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Study Abroad Course Approval

Study Abroad Course Approval

IE3 Global Internship credits

If you are completing an IE3 Global Internship listed in the abroad websites below you register for INTL 410 credit which may be counted for up to 3 credits of experiential learning electives for the biology or zoology majors. The INTL credits also count toward elective credits to reach the 180 credits needed to graduate, and many students need additional credits to reach 180 as the major and Baccalaureate Core courses do not automatically add up to 180 credits. If you have question about how to sign up for INTL 410, please reach follow up with your IE3 contact or email info@ie3global.org for more information. If you are seeking approval for IE3 Global Internships not listed on the Go Abroad in Biology and Zoology website or Go Abroad in Human Health Professions website, email Brock McLeod (brock.mcleod@oregonstate.edu) with a description of the IE3 Global Internship in question. Only internships listed on the OSU GO website can be approved as part of your degree program.

Go Abroad in Biology and Zoology
Go Abroad in Human Health Professions


Study abroad course selection

Students who are completing a study abroad program listed in the links below will receive OSU credit for courses taken abroad. Students complete the process of course approval once accepted to the program but can begin to explore options by discussing their intended program with their advisor and asking OSU GO about lists of past courses completed in the program of interest or by reviewing the courses in the Study Abroad Course Equivalency Database. The database includes course designators completed previously (for example, James Cook University (JCU) offers marine biology courses under the MB designator) which can give you clues to departments that likely offer courses of interest, and some courses that might work may not be in the database or articulated to things that will work of your major. Looking up that designator on school websites can often produce other courses to consider.

Go Abroad in Biology and Zoology
Go Abroad in Human Health Professions

A few considerations for study abroad course selection are outlined below:

  • Some schools have study abroad student pages which can be useful to research before you look elsewhere. In some cases these outline specific restrictions, course access and information about the timing of terms. Ask OSU GO for tips on this.
  • Make sure you review courses to confirm they are offered the term you plan to attend. Most biology and zoology students will want to go in our summer to fall term (leaving early in summer) to avoid disrupting their major series courses. Be sure to account for the term numbering or season being counterintuitive if you are looking at a school in the Southern Hemisphere (e.g. our fall is spring in Australia).
  • Courses taken abroad in European systems (most of the world) with 100 (or 1000) level numbers are generally equivalent to 100-200 level OSU courses here, while courses with 200-300 (or 2000-3000) numbers tend to be 300-400 level OSU courses. Make sure you have the equivalent of the listed prerequisites for upper division courses at other schools.
  • Students who are going for a term abroad should focus on single-term, non-series courses, and health profession students should not take any professional prerequisites abroad. Advisors can generally help with scheduling all or part of series at other times.
  • It is a good idea to focus on elective categories in your major and option which are more easily approved than specific OSU courses. For example, look for organismal biology or ecology, evolution and conversation elective categories which could allow many courses to work instead of focusing on a specific course like BI 445 Evolution which needs to match very closely to OSU.
  • It is a good idea to strongly consider courses you cannot take at OSU and take advantage of where you are going.
  • Students can generally take some courses abroad that do not count for specific requirements and still graduate in four years. Courses taken abroad on OSU approved programs count toward the 180 requirements for graduation even if they do not complete specific major or Baccalaureate Core requirements.
  • If you are taking courses to complete another major or minor you should seek separate advising approval from those programs. In particular, abroad courses can frequently be counted toward University Honors College requirements.

Once you have been accepted to your program, you can developed a list of courses of interest and what you hope to count them for, you can email Brock McLeod with the list. In this list, you should include the course descriptions and course number at the other school (cut and paste them in to an email) along with any ideas you have about what you hope to count them for in your program. This email will start the process of getting approval for the course.