Frequently Asked Questions about Study Abroad and Home School Tuition
*Policy takes effect beginning Fall 2011*
WHY DO I HAVE TO PAY PC TUITION WHEN I STUDY ABROAD?
PC is committed to making study abroad a more integral and viable educational opportunity for all our undergraduates. This means, in order for study abroad to be equally accessible to all students, the College has to be able to provide institutional financial aid for students on aid when they study abroad. To accomplish that, the College relies on tuition revenue, since institutional merit and need-based financial aid comes from this revenue. In addition, academic credits and grades earned on study abroad are treated as PC credits and grades. The courses, credit, and grades are reviewed, approved, and then posted on the academic transcript. Course grades are calculated into the Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA). In sum, PC charges PC tuition for awarding PC academic credit.
WHAT IF THE PROGRAM TUITION IS MORE THAN PC TUITION?
PC will pay the program’s tuition fee up to the PC tuition rate amount. Students who elect to go on approved programs with a higher tuition cost will be charged the tuition differential between the program rate and the PC rate.
OKAY, BUT WHAT IF I CHOOSE A PROGRAM WHOSE TUITION IS LESS THAN PC TUITION? WHAT IS THE COLLEGE DOING WITH THAT MONEY?
The Center for International Studies, in conjunction with the faculty, selects and approves study abroad programs based on their academic rigor and integrity as well as for the quality of their student support services. Only then do we consider cost, with the aim primarily of finding programs that do not exceed PC tuition so that students do not incur additional expenses.
The PC tuition revenue from the students studying abroad is used to cover the tuition cost of the programs that students go on (up to the PC tuition rate). In addition, with the portability of institutional financial aid, tuition revenue, as for students on campus, is used to cover the PC financial aid amount for students with aid going abroad. The overall cost for study abroad to the College is several million dollars annually. Thus, in order to make study abroad fiscally viable for the institution, the College has adopted the practice used by many private liberal arts colleges in charging home school tuition for study abroad.
I RECEIVE PC FINANCIAL AID. HOW WILL MY AID APPLY FOR STUDY ABROAD?
Students with financial aid who are approved to go on study abroad will have their financial aid package reviewed by the Financial Aid office for the semester or year that they will be abroad. In some instances, the total aid amount may be adjusted higher or lower, based on the total cost of the program abroad. Federal Work-Study wages, by US law, are not portable for study abroad. However, in some cases, that amount can be replaced by additional loan or grant aid in order to keep the student’s financial aid total the same.
CAN YOU SAY MORE ABOUT HOW STUDENTS WILL BE BILLED FOR STUDY ABROAD?
When studying abroad, students will be invoiced by and pay the following to PC:
PC Tuition
$1000 study abroad fee
Student Health Insurance (if on the student PC Health Plan)
Students will pay room and board charges directly to the program or host institution. In the instance where that is not included with the program fee, in whole or in part (e.g., the program provides only a 15 meal plan), students pay for their own living and food expenses. In addition, students are responsible for any other costs affiliated with the program (e.g., insurance, security deposit)
Students remain responsible for airfare, visa, any required inoculations as well as other personal items and expenses.
CAN'T I JUST TAKE A LEAVE OF ABSENCE AND GET TRANSFER CREDIT WHEN I COME BACK?
No. The only way students can get PC academic credit for study abroad during the academic year is if they go through the approval process of the Center for International Studies. No academic credit is approved or awarded otherwise.
HOW WILL MY COURSE WORK ABROAD SHOW ON MY PC TRANSCRIPT?
The name of the program will be listed, along with the course titles, amount of credit and grades received, just as they do for courses taken on the PC campus.
WHAT ABOUT SUMMER STUDY ABROAD - DO I STILL PAY PC TUITION?
PC students can do summer study abroad following the freshmen, sophomore or junior year. The Home School Tuition policy does not apply for summer study abroad since financial aid is not portable for summer study. Therefore, students pay the program fee directly to the program. Students will be invoiced by and pay to PC the $200 Summer Study Abroad Fee.
The Center for International Studies offers information sessions for summer study abroad every Spring semester and has a formal application and transfer credit approval process. More information on summer study abroad can be found on our webpage under the summer study section.
HOW MANY SEMESTERS CAN I STUDY ABROAD?
Students may spend a maximum of two semesters abroad (and do summer study abroad in addition to or in place of semester study abroad). Students can elect to go on study abroad during the junior year or the first semester of the senior year. Sophomore transfer students may be able to spend only one semester abroad since at least half of the credits required for the major must be completed at PC.
HOW DOES PC CHOOSE AND APPROVE STUDY ABROAD PROGRAMS?
There are many hundreds of programs and their quality is not all the same. The Center for International Studies has developed a list of recognized programs that is reviewed and approved by the faculty. The program list is regularly evaluated and revised in order to insure that PC is approving only those programs that offer both high academic rigor and student support services. The Center requires that returning students complete an extensive program evaluation as part of the review and evaluation of programs.
South Africa