Purpose of Program

The purpose of the student exchange is to provide students from each participating institution an opportunity to have an educational experience in a foreign country; to experience the benefits of other cultures, approaches to education, and expertise of faculty at other institutions; and to study with students from other countries.

Admission Requirements

All students shall be bona fide students of the home institution and be engaged in a degree seeking course of study.  Prospective students will be selected for the exchange by the faculty/project coordinator or selection committee of the participant’s home institution.  Students will be expected to comply with all student requirements of the host institution.  Students who do not meet the minimum language requirements will not be admitted to the exchange program.

Students who desire to participate in the student exchange must apply for the program at least six months prior to the beginning of the semester for which the exchange will take place and submit all required supporting paperwork.

Registration Requirements

1.  Students must be registered for the full time equivalent as determined by the home institution. This is normally defined as a minimum load of 12 credit hours for undergraduates.

2.  Students are required to be registered for and complete a full semester of courses while participating in the exchange program.

3.  Courses which will be taken must be from a list of approved courses selected through joint agreement of the faculty from the host and home institutions.

Recognition of Credits and Studies Cross-Nationally

Partner institutions will have procedures and agreements to ensure that student credit earned during the study-abroad experience will transfer back to the home institution.  The home institution will examine the curriculum of the courses the student plans to schedule and provide approval in advance of the actual study-abroad experience.  The home and host institutions will agree on appropriate levels of achievement for the transfer to be successfully completed, with appropriate attention to the issues involved with receiving a grade or a pass/fail credit. 

Funding

The financial support for students who participate will be subsidized through funding granted by the governments of the United States of American and Brazil, specifically the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) of the US Department of Education and the Fundação Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Nível Superior (CAPES) of the Brazil Ministry of Education.   Students will receive a monthly stipend, funded by their respective govenments, to contribute to their overall expenses while in study abroad. 

Tuition and Fees, Insurance

Participating students will pay all tuition and fees to their home institution or will follow the procedures determined by the home institutions for the period of the exchange (normally one semester to two semesters).  The host institution will waive the tuition and associated fees for participating students arriving from the home institution.

Exchange participants are responsible for arranging and paying for their own in-country and international travel, medical insurance, passport and visa application fees, textbooks and other personal items.

Room and Board Fees and Provisions

Participating students will be responsible for the payment of room and board fees and for the costs of all other provisions required while participating in the exchange.

Selection Process

All exchange requirements must be met before a student may participate, including the appropriate International Student admissions process.  The selection process will comply with the requirements of the funding source, and the distribution of participants will be equal among institutions.

Student Responsibilities

Selected students shall abide by all applicable rules and regulations of the home and host institutions, and by all applicable laws, rules, and regulations of the home and host countries.  In the case of violations, both the host institution and the home institution have the right to terminate the student’s participation in the exchange, and the host institution has the right to expel the student from the exchange.