Pitt extends control over study abroad programs

Pitt’s Study Abroad Office identified a group of study abroad programs last month that… Pitt’s Study Abroad Office identified a group of study abroad programs last month that are not directly run by the University but will be recognized as partner programs.

The list of Pitt-recognized institutions includes the American University in Cairo, the London School of Economics, Konan University (for the Year In Japan Program) and Comenius University in Slovakia. Four schools will be recognized in Israel and two each in Germany and Poland.

Between this past December and February, Pitt’s Council of Deans, which sets academic policy, reviewed various third-party provider programs based on their academic merits. Those that passed made the list of Pitt-recognized institutions and providers. Some programs, such as Semester at Sea, will no longer be recognized program providers. The updated list includes programs through Arcadia University, Academic Programs International and the American Institute for Foreign Study, according to the Study Abroad Office website.

The policy that began this initiative was passed in the spring of 2007 and clarified in a subsequent memo in early 2008 as part of an larger effort to bring more control of study abroad programs to Pitt.

Larry Feick, senior director of International Programs, offered an example of how this could apply to students interested in studying abroad.

A student might want to study through the University of Wisconsin because a certain class isn’t offered through Pitt, Feick said.

“Recognized programs are pre-screened, where students don’t have to go through as much of a hassle as they would in getting a regular domestic transfer credit,” he said.

Feick said this change is a way to start building a set of provisionally recognized programs at Pitt.

“Once the approved process is in place, any non-Pitt programs will have to go through academic reviews to be on the list,” he said.

Participation in these programs will allow students to maintain registration at Pitt and use the University to process federal or state financial aid on the program. However, Pitt scholarship funding will not be eligible for it. A study abroad contract must be completed to participate.

“The recognized list is essentially making the process a little simpler for students studying abroad as a ‘stamp of approval’ ahead of time to make less work for the students in getting approval for their credits,” Feick said.

These programs differ from Panther Programs, which have been developed by Pitt faculty from various departments. The program developer travels with the students and teaches one or more classes in the program abroad.

All Panther Programs offer classes for Pitt credit, and in most cases, grades directly affect the student’s GPA.

Feick said that Pitt is trying to create more Panther Programs because “the University wants to have a better handle on the academic quality of a student’s experience abroad.”

“With programs that we create ourselves, we can control the choice of faculty and trust the syllabus,” Feick said.

He said whereas some universities only offer their own programs, Pitt doesn’t have a large enough undergraduate population to operate that way.

Students who study abroad through any other non-Pitt program do not maintain registration at the school during the semester they are abroad. They are also unable to process federal, state or University scholarships or financial aid on the program through Pitt. Students must contact the program provider directly to discuss processing aid.

Transcripts from non-Pitt programs are processed as transfer credit after the student has petitioned the school and spoken with his or her dean or academic adviser. This transfer credit does not factor into the student’s GPA.

Pitt also has exchange programs, in which students study abroad at another university and a student from the other university comes to Pitt.

George Stolakis, a junior who studied abroad last spring, said he chose the Pitt in London Panther Program because it was the cheapest option.

“I’m a business major, and there is a great business district over there. There’s no language barrier either, which was nice because I only know one language,” Stolakis said.

Stolakis said there were between 180 and 200 students on his trip. He said he would like to travel again, but money would be an issue and he did not receive any financial aid to apply to the program.

Feick said that some Panther Programs use third party providers to help them with logistics, whereas Pitt coordinates the academic aspects.

Pitt Multi-region Academic Program is a Panther Program that spends one month in Argentina, one month in South Africa and one month in China. It uses local companies to help find dorms, classrooms and local transportation for site visits. Pitt in London also uses a third-party provider to find internships.

Senior Dave Raboy traveled to Cyprus and 12 other locations in spring 2008 through the provider Global Learning Semesters. Raboy spent eight weeks in Cyprus and four weeks everywhere else. About 75 students went on the trip.

“I chose it just because I was able to see so many countries in one semester,” Raboy said.

Raboy also said that everyone on the trip took the same classes and that there were only a couple to choose from for the particular program he selected.

“They let you take classes with [non-Pitt] students. There was History of Art, Intro to the European Union, Geography, European Cultures and some others,” Raboy said.

Raboy said that at that time he was able to apply his Pitt scholarship money to the program.

Feick said it’s too early to say whether the number of students studying abroad would change with the new program implemented.

“We thought numbers would go down this year because of the recession — studying abroad is usually more expensive than normal tuition. But our numbers this year seem to be holding as steady as last year’s,” Feick said.