Dear Students:
The formidable challenges created by the current economic situation have led the University to reconsider how it offers study abroad opportunities to students. As part of this reconsideration, I have asked the International Programs Office to contain expenditures on study abroad. Containing costs may require the following steps for the 2009-10 regular academic year and beyond: strictly enforcing deadlines and eligibility requirements including GPA, capping the number of students enrolled in specific programs, increasing housing and program fees, deferring participation for some students until the following year, and/or suspending some programs during the 2009-10 academic year.
To make it possible to determine where and when students will be able to study abroad for next year in a timely way, it is also necessary to change the final petition deadline for all study abroad programs during the 2009-10 academic year from April 15, 2009, to February 3, 2009. The petition deadline for regular year exchanges and Summer 2009 remains April 15.
International Programs is doing everything it can to minimize disruption and maintain a range of high quality programs available to students. Please check the Study Abroad webpage at www.scu.edu/studyabroad for current information as it becomes available.
I regret the inconvenience that this may cause and hope you will understand that the current economic realities require some adjustments that were not anticipated at the beginning of this year.
Sincerely,
Lucia Albino Gilbert
Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
Provost Announces New Study Abroad Policy