Student Role in Academics Abroad
Please be aware all students going on a Faculty-Led Study Abroad do not need to provide course equivalency.
Academic Policy
- You will receive academic credit for all coursework taken abroad on official Baylor Study Abroad programs.
- You must receive an A-F letter grade. If a different grade scale is used by the host institution, Baylor will convert the grade to an A-F scale before posting the grade to your transcript. You may not take classes on a Pass/Fail or audit basis.
- You must maintain the minimum credit enrollment of 12 credit hours during semester programs. Summer is a minimum requirement of 6 credit hours.
- You must consult with your academic department to ensure you will receive credit for internships taken abroad.
- All credit earned abroad through an approved Baylor Study Abroad Program will be Baylor credit.
Before Going Abroad
- Meet with an academic advisor about your study abroad plans - the earlier the better! They will help you review your degree audit and determine what types of courses to take abroad. Your academic advisor can tell you whether classes will fulfill major/minor requirements, general education requirements, language requirements, etc.
- Make a list of courses that will meet your needs based on your discussions with your academic and peer advisors. Be sure to have backup course options listed.
- Schedule an appointment with a Peer Advisor to determine which programs will meet your academic needs. We recommend meeting with a Peer Advisor at least 1 year before your planned semester abroad.
- We recommend you plan to take a mix of major, minor, general education, and elective requirements while abroad. A mix will allow you more flexibility in programs and courses you can take abroad.
Academic Advisor Meeting
How courses can meet specific requirements varies by college, so it is important to work closely with your academic advisor on finding courses that meet degree requirements.
- As you review the course options for those courses that you hope will fulfill general education or major degree requirements, save the course description or tentative syllabus from the study abroad program website.
- Baylor Study Abroad recommends that you take information on twice as many courses as you plan to take abroad to your academic advisor for review. This will give you some pre-approved alternate courses for when it comes time to register for classes abroad.
- Be sure to discuss which courses to take before and upon return from study abroad as well.
While Abroad
- Enroll as a full-time student according to host institution’s policies and Baylor’s policies.
- Complete the course equivalency process when your schedule is finalized to make sure you receive your grades on time.
- Communicate with professors or on-site support staff regarding any course-related problems.
- Keep in touch with your study abroad advisors. We work closely with all global partners and can be a valuable resource to you.
Back at Baylor
- Wait to receive your grades. This can sometimes take several months! If you haven’t completed the course equivalency process, please do so immediately. You cannot receive your grades without going through the course equivalency process.
- Contact studyabroad@baylor.edu with questions about equivalency.
- Submit a petition for course substitution if a course was expected to meet degree requirements, but it does not. This process must be completed within your college or academic department.
Research
As far as identifying courses for study abroad, it is important to know that all courses you take on the study abroad program will be assigned Baylor credits and grades. You can look at the historical course equivalency list available on the program brochure page in Bears Abroad, but this only shows the courses Baylor students have recently taken on the program, so the list is quite limited.
Here is the basic breakdown of how you might meet degree requirements:
- Any miscellaneous courses will count as elective courses. If you only need elective courses, you have the luxury to choose any courses available in the program that look interesting to you and that fulfill your personal and academic goals.
- General Core requirements are usually also easy to fulfill since there are many courses at Baylor that can fulfill the Baylor Core. Your academic advisor just needs to see that the course can fit into that particular core category.
- If you are looking to fulfill specific graduation requirements, you will need to do some more research on the specific course offerings. You will need to consult with your academic advisor to verify that the abroad course will be a match for a requirement in your major.