Santa Clara University

Tying Up Loose Ends From Your Study Abroad Experience

Here are some questions that we frequently get from students just returned from studying abroad:

When Will I Get My Transcript?
Transcripts from your study abroad experience usually take about two months or longer to be received, depending on the program. So it is not unusual for those to arrive at Santa Clara in February or March.

The process is this: transcripts are received by our Student Records Office. The analyst there will post them as soon as they are able, in accordance with the classes you got approved on your blue sheet or indicated as pre-approved from the website. Until your transcript arrives, your student record will still list the UNIV 199 study abroad class for 19 units. Once the real grades arrive, they will swap out for the UNIV 199 class with the real courses you took, and you will be able to view your grades on E-Campus.

All classes that you took abroad (which appear on the transcript that SCU receives from your abroad program) will be entered into your student record.

My Program Needs an Address To Send My Final Transcript To.
Student Records Office
Santa Clara University
500 El Camino Real
Santa Clara, CA 95053

How Do I Get a New Course Approved That I Took Abroad?
Simple - the same way you did it before you left. Blank blue course approval sheets are available in the International Programs Office. Just come pick one up, speak with the appropriate department chair (there is a list on the course approvals page), show him or her the course description, and obtain a signature. Bring the new approvals back to the International Programs Office and we will take care of getting copies over to the Student Records Office and the Drahmann Center so they have record as well.

Are the Units I Took Abroad Upper Divison or Lower Division Units?
One semester unit transfers to Santa Clara as 1.5 quarter units. A three-unit semester class will be 4.5 units at Santa Clara.

The determination of whether those are upper or lower division units depends on how you got them approved. If you take, say, a beginning art class abroad that is equivalent to ART 001 here at SCU (hypothetically speaking) then those 4.5 units are 4.5 lower division units.

If you take an advanced Shakespearean lit class abroad which is approved to count as ENGL 199, or an U/D English Elective, then those 4.5 units are 4.5 upper division units.

Once your grades are entered into your record, you can check E-Campus and see if they have been entered as lower or upper division units. Any questions about how the units were entered can be resolved with the Student Records Office.

Why Is My Program Billing me for $460 (for example)?
If you took a class that had a special course fee, or if you have outstanding fees or fines from your program abroad, and they are billing you directly, please be aware that you do need to pay this amount directly back to your program. Santa Clara only pays your program for the "base rate" of the program - the standard room and board fee (plus any adjustments we are aware of at the outset, such as program scholarships). Since most of the time you don't register for courses until you get on site, including courses with special fees, your program bills you directly for that. Please pay the invoice, and check with International Programs if you have any specific questions about your account.