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Study Abroad - Guidelines and Application Process for Knox Students

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Choosing Your Program 

Consider your academic goals, your academic and personal interests and career aspirations, and your academic preparation for particular programs. Explore the Stellyes Center webpages and the studyabroad.knox.edu website (the Terra Dotta application system you will use to apply for Knox approval for study abroad).  Consider that most programs are *semester* programs (and thus are half your Knox tuition plus the program's fees for room, board, etc. for 4.5 Knox credits (with passing grades), and that in the fall semester only one-third of your financial aid will travel with you whereas in spring semester half your financial aid will travel - because you won't need to reserve 2/3rds for winter and spring term) - that is, you pay Knox's tuition fee, which enables financial aid to travel and credits to return seamlessly (and not the program's tuition fee) and you pay the program provider's fees for room, board, program-related travel, supplemental insurance...whatever your chosen program includes in program fees), but not Knox room and board fees.  Spend time on the webpages of the programs that draw your interest. You may start your application by opening an account in the studyabroad.knox.edu website at any time in the months before the February 1 deadline. Note that there is a small administrative processing fee for the studyabroad.knox.edu - you will only be charged once for the year (and so you can apply for several programs - for example, if you want to be away in both the fall and winter/spring!). 

The Off-Campus Study: Multi-Year Planning and Preparation Timeline is a VERY helpful resource (see the nav bar to the left on this Stellyes Center website).

You will find program review websites that may be of help, but weigh reviews carefully and critically. Experiences on study abroad vary widely, and while some programs deservedly receive bad reviews, some don't - usually, people get out of a program what they put into it; patience with oneself and others, compassion, and a sense of humor go a long way. That said,  IIE Passport is a good resource; and  StudyAbroad.com and  abroad101.com also offer helpful program reviews. Diversity Abroad is an excellent resource.

Aggregator web sites include goabroad.com and gooverseas.com: both contain searchable databases organized by mode of international engagement (study abroad, internship, volunteerism, and more), region of the world, country, language, and scholarship opportunities; both provide program reviews and testimonials. The Lonely Planet offers sound advice for student travelers.

As you plan for study abroad / off-campus study, consider Knox courses and programs that help to prepare you well for the experience of immersion in another culture and locality, such as Social Justice Dialogues (IDIS120 and 220).

Application Process (A Two-Stage Process for Almost All Programs)

BASIC STEPS:  1) Visit the Stellyes Center for Global Studies in Alumni Hall to pick up program literature and explore program options; talk with faculty advisors about your choices; explore the Stellyes Center for Global Studies webpages listing the pre-approved programs; research programs of greatest interest on the program-provider webpages; narrow your choices to a few programs.

2) Attend the Fall Institute information sessions - the Study Abroad Application Workshop is mandatory for students intending to apply for approval for study abroad in the winter term of that academic year. Explore the pre-approved programs and make your choice of program and semester or term.

3) Create your account in the Knox Terra Dotta system - studyabroad.knox.edu.

4) Select your program within the Terra Dotta system and complete the internal Knox application process for approval to study abroad on or before FEBRUARY 1. Don't open multiple applications for a variety of programs in the Terra Dotta system! This will simply flood your inbox with reminders to complete all of the applications. Choose your program and the semester/term in which you want to study before starting your internal Knox application.  (For programs not on the pre-approved list, see below.)

  • When making an appointment to review the Financial Declaration and Cost Estimate worksheet with a counselor in the Office of Student Financial Services, email a completed copy of the worksheet in advance to financialservices@knox.edu.
  • Request a free unofficial transcript from the Registrar's Office for the internal Knox process in Terra Dotta.
  • Request letters of recommendation from two faculty members at Knox - you'll put their names and emails into the terra dotta system, so be sure to talk with them first! (They will receive an automated notice describing how to input their comments or upload their letter into the terra dotta system.)
  • Meet with your advisor to confirm your probable course selection and complete the Study Plan form, which you will then upload into your application account in the Terra Dotta system, studyabroad.knox.edu. (Courses for your semester of choice on the study abroad program in the future may not be set yet, but you can get a general idea of what is regularly available from the program provider's website for the current semester; you will want to be flexible - and if you have courses that you absolutely need for graduation from Knox, this is something to review closely with your advisor. While study abroad is a valuable experience, you don't want it to interfere with your anticipated graduation date! If you need Knox courses for your major, minor or general education program, be sure that you have a way to fulfill these requirements, either abroad or at Knox.)
  • Write, review and revise your application essay and short answers in the Terra Dotta system.
  • Watch for the major external (federal) scholarship programs (competitive and prestigious) for supplemental financial aid for international study - and apply if you are eligible!
  • Begin reviewing and acting upon the financial aid/merit scholarship opportunities offered by your chosen program provider - these program providers are often very generous with financial assistance - always inquire into this with them (AIFS, CEA, CIEE, IES, ISA, CYA, SIT, SFS, TEAN, etc).

5) If you are approved by Knox, you will then complete your chosen external program provider's application for admission process in its entirety—deadlines and application requirements vary, so you will want to explore the webpages of your chosen program's provider carefully and stay in good contact with the external program admissions people throughout the program-provider's application process and (of course) beyond, as you prepare to go on your chosen program. 

EARLY DEADLINES (start of December):  Several programs (the ACM/GLCA Japan Study and the IES Oxford programs) have early December deadlines for the internal Knox application because the actual, external program deadlines are early in January.  

