National Student Exchange Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. SUU students who want to exchange to another participating U.S. university must be enrolled full time and be in good standing the semester prior to exchanging. In addition, students must have an overall GPA of 3.0 and 36 hours of credit.
Students must pay a one-time application fee of $185. This application fee is not refundable once your application is turned in to the SUU NSE Coordinator. Students must also pay a $185 concurrent enrollment fee for each semester on exchange. Housing, meals, books, insurance, etc, is paid at the host school. Students accepted on Plan A also pay host school resident tuition at the host school. Plan B resident students pay SUU resident tuition to the SUU Office of International Programs for the incoming Plan B students. Plan B non-resident and international students will pay SUU Academic Programs Abroad SUU non-resident tuition and fees.
An important word about Plan B: A student who makes himself available on Plan B , and is accepted by the host school on Plan B, is obligated to pay the SUU Office of Study Abroad Programs Abroad SUU resident or non-resident tuition (whichever appropriate) even if the student withdraws from the exchange (except in the case of serious illness). It is important to understand that SUU does not provide funds to pay SUU tuition for incoming Plan B students, so the money is provided by outbound SUU Plan B students leaving on exchange.
Yes. SUU students are expected to maintain full time status at the host school for the entire exchange.
Yes. SUU students who receive financial aid from the Federal government, the state, or from SUU may use this money to help pay for tuition and other associated costs such as meals and housing. In order to receive the aid, students must concurrently enroll at SUU for each semester exchanged. Students who receive scholarships from a private sources should contact the scholarship sponsor to confirm that the money can be used for an exchange. If a student receives a resident tuition waiver, the money may be used to help pay for tuition. Non-resident tuition waivers, however, cannot be used to help pay tuition.
No. Currently there are over 177 universities that participate in the exchange from almost every state. For a complete list of participating universities, come by Office of International Programs, Hunter Conference Center 103, for a directory or take a look at the NSE Official Website.
SUU students who want to attend another school through the NSE program must complete and return applications to Alla Paroiatnikova. Students cannot negotiate their own exchanges and all application materials must go through the SUU NSE coordinator. Applications can be picked up in Room 103 Hunter Conference Center, 8:00AM to 5:00PM, Monday through Friday. The application deadline for a Fall '04 and/or Spring '05 exchange is February 13, 2004 . HOWEVER, applications will be accepted as early as December 1st. Once a student is placed at the host site, the host school NSE coordinator will send additional application material, class registration forms, housing applications, etc. Once the material is received, students must follow time schedules and guidelines for registration issued by the host school.
Once placed at the host school, the NSE coordinator from that school will send a packet that contains instructions, admission forms and class registration material. Read the information packet carefully to ensure deadlines are not missed! Once the class registration material is sent back to the host NSE coordinator, admission to the host school and class registration will be confirmed by the host school.
In most cases SUU students have two choices to pay tuition - Plan A where host school resident tuition is paid at the host school or Plan B where SUU resident tuition is paid to the SUU Office of International Programs.
Note: Some schools only have Plan A and some only have Plan B. The NSE directory shows which plans are available at the host school. On either plan, students are expected to pay housing and meals at the host school.
SUU has in place a system called concurrent registration which means a concurrently enrolled SUU student is enrolled at SUU and the host school at the same time. Concurrent enrollment involves completing a preliminary study schedule, whereby students receive prior approval of classes to be taken at the host school, and paying SUU a $125.00 concurrent enrollment fee. Once the PACE Form (Programs Abroad Concurrent Enrollment Form) is complete and the fee is paid, the Office of International Programs certifies to the SUU Registrar's Office and the SUU Financial Aid Office that all steps for concurrent enrollment have been met.
SUU students who receive financial aid must concurrently enroll to receive the aid. Concurrent enrollment also keeps academic records current in the SUU system so access to their student account and other SUU services can be maintained while away. Students who do not receive financial aid are not required to concurrently enroll, but keep in mind that without concurrent enrollment, the student drops out of school at SUU and must re-enroll in time to advance register for classes for the returning semester at SUU. Students also would not have access to any other SUU services, such as the Wellness Center, the Recreation Center, or the SUU libraries.
When the SUU Office of Admissions receives the official host school transcript, they will post the SUU equivalent class along with the host school grade to the student's SUU transcript. The grades earned while on exchange are figured into the overall grade average, not the SUU grade average.
Yes, but we advise students not to depend on jobs to fund an exchange. We cannot guarantee that you will find a job or that it will pay you enough to meet your expenses at the host school.
We cannot force students to remain at the host school, but keep in mind that if a student withdraws from the NSE program after the semester has begun and before it has ended, the student must officially resign from both the host school and SUU. Concurrent enrollment protection is lost and the student must re-enroll at SUU through the Admissions Office.
Note: Plan B students who withdraw from the program remain obligated to pay the SUU Office of International Programs. SUU resident or non-resident (whichever appropriate) tuition for the entire exchange, unless serious illness occurs. If a student signs up for and is accepted for an entire year on Plan B, and returns home during the fall semester, the student remains obligated to pay SUU resident tuition for the upcoming spring semester.
No. Students participating in the National Student Exchange are considered visiting students and cannot establish residency at the host school while on exchange. Students contemplating transfer to the host school must realize that non-resident tuition will be paid at the host site for one year after the exchange is complete along with a host of other requirements established by the state to which the students transfers. Students are strongly advised to check with the host school admissions office to discover all transfer requirements.
The SUU Office of Academic Programs Abroad keeps on file a general catalog for every school that participates in the program. Catalogs cannot be checked out, but students are welcome to come by the library at Hunter Conference Center 103, 8:00am to 5:00pm, Monday through Friday, to browse the catalogs and copy necessary pages.
The SUU NSE coordinator places and accepts students at the annual NSE placement conference in mid March. The coordinator usually faxes the placements to the SUU Office of International Programs before returning to SUU. Applicants are instructed to check with the International Programs office manager on the date specified by the NSE coordinator to find out where they have been placed.
Yes. Students can be placed in pairs or groups. However, students wishing to be placed this way must realize that we cannot guarantee the host school coordinator will accept all applicants. Paired or grouped students will be placed together on all choices, so we strongly suggested that applicants confer and agree on all of their choices. Paired or grouped students will not be separated - wherever one goes, so goes the other.
Students are allowed to exchange for one academic year - three semesters (Fall, Spring, Summer) for a semester system school or three quarters for a quarter system school. If a student signs up for a one semester exchange and wishes to extend to the following semester, the student must receive permission from both the host school coordinator and the home school coordinator.