FAQs

Students can study globally during their junior year, second semester of their sophomore year, or first semester of their senior year. If you want to study globally at a different point in your Gettysburg career, you must petition for special permission through the Center for Global Education. Please note: All students must spend the semester prior to global study, on campus at Gettysburg College and have spent a minimum of one year in residence.

Most Gettysburg students study globally for one semester. Students can sometimes study globally for a second semester. Gettysburg College offers an excellent residential education with an abundance of extracurricular activities that are all part of the Gettysburg experience. Therefore, students must have a compelling reason to study globally for a second semester, such as a language major who plans to spend a year in the same location, a student who is required to study abroad for both majors and is unable to meet both requirements in one location, or a student who wishes to take advantage of Gettysburg’s proximity to Washington DC through the semester-long internship opportunity. If a second semester is approved, a student would not receive a flight credit. Students should speak to a CGE advisor about this process.

There are a variety of scholarship opportunities for global study students including some offered by Gettysburg College. Further information about scholarships can be found here on the CGE website.

Yes! Students are required to meet with their academic advisor(s) prior to meeting with CGE. Faculty will not only be supportive of your plans for global study, they also know a lot about programs that are particularly suited for their majors.

If you are interested in one of the language programs in Spain, Latin America, Italy, France, Germany, China, or Japan there are professors in each of the language departments that specialize in advising on programs in those regions.

Students who receive academic, dietary, disability, or housing accommodations are still eligible to, and are encouraged to, participate in global study. You should schedule a meeting with Theresa Hoover, Assistant Dean for Student Accessibility, to discuss your options. It is also strongly encouraged that you notify a CGE advisor or staff from your program regarding your accommodations. The earlier you are able to inform staff of this information the better as it will allow them more time to find an appropriate program.

If you are receiving accommodations for a learning disability, attention deficit disorder, seeing a Counselor for any special needs, or have any specific physical needs it is also important to include trusted advisors in the Center for Student Success or professionals in Counseling and Health Services in discussions regarding your global study plans. 

Please note that CGE does not have access to information regarding accommodations you already have on file with Gettysburg College. 

All students need to submit various applications and forms in order to participate in global study (letters of recommendation, payment understandings, waivers, etc.). Some of these forms are generated by CGE and some by the program provider applications.

Yes there is. Students who study internationally will have flight costs, passport and visa fees, and sometimes vaccines will be required. The amount varies by which region of the world you are studying in. Other costs vary according to your lifestyle and travel plans. It is a good idea to start planning - and saving money - as soon as you can!

Once you have chosen your program, you may start your application for global study the semester prior to your global study term. All students' records are checked at the end of the semester prior to their global study term to determine if they have maintained good academic and disciplinary standing.

October 1^st is the Gettysburg application deadline to study globally Spring semester. March 1^st is the Gettysburg application deadline to study globally Fall semester. These are the final dates that you can apply to study globally - no extensions are given on these dates. Program application deadlines vary. Check your program’ website for their application deadlines (they may fall before or after the Gettysburg application deadlines).

You cannot have more than one program application open at a time. Students are able to change programs as long as the program application deadline has not passed.

In order to transfer 4 units back to Gettysburg, you will need to take the equivalent of a full-time course-load during your semester of global study. The number of courses which constitutes a full-time course-load varies from program to program. Students on Affiliated Programs transfer back credit and grades; students on Non-Affiliated Programs receive only credit.

Gettysburg College does not have Pass/Fail, we have S/U. It is important for you to first understand Gettysburg College’s S/U policy.

“The College offers a satisfactory/unsatisfactory grading option. This option is intended to encourage students to be adventurous intellectually in courses with subject matter or approaches substantially different from their prior academic experience or attainment. An S signifies satisfactory work, and is given if a student performs at the C- level or higher; a U signifies unsatisfactory work, and is given for work below the C- level. Courses graded S/U do not affect a student’s quality point average, but a course completed with an S grade will count toward the total number of courses needed for graduation. A student may elect to take a total of six courses on an S/U basis during his or her four years at Gettysburg College; however, no more than two S/U courses may be taken in any one year. This grading option may not be selected for requirements for graduation, or for courses taken in a student's major field. Exceptions may be made with regard to the major in cases where a department specifies that a particular course is available under the S/U grading system only, and in cases where the student declares the major after taking the course. A student must choose the S/U grading option during the first ten class days of the semester.”

