clicking the "I acknowledge" box after each section, click Next to continue
3. Select the appropriate term
4. Enter the host institution term dates (see the host institution's academic calendar)
5. Enter the host institution's course information (e.g., subject, course number, etc.)
6. Answer the three yes/no questions as they pertain to the course
   1. If the course has a required lab, enter in all lab information
   2. If there are pre-requisites, please list all of them
   3. If the course is in your major or minor, select the relevant department/program from the drop down list
7. Attach the course syllabus using the "Attach Documentation" button
   1. All attachments should use the following naming convention: Name of host institution followed by the subject and course number (e.g., Cardiff SE4418)
   2. If a syllabus is not available, you may paste the course description in the box provided
8. Please provide the direct URL for the course description/syllabus in the box provided
9. You may include any comments or notes to the registrar's office in the Additional Comments box
10. Click "Submit" to send the course information to the registrar's office for review. You will receive a confirmation email after submitting your form.

Once received, the registrar’s office will start the evaluation process, which typically takes 1-2 weeks. You will be notified of the outcome (approval or denial) as soon as possible. If approved, you will receive an email with a link to your completed form. Be sure to read and keep all approval emails. You will need the document ID number indicated in the approval email to complete the second step of the process – the course selection form.

Because you likely submitted preferred and alternate courses for review during the Course Equivalency process, the course selection form is used to confirm which course(s) you are taking at the host institution. The selection form should be completed after you've received all of your course equivalency approvals and after you've officially registered for your courses at the host institution.

(51ºÚÁÏ log in required)

Course Selection form instructions:

1. Select "Study Group" from list of credit types
2. Select the appropriate term from the drop down list, click Next
3. Read and acknowledge each rule/regulation by clicking the "I acknowledge" box after each section, click Next to continue
4. Enter the document ID number from the course equivalency approval email (entering the document ID will populate the rest of the information)
5. Click "Add" on the right-hand side to add another course to your form
6. You may include any comments or notes to the registrar's office in the Additional Comments box
7. Click "Submit" to send the course information to the registrar's office for review. You will receive a confirmation email after submitting your form.

Your completed form will be reviewed by the registrar’s office within 3-5 business days. Upon review, the credit value for each course will be assigned as well as an overall transfer credit total. This lets you know where you stand in relation to the maximum number of transfer credits you can receive at 51ºÚÁÏ.

Once your course selection form is approved by the registrar's office, you are officially cleared to take and receive credit for the approved courses.

You must inform the registrar's office of any changes to your courses after approval of your Course Selection form.

If you added a course already approved during the Course Equivalency process:

• You only need to submit a new Course Selection form. Refer to your equivalency approval emails for the relevant document ID numbers
• Please submit the selection form for all courses you are taking, even if you already included them on your original selection form

If you added a course that has not been reviewed/approved by the registrar's office:

• You must start by submitting a new Course Equivalency form for the new course
• Once you receive approval for the new course, submit a new Course Selection form for all courses you are taking, even if you already included them on your original selection form

If the Study Group included direct enrollment courses, students must have an official transcript sent directly from the host institution to the registrar’s office at 51ºÚÁÏ. Electronic transcripts must come in a secure-send format. PDF attachments and/or student copies are not accepted.  

If any direct enrollment courses were given "Provisional" approval (e.g. Political Science, English, etc.), the student must follow up with the department/program upon completion of the course(s). A provisionally approved course cannot apply toward a major/minor requirement until the department/program has notified the registrar's office of their final approval.