Eligibility Policy

Study Abroad Eligibility Policies

Study Abroad Information Session: Students must attend a mandatory information session in the Fall of their sophomore year.

Class Standing: Students must be sophomores to apply to study abroad, and study abroad during the junior year.  With the support of faculty and their dean, students may receive permission from the Director of Global Education to apply in their first-year to study abroad in Spring of sophomore year.  With the support of their faculty and permission from the Special Cases Committee (which must grant an exception to the expectation that senior year be spent in residence), students may apply as juniors for study abroad in the Fall of senior year. 

GPA & Progress Towards Degree: Students applying to study abroad are expected to have, and to maintain, a minimum cumulative and major GPA of 2.5. Students are expected to be making good progress towards their degree and to be well-qualified for their desired program abroad.

Transfer Students: Students who have transferred to Bryn Mawr with 12 or fewer transfer credits may be eligible to study abroad. Transfer students who want to study abroad should consult with their dean and major advisor about whether they have grounds to ask for an exception to the residency requirement (which states that a student must earn 24 of the total 32 units in residence at Bryn Mawr College). 

Foreign Language: Students applying to a program in which the primary language of instruction is not English must confirm with the major advisor in the relevant language department that they have adequate preparation. Most non-English speaking programs expect students to complete at least intermediate language courses prior to admission, and some require more advanced preparation.

Major Work Plan: All students must complete a Major Work Plan with their major adviser and have that adviser submit a Major Adviser Evaluation Form. Unless they are applying for an Early Application program, students may receive initial approval for study abroad prior to completion of these documents, but they must be complete before students can be cleared for departure.

Semester or Year: Bryn Mawr students typically study abroad for one semester in the fall of the junior year. Students who want to study abroad in  the spring semester or for a full year must meet criteria below.

Criteria for Spring Study Abroad: A limited number of spring spaces will be available for students whose academic or athletic commitments require their presence on campus in the fall.

The Committee will consider approving a student to study abroad in the spring if:

• The major program requires that the student be in residence at Bryn Mawr in the fall but not in the spring.
• The student would not be able to take required courses following the study abroad semester in the appropriate sequence without being in residence in the fall semester.
• The student will not meet the prerequisites for the study abroad program until the spring semester, or
• The student has been a member of a fall varsity athletic team during the student's freshmen and sophomore years and wants to remain on campus to compete in the student's junior year as well. Other academic, non-academic, extra-curricular, or personal reasons will also be taken into consideration but will be given lower priority.

If you are requesting to study abroad in the spring semester, the application will ask you to indicate the reason you are unable to study abroad in the fall semester.

Criteria for full year study abroad: Foreign language majors and students applying to Oxford or LSE may study abroad for the full academic year. The Study Abroad Committee will consider requests for exceptions to this policy from students who present a compelling academic plan for a full year of immersion on a program central to their academic interests.

Pre-Departure Residency : Each applicant for study abroad is expected to be on campus during the semester preceding study abroad.

Mandatory Pre-Departure Orientation: Students must attend a mandatory pre-departure orientation the semester before their study abroad term, prior to leaving campus to go abroad. For example, a student who will study abroad fall of the junior year must attend a pre-departure orientation spring semester of their sophomore year.