Now that you understand Gettysburg College’s S/U policy you need to check about your program’s policy. Many programs don’t have an S/U policy and even if they do it might be different than Gettysburg’s. You can only take a course S/U if your program’s policy is the same as Gettysburg’s. If you plan to take a course S/U, you must get it approved by both Gettysburg College and your program.

If you do not currently have a passport or your passport will expire within 6 months of your expected return from your global study semester, plan to submit your application as soon as possible. Passport processing time is currently longer than 2 months, so you may need to expedite it. Please immediately notify CGE if you will need to apply for a new passport and we can advise on different options available to you in order to expedite the process. Some programs will require that you have your new passport in-hand months prior to departure for visa purposes. Students who experience delays in obtaining their passport may need to consider programs that do not require a lot of lead time for obtaining your visa. Students should also note that there can be significant additional costs associated with the need to expedite passport processing.

It depends on your citizenship, where you are going, and the duration of your stay. Check with your program provider and your host country's embassy website to determine whether or not you need a visa. For additional information, visit our site for Passport and Visa Information

If you’ve been expressly told by your program that you need a visa, you will begin the application after the program application’s due date. You will receive instructions from the program provider and you may begin collecting any documents they recommend, but do not submit your visa application until you have been told to do so by your program provider or host university. Some countries will require that you visit an Embassy or Consulate in the United States to secure your visa, so be sure to build that travel into your plans and anticipate the extra costs and time associated with it. The location of the Embassy or Consulate is often mandated by the country and may be far away from Gettysburg College or your home, thus the extra costs and time needed could be significant. Continue to monitor your email closely for instructions from your program provider. CGE will provide a letter of enrollment and financial support by email. Please also remember you must have your valid passport in hand in order to apply for your visa since many visa applications require that you submit your passport to the Embassy or Consulate along with the visa application.

Potentially, but it depends on a few key factors. Any courses offered remotely would need to be taught by the student’s host institution with the potential to move to in-person. For example, one institution may offer several courses that will be taught remotely for the first few weeks of the semester with the intention of moving in-person later in the semester. In this case, students would be permitted to enroll in these online courses. However, some programs may offer remote courses that are actually taught by faculty from other institutions (ex. a program in Berlin may offer coursework taught remotely by another program centered in Costa Rica). In this case, there is no opportunity for these courses to transition into in-person coursework, and Gettysburg students would not be permitted to enroll in these courses. Please reach out to CGE if you are uncertain whether a course is taught remotely or in-person, or if you are unsure if you should enroll in a particular course.

The answer to this question depends highly on timing. Generally speaking, you may re-enroll in courses offered by Gettysburg College until the add/drop deadline for your semester. Students should be aware of College deadlines as they make decisions about participation in global study. 

If a student voluntarily withdraws from a program there may be financial implications. It is important to read the terms and conditions of your program thoroughly to understand their unique policies.

Program providers and host universities globally consider travel advisory levels issued by the U.S. Department of State, the Centers for Disease Control, the World Health Organization, and other information from trusted sources as they make decisions about whether their programs will run, and whether their universities will be open to in-person teaching. CGE works with the International Travel Review Advisory Committee (ITRAC) and other campus entities to review participation policies associated with these travel advisories, as well as general risk levels. Students will be required to acknowledge and accept the risks and responsibilities associated with global study by signing an Agreement and Release document prior to participating. At times of elevated risk such as traveling during the COVID-19 pandemic, students will also be required to sign an Acknowledgement of Risks document recognizing the unique circumstances in their host country as detailed in the DOS Travel Advisories and CDC Travel Health Notices. If the risk level increases during the global study semester, the Acknowledgement of Risks will be updated as well. Students will be required to sign the updated Acknowledgement of Risks if they wish to continue with the program. If the risk decreases during the global study semester, no additional notifications will be made.

Please note that some scholarship programs such as the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program may withdraw funding based on heightened DOS Travel Advisory levels. Questions about scholarships should be directed to the scholarship-granting agency.

Additionally, it is possible that travelers who cannot prove they are vaccinated may not be granted entry into a country, specific tourist sites, or may be subject to additional measures such as a mandatory quarantine and/or testing regime