The Course Approval Process Your Questions Answered! 1. What is a - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

The Course Approval Process Your Questions Answered!

1. What is a course approval form and where do I get it? 2. How do I get a course approved for transfer credit? 3. Who approves the courses I plan to take abroad? 4. What if I don’t need a course to count for my major and/or minor ? 5. If I want a course to transfer as elective credit, does it need to be approved? 6. What about General Education courses? 7. Where and when do I submit my completed course approval form? 8. What if I need to change a course(s) once I’m abroad? 9. What if I don’t get my courses approved?

1. What is a course approval form and where do I get it? • It is a 3-part form that is used by the registrar’s office to reconcile against your abroad transcript. • Includes your student info, the titles of the courses you plan to take abroad and their Stonehill course and credit equivalencies. • The form is available in the Office of International Programs (Duffy 131) and will be given to you by a staff member. • Once completed, retain the pink copy for your records.

2. How do I get courses approved for transfer credit? • Check with the OIP Office for a listing of courses already approved • Is the course listed in the database of pre-approved courses? • “Yes”, Then your OIP advisor sign off on the course. • “No”, then you must receive approval via signature or email from appropriate department chair or program director.

3. Who approves the courses I plan to take abroad? • The Department Chair or the Program Director in the department that best relates to the topic of the course. • Provide the Department Chair/Program Director with a course description and syllabus (if available). Most course descriptions can be found on your program’s website. The Department Chair will decide  to allow the course to fulfill a major or minor requirement;  the course will transfer as elective credit within the department;  the abroad course can be substituted for a course within the discipline;  the course does not qualify for credit. The Office of International Programs will provide you with the names and office locations of Department Chairs and Program Directors.

Repeat this process for each course you might possibly enroll in while abroad. You should have 6-10 courses pre-approved prior to going abroad. All courses must be approved! Additional Notes: Write LEGIBLY and in PEN and make sure you fill in ALL required fields! Incomplete or illegible forms will be returned to student.

4. What if I don’t need a course to count for my major and/or minor? • Regardless of your major or minor, the appropriate department chair or program director will decide on the transferability of the course and must sign off on the course. • In order to graduate with enough credits, you will need to enroll in a full course load for the semester you are abroad. • No more than half of major or minor course requirements can be taken abroad. Note: The number of courses a student can take toward their major or minor is determined by the major or minor Department Chair.

5. If I want a course to transfer as elective credit, does it need to be approved? Yes. All courses taken abroad must be pre-approved by a either by a Department Chair or Program Director or by your OIP advisor if it’s in the database of approved courses. 6. What about General Education courses? First, have a Department Chair approve the course within the discipline. Next, meet with Assistant Dean of General Education, Prof. Todd Gernes (located in Duffy 131) for course review and approval of any General Education course. (C.I.T., Moral Inquiry, etc.)

7. Where and when do I submit my completed course approval form? • Submit the form to the Office of International Programs by the stated deadline. • Bring the pink copy of the form with you when you go abroad. • Deadlines are normally one week before the last day of classes. 8. What if I need to change a course(s) once I’m abroad ? • E-mail both your OIP Advisor and the appropriate Department Chair (see next slide). • The course is not approved until we have e- mail confirmation from the Department. It is your responsibility to follow up with the Department Chair if you do not receive a response within a reasonable time.

Sending an e-mail to a Department Chair while you are ON campus Subject: Course approval – [your name] cc: [your OIP advisor] Dear [insert professor’s name], I will be studying abroad this [insert semester] at [insert university name] in [insert country] and would like to know if and how the following course might transfer back to Stonehill. Course title, credits [foreign/U.S. Equivalency] [paste course description and include a link to the syllabus, if available] Thank you, [your name]

Sending an e-mail to a Department Chair while you are abroad and need a course approved ASAP Subject: time-sensitive course approval – [your name] cc: [your OIP advisor] Dear [insert professor’s name], I am currently studying abroad at [insert university name ] in [insert country] and would like to know if and how the following course might transfer back to Stonehill. Course title, credits [foreign/U.S. Equivalency] [paste course description and provide a link to the syllabus if available] Please note that the deadline for making any change to my schedule is [insert date], so I would really appreciate if you could get back to me soon. Thank you for your assistance, [your name]

9. What if I don’t get my course(s) approved? Course(s) taken without approval WILL NOT transfer to Stonehill.

DEPT. FIRST NAME LAST NAME OFFICE LOCATION Art Shane Savage-Rumbaugh Cushing Martin 007 Biology Magda James-Pederson Science Center, 311 Business Administration Debra Salvucci Stanger Hall, 212 Chemistry Louis Liotta Science Center, 311 Communication Anne Mattina Cushing Martin 111 Computer Science Ralph Bravaco Stanger Hall, 304 Economics Akira Motomura Duffy, 290 Education Kathy McNamara Education 207 English Jared Green Cushing Martin, 119 Environmental Studies Susan Mooney Science Center, 104 Foreign Languages Juan Carlos Martin Galvan Duffy, 244 Gender/Sexuality Studies Wendy Chapman Peek Cushing Martin 123 Graphic Design Adam Lampton Cushing Martin 011 Health Care Admin Tom Gariepy Duffy, 282 History Kevin Spicer Duffy, 252 Interdisciplinary Studies Peter Ubertaccio Martin Institute 233 Mathematics Hsin-hao Su Duffy 241 Music & Dance Lisa Redpath Cushing Martin 012 Neuroscience John McCoy Science Center 215 Philosophy Anna Lännström Duffy, 237 Physics Alessandro Massarotti Science Center, 311 Political Science Anna Ohanyan Martin Institute, 221 Psychology Michael Tirrell Science Center, 311 Religious Studies Mary-Joan Leith Student Union, 202 Sociology & Criminology Erica Tucker Martin Institute, 202 Theatre Patricia Sankus Duffy 100