Greetings from USF! We hope this year is off to a great start for you.
If you are interested in applying to be an exchange student, the first step is to visit the international office at your home university. Students applying for exchange places must apply through their home university’s exchange coordinator to insure all students being processed are eligible for enrollment at their home university. You may not apply independently of your university for any exchange places.
Students seeking a degree from USF must enroll for a full program through the International Admissions office.
Please read the following page very carefully.
Student applications will be considered incomplete unless all of the following materials are received. To access forms visit the Incoming Exchange Forms page. [If you have difficulty downloading forms please contact our office and the documents will be sent to you via e-mail.]
Required Forms:
- USF Study Abroad Application
- Immunization Records
- Financial Verification:Complete only when authorized by a bank or accompanied by bank documents and a letter of support should those funds be in a name other than the student’s. Scholarships, grants, or government funds require a letter of offer which states the amount being disbursed. Students should be advised that the US Embassy will also require proof of funding when they go for their visa interview.
- A copy of the student’s passport
- Official transcripts from the student’s home university
- Health Insurance Verification Form
- Housing Application / Meal Plan: Students planning to make independent arrangements for housing are asked to inform the Study Abroad Office of their decision in the form of a letter attached to the application so their application is not considered incomplete. Please note that all students applying for on-campus housing are required to submit a Meal Plan form in order to be considered for housing assignment. If you are notified as placed in one of the listed "Apartment-style" Housing options then you will have the option to cancel your Meal Plan.
Please read the following instructions thoroughly. You will find links to our required exchange student application forms at the bottom of this page.
- Application Deadlines
- Course Selection
- Health Insurance
- Housing and Meal Plan
- Estimated Expenses
- Useful Links
Application Deadlines:
We will have two deadlines for submission of USF Incoming Exchange Application Materials.
- For students beginning classes in our Fall Semester, we need completed applications submitted by April 24th.
- For students beginning classes in our Spring Semester, we need completed applications by September 24th.
- ADVISORS, PLEASE NOTE: You need not wait to forward Spring Semester applications until the Fall Semester cycle has passed. However, Spring classes are not published until a later date and those classes can not be confirmed until that time.
Forms should be returned by fax or mail to the address below.
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Course Selections:
Keep in mind that 12 credit hours is considered “full time” at USF for immigration purposes (undergraduate students). This typically comprises of 3 or 4 classes, depending on the number of credit hours associated with the course.
Your students can look up available courses at: http://usfweb.usf.edu/ssearch/search.htm (HINT: your students should select "Tampa" as their campus, as this is where our offices are located and the other campus' are too far to commute to). Students should seek approval from your University for their course requests before submitting them to USF. Fall classes will not be posted until sometime in late February/early March. Spring courses are not posted until the end of October/beginning of November. Your students can also look up classes (although this method WILL NOT state if the course is being offered in the Fall Term) through the Undergraduate Catalog. The Undergraduate Catalog can be found at: http://www.ugs.usf.edu/catalogs.htm.
Students intending on taking courses in USF’s College of Business, College of Education, College of Engineering, Mass Communications, Information Systems Management, and ALL GRADUATE programs should contact the respective academic departments prior to sending selected courses to the USF Study Abroad Office. Once the student has corresponded with the advisors of those departments and received approval to take their intended courses, it is asked that a copy of the authorization email is sent to the Study Abroad Office along with the requested courses.
Students applying for courses in the College of Business will be limited to no more than 3 courses within the college in their finalized course schedule. Students who are studying business will need to choose some options outside of the College of Business in order to complete their academic schedule. Most courses in the College of Business are 3 credit hours each. The College of Business is experiencing high numbers of enrolment and therefore can not give exchange students a full schedule in business courses only. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause your students. However, it is positive in that your students can select non-business courses to learn more about US culture and society. The university does offer a wide range of interesting courses that any student would qualify for. We feel this would add a unique perspective to their overall experience at USF. We are able to offer suggestions based on your student’s interest. Please contact me at your convenience. Upper level Accounting courses are not available to exchange students, as well as Media and Broadcasting courses in Mass Communications.
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Health Insurance:
The University also requires MANDATORY health coverage for students studying at USF as an exchange student. Students must purchase the USF insurance policy that is guaranteed to fulfill requirements set forth by the State of Florida/USF for immigration purposes. You can find information on the health insurance at http://shsweb.shs.usf.edu/SHSForms.html.
The only exception to this rule is for those students who are enrolled in an insurance policy through their home institution that has been reviewed and pre-approved to meet all requirements prior to arrival at USF. The Health Insurance Verification Form lists the requirements of insurance. Inability to prove full insurance coverage by the second week of classes will result in a change of visa status and possible termination of the exchange in accordance with U.S. Department of State Regulations (CFR 22 Sec. 62.14 Insurance).
http://shsweb.shs.usf.edu/ins/insurance.html#Policy.
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Housing & Meal Plan:
Our housing office has instructed us that they can only guarantee space up until March 1st. As such, we would like to receive your housing and meal plan applications by February 15th for the fall semester. This will allow us enough time to have the student's application reviewed before the housing deadline. After March 1st, we will not be able to guarantee on-campus housing. It will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Information and applications for USF housing are available on their website. The URL is: http://www.housing.usf.edu/. The sooner your students apply, the better their chances of getting into their first preference for accommodation. If you are planning on arranging independent housing off-campus, please include a letter stating such with your application.
Information on the meal plan can be found at: http://www.usfdiningservices.com/. After students have been officially accepted and issued a USF ID number, they may submit a contract on-line by going to the website www.usfdining.com and click the tab “meal memberships” at the top of the page. This will bring you to the meal membership information page. Click the link on the third line “Sign up now-pay later” or you can pay online with a credit card. Fill in all the information required and click “submit contract” at the bottom of the page. You will have completed the paper work required. Make sure you notify our office if the Meal form is submitted online. You may also print out the form and complete and mail the original along with your application.
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Estimated Expenses:
2008-2009 Estimated Expenses for One Semester |
| Level |
Undergraduate |
Graduate |
| Tuition and Fees |
(waived) |
(waived) |
| Room & Board |
$4,040.00 |
$4,830.00 |
| Books/supplies |
$750.00 |
$750.00 |
| Medical Care |
$690.00 |
$690.00 |
| Personal Expenses |
$2050.00 |
$2,050.00 |
| Transportation |
$600.00 |
$600.00 |
| Total |
$8,130.00 |
$8,920.00 |
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Useful Links:
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Thank you for reading the instructions. Below is a link to the incoming exchange forms:
Incoming Exchange Forms
If you or your students have any questions, please feel free to contact me:
Patricia Smith
Program Coordinator, Education Abroad
University of South Florida
4202 E. Fowler Avenue, CPR 107
Tampa, FL 33620-5550 USA
Phone: 813-974-6148
Fax: 813-974-4613
psmith@iac.usf.edu
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