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Apply for an off-campus study program with Hope College.

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The Off-Campus Study Application Process

Are you ready to begin the application process for off-campus study? Please be aware of these important application deadlines:

Fall and academic year: March 15
Spring: October 15
May/June/July Term: Typically between October–January. Visit travel.hope.edu to see the application deadline for your specific program.

Get started on your application today:

Chat with a Peer Advisor and/or Off-Campus Study Advisor

Stop by the Center for Global Engagement and talk with a peer advisor and/or off-campus study advisor, then start your application at travel.hope.edu.

Meet with your Academic Advisor

Meet with your academic advisor and map out your four-year plan to include a semester or two off-campus, and determine which off-campus study programs best meet your needs.

Check your Financial Aid Status

For information about how studying off-campus may impact your financial aid, please refer to the off-campus study page. If you continue to have questions, contact Financial Aid.

Complete your Off-Campus Study Application

After determining the best time for you to study off-campus, complete the Off-Campus Study Application.

Apply for a domestic program.

Apply for an international program.

Once you select your program, click the "Apply" button on that page to start the process.

Complete the Program Specific Application

Once your application to study off-campus is completed and approved, be sure to start the program application (not applicable for May/June/July Term applicants) — most providers have on-line applications and you can start that application at their home website. Each program has a different application and requirements. Typical program application deadlines:

Fall semester and academic year: March 1
Spring semester: October 15

NOTE: Some programs may have earlier deadlines. Be sure to know what the program application deadline is and submit your materials to our office in advance.

Prepare for your Program

Your program will notify you directly of your acceptance. Once you’re accepted by your program, you’re responsible for your own education. Read every last detail of the material your program sends you and respond when asked. Failure to do so may mean that you will miss important deadlines concerning deposits, courses, housing, visas, etc.

Get that Passport Ready!

If you’re participating in an international program, it's never too early to apply for a passport. If you already have one, make sure it’s up-to-date and valid so you’re ready to go.

Billing and Financial Aid

Once you have registered for your off-campus program, as part of the college’s regular registration process conducted by the Registrar each fall and spring for the coming semester, you will receive a tuition bill from Hope College Business Services. If you and/or your family typically participate in the Budget Payment Plan and you have sent Business Services the enrollment form (an annual requirement), you will be billed on a monthly basis.

You may find this budget worksheet helpful as you determine the cost of the program.

Your tuition charges will reflect Hope College tuition rates for a full-time student, unless the program’s tuition is greater than Hope’s, in which case the program’s tuition will be charged. Your room and board charges will come directly from your program so they will not appear on your Hope College invoice and you must pay those directly to the program provider.

You may be asking why the charges are assessed this way. First, the entire time you are studying off-campus, you are earning Hope College credit. Your Hope College transcript will note the name of the program in which you were enrolled, list the courses you took and the grades you earned. Second, Hope College allows students to take their financial aid package with them on semester/academic year off-campus programs to the point of exporting your tuition dollars directly to other programs and colleges. The practice of charging a college’s own tuition, room and/or board costs for off-campus programs is common among colleges similar to Hope.

The college will send you a tuition bill for your semester off-campus just as it does all other college bills: early July for the fall semester and early December for the spring semester.

Some additional items to note:

If you are studying off-campus for the entire academic year, you will be billed for each semester separately.
Additional expenses charged by your program (e.g., health insurance, housing deposits, airfare, optional travel, etc.) are your responsibility and will not appear on your bill. Please be sure to review your program’s charges as detailed on the program’s website to see what other costs are involved in your program.
If you pay your bill and later receive an adjusted bill, this is because Hope College did not have the current tuition rates for your program when Business Services mailed your bill. Should this be the case, it may be necessary to make an adjustment to your student account after the college received an actual invoice reflecting the tuition charge from your program.

Once you have been admitted to your program, you will receive a letter of confirmation from the program sponsor, along with an acceptance package of material particular to your program. To confirm your place in the program, you will be requested to send a non-refundable deposit directly to the program. This is your responsibility. You will normally have a period of two–three weeks in which to send this deposit. That deposit money will then be credited toward other program charges.

Please inform your parents of how deposits and billing work for your program and be sure they know the amount of money to expect on a bill. If they have questions, they are welcome to contact the Center for Global Engagement or Business Services.