PETITIONING TO APPLY FOR A PROGRAM NOT ON THE PRE-APPROVED LIST: If you want to apply for a program that is not on the Knox pre-approved list, you may do so. There are several steps:  1) You will need to complete the preliminary petition for a student initiated program in the Terra Dotta system (studyabroad.knox.edu) BEFORE the early December deadline.  2) If you are approved, you will then complete the application for approval to study abroad in the studyabroad.knox.edu system before the February 1 deadline (this is the internal process). 3) If you are approved for study abroad, you will then complete the external program application process—deadlines and application requirements vary, so you will want to explore the webpages of your chosen program's program provider carefully and stay in good contact with the external program admissions people throughout the application process and (of course) beyond, as you prepare to go on your chosen study abroad program.

Pre-Approved Programs

Knox offers a wide array of pre-approved programs. These are listed below by program provider and are listed on the Study Abroad & Off-Campus Study webpage by world region. There are two stages to the application process for these programs:  1) the internal Knox application for approval to apply (studyabroad.knox.edu) and 2) the external application for admission to the study-abroad provider of your chosen program  (these external deadlines vary widely so review the application guidelines on the website of your program provider carefully).

AIT-Budapest: Creativity in Computer Science and Software Engineering (Hungary)

AMIDEAST

Argonne Science Semester

Associated Colleges of the Midwest (ACM) 

Budapest Semesters in Mathematics (Hungary)

Carleton College

CIEE

College Year in Athens (Greece) (fall term option, as well as fall or spring semester or year)

DIS - Study Abroad in Scandinavia

  • Copenhagen Program with many tracks (architecture, biomedicine, child development and diversity, communication, computer science, environmental science of the arctic, European politics, history, global economics, international business, justice and human rights, literature, neuroscience, philosophy, prostitution and the sex trade, psychology, public health, sociology, sustainability, and urban studies
  • Stockholm Program with tracks in art, biology, communications, education studies, film studies, gender studies, journalism, religious studies, psychology, sociology and more

FIE

  • London Programs with many tracks, including public health and policy, arts, theatre, literature, business, global studies, history and politics, humanities and social sciences, media and communications. peace, and conflict and social justice

IES

Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies in Rome (Duke University)

ISA

ISDSI: International Sustainable Development Studies Institute (Thailand)

London School of Economics

Roger William University - London Program (Theatre and Culture)

Saint Andrews University (Scotland)

Sea Semester (Woods Hole) - beginning in the Fall of 2017, Knox and SEA Semester have an agreement that these programs, which occur on an unusually compressed and intensive academic calendar, will carry for Knox students the cost of a term and will provide 3 credits. Pay attention to the dates of each program on the SEA Semester website.

  • Caribbean Reef Expedition
  • Climate and Society
  • Colonization to Conservation in the Caribbean
  • Marine Biodiversity and Conservation
  • Ocean Exploration
  • Oceans and Climate
  • The Global Ocean
  • Sustainability in Polynesian Island Cultures and Ecosystems

SFS

SIT

  • For the websites of all of these programs, begin on the SIT Home Page
  • Cameroon: Development and Social Change
  • China: Health, Environment and Traditional Chinese Medicine (ON HOLD)
  • Iceland: Climate Change in the Arctic
  • India: Sustainable Development and Social Change
  • Indonesia: Arts, Religion and Social Change
  • Madagascar: Biodiversity and Natural Resource Management
  • Mongolia & Siberia: Nomadism, Geopolitics & the Environment
  • Morocco: Migration and Transnational Identity (with visit to the Netherlands)
  • Morocco: Multiculturalism and Human Rights
  • Nepal: Development, Gender & Social Change in the Himalaya
  • Nicaragua: Youth Culture, Literacy and the Media
  • Rwanda: Post-Genocide Restoration and Peacebuilding
  • South Africa: Multiculturalism and Human Rights
  • South Africa: Social & Political Transformation (with visit to Mozambique)
  • Switzerland: Global Health and Development Policy
  • Switzerland: International Studies and Multilateral Diplomacy
  • Tanzania: Zanzibar - Coastal Ecology and Natural Resource Management
  • Vietnam: Culture, Social Change and Development

The Education Abroad Network (TEAN)

  • Semester in Thailand 
  • Semester in Thailand and Vietnam (not presently active)
  • Semester in Thailand and Cambodia (not presently active)

Washington Semester Programs  (American University) - concentrations include American politics, foreign policy, global economics and business, international law and organizations, journalism and new media, justice and law, sustainable development, and professional development in Washington DC

Exchange Programs:

Akita International University (Japan)

Flensburg University (Germany) 

Kansai-Gaidai University Asian Studies Program (Japan)

University of Franche-Comté (at the Center for Applied Linguistics (CLA)) (France)

Student Initiated Programs: the deadline for the petition to apply for a program not on the pre-approved list is December 1.

And one more time!  ... Deadlines:  The Deadline for the Application for Permission to Study Off-Campus is February 1 (with the exception of the IES Oxford program, the ACM/GLCA Japan Study program and the Student Petition to Apply for a Program off the Pre-approved List - all have December 1 deadlines). Choose the "petition" program in studyabroad.knox.edu (the terra dotta application system).

Knox College

https://www.knox.edu/offices/global-studies/study-abroad-guidelines-and-application-process-for-knox-students

Printed on Wednesday, April 24, 2024