Eligibility

To study abroad, you must be cleared by your school. For clearance procedures and with any questions about eligibility, please see Dean Scott Carpenter with a completed Clearance Form. In order to be cleared, you must:

  • Be a student in good standing with at least a 3.0 grade point average.If you are studying in a foreign language, you must have a 3.0 GPA in that language.

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  • Be making progress toward finishing the Core Curriculum. You cannot complete any of your Core requirements abroad and need to show that studying abroad will not delay your graduation. Your language requirement must be completed before studying abroad no matter where you go.

  • Have at least intermediate language proficiency level or higher, if it is required by that program, if you are planning on attending a program in a foreign country where the native language is not English.

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  • Take a language or literature course in the language of your host country the semester before you go abroad.

  • Have completed a course at Columbia that focuses on regional issues (preferably contemporary or at least 20th century) in the area where you intend to study.You may take a broader course and focus on issues in your specific country with a term paper.For example, a student who is planning on studying in the Czech Republic might take a course on the European Union and then focus the term paper on the economic and social integration of the Czech Republic into the EU.

  • If you are a premedical student interested in studying abroad, you should talk with your class advisor in the second term of your first year so that you can plan to meet the pre-med requirements on time.There are programs that specifically address the academic needs of premed students.

  • Transfer students who wish to study abroad should contact their class advisor as soon as possible to discuss their plans. Transfer students should note that College students are allowed no more than 45 points of outside credit (including advanced credit and non-Columbia summer school) SEAS students are allowed up to 69 points of outside credit.