Scholarships for Off-Campus Study

Many students who study off-campus are eligible to apply for scholarships or additional financial aid to help make study more affordable.

If you are selected to receive a program scholarship, please contact the Center for Global Engagement and we will supply the Financial Aid office with documentation regarding the additional expenses related to your off-campus study. In doing so, it may be possible for you to retain your full aid package (along with your off-campus program scholarship). However, this is a decision made by the Financial Aid office and is contingent on the regulations and policies governing the aid you are receiving.

The Financial Aid office will review your aid package to determine if it will be necessary to adjust other aid in your package. If this is necessary, they will make every effort to first reduce your least desirable forms of aid (loans and employment).

For more information about how your financial aid might be impacted by receiving additional aid, visit the Financial Aid office.

Scholarships through Program Providers

Hope College Study Abroad Scholarships

International May/June/July Scholarship

The International May/June/July Term Scholarship is an award providing tuition assistance to students with high or very high financial need. Students must be in good academic and behavioral standing with the college and plan on participating in a Hope College-sponsored international May/June/July term. As part of the application process, the faculty leader of your program will email you a link for applying to the scholarship. Scholarship Application Due Date: December 1. A committee of administrators will review student applications for the award. The committee consults with the Office of Financial Aid to determine which applicants meet the criteria stated above to determine student financial need.
Applicants for the Vienna Summer School are not eligible for this award and should instead visit the VSS website for other scholarship opportunities.

Study Abroad Scholarship Semester/Academic Year

The Study Abroad Scholarship is an award providing assistance to students with financial need. When your Hope College off-campus study application has been approved, you will be emailed a link for applying to the scholarship. Scholarship Application Due Dates: October 15 for spring programs and April 15 for fall and academic year programs. Applicants must be in good academic and behavioral standing with Hope and plan on participating on an officially approved off-campus program for a semester or academic year.

Michael B. Petrovich Memorial Scholarship

The Michael B. Petrovich Memorial Scholarship aids students who plan to spend a semester or year studying abroad, and who will spend all or part of the study period in central or eastern Europe including Russia and the states of the former Soviet Union (first preference) or western Europe (second preference). The recipient will be chosen according to the following criteria: academic achievement, place of study and travel, and financial need. Students must select an official Hope approved program and should have already submitted the required Hope College Off-Campus Study Application to the Center for Global Engagement.
Deadline: April 15 for a program starting the following fall semester and October 15 for a program starting the following spring semester.

General Study Abroad Scholarships

National Security Education Program David L. Boren Undergraduate Scholarships

The National Security Education Program was established by the National Security Education Act of 1991, which created the National Security Education Board, the National Security Education Program and resources to provide undergraduate scholarships, graduate fellowships and institutional grants. It is guided by a mission that seeks to lead in development of the national capacity to educate U.S. citizens, understand foreign cultures, strengthen U.S. economic competitiveness and enhance international cooperation and security.

Bridging Scholarships for Study Abroad in Japan

The US-Japan Bridging Foundation was formed in 1998 to provide scholarships through the Association of Teachers of Japanese (ATJ) to assist students to study in Japan. Bridging Scholarships are offered twice a year.

Morgan Stanley Japan Scholarships

Underscoring its long-term commitment to education and fostering U.S.-Japan relations, Morgan Stanley (which has had a presence in Japan for more than 35 years) supports the U.S.-Japan Bridging Foundation. Eligible students include juniors and seniors at American universities with an interest in economics and international finance who have been accepted for study in Japan.

BUTEX North American Scholarship

The BUTEX North American Scholarship is open to all undergraduate students currently registered at an institution in the USA or Canada. To be eligible, you must have been offered a study abroad or exchange place at a UK university or college which is BUTEX-affiliated.

Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program

The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, seeks to offer grants to American students who have limited financial means to study abroad.
Benjamin A. Gilman Critical Need Language Supplement – Students who apply and are awarded a Benjamin A. Gilman Scholarship are eligible to apply for an additional $3,000 for the study of a critical need language. These include the study of Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Russian and Korean. View a complete list of languages.

Study Abroad Funding

Study Abroad Funding is a valuable funding resource that allows you to search by country or subject to find available scholarships, fellowships and grants.