FAQs

Exchange opportunities are offered to undergraduate students in years 2 or 3 (year 4 may be an option for certain subjects within Business, please check with us).

You are required to have an average of a Grade C across all studies leading up to your study abroad mobility. As part of the application, we also check with your Programme Leader for academic approval.

Take a look at the 'Where can I study?' page to see available options for your course.

You can choose to go for a full academic year or a single semester. You will need to check how this fits in with your course (some courses may be limited to a particular semester), the modules offered at the partner university, and your personal preference.

As part of the exchange agreement between Abertay and the partner university, you will not be liable to pay tuition fees at the host university. You will continue to pay tuition fees to Abertay through your normal arrangements. If you usually apply for SAAS tuition fee support, a student bursary or loan, you will be able to do this as if you were studying at Abertay.

Additional costs are paid for by the student. Any student wishing to go abroad should budget for the following costs:

Travel - To and from the host university destination. If you plan to return home during your time abroad you should also budget for that additional travel.

Visa costs - UK nationals, now need a visa to study abroad in most countries. All students travelling to North America also require a visa. Visas can be costly, in addition to the processing fee, you may have to meet the costs of required medical exams, as well as travel to/from the relevant Embassy/Consulate which may be some distance from your home (i.e. London or Belfast.) Visa requirements, and therefore costs, vary by country, so it is worth looking into these costs whilst you are researching your study abroad options.

Insurance - As an Abertay student, you are entitled to receive Abertay University travel insurance for free. However, private health care insurance is an additional requirement for all universities in the United States. Along with private insurance if you plan to take part in any extreme sports (skiing, sky diving, mountain biking etc.)

These costs are additional to your usual budget of everyday items such as accommodation, food, local transport, books etc.

You will be responsible for covering your own travel costs, visa fees, housing, meals, and in some cases additional health insurance or an administrative fee charged by the host university. The cost will depend on the host university and country, for example studying and living in the USA is more expensive than studying and living in many countries in Europe.

Abertay University applies to the Turing Scheme each year, however, this money cannot be guaranteed. More information will be sent to successful students.

Credits earned during an exchange semester or year are counted towards your degree and recognised on your transcript. Your study abroad experience will also be recognised in your Higher Education Achievement Report (HEAR).

Please note that your grades achieved abroad will not be converted and will not be taken into account for calculating your degree classification. This means, for example, that if you study abroad during your entire Year 3, only grades achieved during your Year 4 will count towards your degree classification.

Before participating in an exchange, you must document the modules you intend to take at the partner university in a learning agreement and seek your programme leader's approval. If you then proceed to pass/complete the approved modules, the credits earned will be added to your Abertay transcript after your return.

Our European partners use the European Credit and Transfer System (ECTS) while Abertay is part of the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF). One SCQF credit point is the equivalent of 0.5 ECTS credits, so a full workload of 60 SCQF credit points per semester equates to 30 ECTS credits. Our partners in the US have slightly different systems, but you will be looking to take roughly 12-15 credits in the US partner university per semester.

No, almost all of our partner universities teach in English. There are a few exceptions where we offer an exchange but proficiency in the country’s main language is needed. These are indicated in the list of partner universities.

We encourage you to start learning keywords and phrases in the language of your host country before you go abroad. You may also be able to take classes in your host country either before or during your stay. Along with using online tools such as Duolingo and Babbel.