Study Abroad Credit

• If you are participating in an Exchange program, you will be registered in EXCH credit while you are abroad.  You will be charged UTEP tuition for this credit.
• If you are participating in a Third Party Provider program, you will be registered in AFIL credit.  You will not be charged UTEP tuition.
• Grades from your Study Abroad program are not calculated into your GPA.  You will receive transfer credit for the classes you take abroad.

Course Credit Approval Process

• To participate in a Study Abroad program through UTEP, you must get all of the courses you plan to take abroad pre-approved by the Department Chair(s). 
  
• If you are participating in a semester-long program, you must get a minimum of 8 courses approved and if you are participating in a short-term or summer long program must get 4 or 6 courses approved (depending on the length of your program). 
  
• You must complete the Credit Approval form and turn it in to the Study Abroad Office before your program begins.

Directions for Students to complete the Credit Approval Form:

1. Review the available courses online on the University or program’s website.
2. Find the course description or syllabus for the courses you want to take abroad.
3. Determine which Department the course(s) would be part of and locate the appropriate Department Chair.  For example, if you plan to take a History course, then the Chair of the History Department must approve the course.
4. Make an appointment with the appropriate Department Chair to have the course(s) approved.
5. Bring the Credit Approval form and course descriptions or syllabus to your meeting with the Department Chair.
6. After receiving approvals from the Department Chair(s), meet with your Academic Advisor to determine if the courses you intend to take will count as part of your degree plan or as electives.
7. If during your time abroad you will be enrolled in 24 out of the last 30 semester credit hours you need to take to complete your degree, you must complete the Residency Waiver Form.

Important Student Reminders:

• You must enroll in the equivalent of 12 U.S. Credits (for Undergraduate students) and 9 U.S. Credits (for Graduate students) for semester long, exchange programs.  If you take more credits, then you will be charged for the extra courses upon your return.
• You must not duplicate any previous coursework.
• All courses on your transcript must be approved. 
• Do not enroll in any course abroad that you do not want to receive credit for or that has not been approved.
• Federal Financial Aid will only apply to classes that will count toward your declared major or minor.

While Abroad

• If the courses you got pre-approved are not available when you register abroad, you will need to email the Department Chair immediately and request credit approval for any other courses in which you want to enroll.  Also, email your Academic Advisor to ensure the course will be count as part of your degree plan. 
  
• DO NOT ENROLL IN ANY COURSE ABROAD THAT HAS NOT BEEN APPROVED BY THE DEPARTMENT CHAIR OR ACADEMIC ADVISOR.

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Directions for Department Chairs to complete the Credit Approval Form:

• Please evaluate the course request by the student and determine the most suitable UTEP equivalent.
• If an equivalent is available, please provide a specific course name and number from the UTEP catalog.
• Please sign the Credit Approval form and return it to the student.

Important Reminder for Department Chairs:

• Only award credit for courses listed in the current UTEP catalog.
• ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System) is used in most European Countries.  One ECTS credit is equivalent to .5 U.S. credits; therefore, 3 U.S. credits is equal to 6 ECTS credits.  You are able to round up or down for courses of 5, 6, or 7 ECTS to have it equal 3 US credits. 
• If a student requests approval for a course that is less than 5 ECTS, you must “bundle” similar courses to create a minimum of 6 ECTS credit in order to provide equivalent UTEP credit.
• Equivalencies must be awarded on course content and not student ability.

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Directions for the Academic Advisors to complete the Credit Approval Form:

Please review the courses on the Credit Approval form that the student has had evaluated by the Department Chairs and determine if the courses will count as part of the student’s University core curriculum, major requirements, minor requirements or electives.  Please sign the form and return it to the student.

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Directions for the Dean’s Office to Complete the Credit Approval Form:

Please review and approve the student’s final course selections.  Please sign the form and return it to the student.