Funds increase for UNT study abroad scholarships

UNT students who are seeking to study abroad this year will find the academic and cultural experience more affordable than last year. Scholarship aid — up to $700 — is now available to eligible students for approved UNT study abroad programs.

The university's Study Abroad Center reports that the 2004 funds are making possible the largest awards since scholarships became available through the International Education Fee Scholarship fund in 1993.

Additionally, the center has announced that students participating in international field trips now may apply for scholarship support of up to $400. Field trips are official programs in which less than 50 percent of the academic content is conducted outside the United States.

"Students really can study abroad. And now it's more affordable than ever," says Mary Beth Butler, SAC director.

Butler says most students come to the SAC office wanting to experience a world larger than UNT, but many believe they can't because of the cost. Most do not realize there are programs for which they can pay UNT tuition and receive credit for study in another country.

"Students participating in those kinds of exchange programs really spend little more than they would if they were taking classes on the university campus," she says.

UNT offers semesterlong and yearlong exchange programs in 37 countries and sponsors approximately 20 programs in which UNT faculty conduct classes in other countries during summer sessions as well as during spring and winter breaks. In addition, students may have non-UNT programs pre-approved for credit through affiliated programs.

Students may apply for an International Education Fee Scholarship for all such programs. The IEFS is funded through a student fee of $4 per registration paid by each registered UNT student. According to Texas state law, these funds may be used only for international education scholarships.

From its inception in 1993 until 2002, the fee was $1 per student per registration. Study abroad students received $300 on a first-come, first-served basis. About 40 percent of participating students were without scholarships because of the limited funding.

However, in the 2002 spring semester the UNT student body voted to increase the fee to $4, which more than doubled scholarship monies previously available.

Guidelines for administering the scholarship and the amounts are reviewed annually by the International Education Committee.

IEC Chair Jean Schaake, associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, says she hopes the additional funding will encourage even more students to consider including an international experience in their degree program.

SAC applies the following stipulations to receipt of the IEFS:

• Students may receive a maximum of two IEFS awards per degree program.
  
  
• All awards are pending availability of funds.
  
  
• To be eligible, students must have been enrolled in at least one UNT course in the 12 months prior to their study abroad.

For more information, contact Judith Kulp in International Studies and Programs at (940) 565-4821. For a complete list of countries and programs available through SAC, see www.international.unt.edu or call (940) 565-2207 for more information. The SAC is located in Kendall Hall, Room 115.

BY RODDY WOLPER rwolper@unt.edu

Other featured articles in this issue

• UNT aims to recruit, retain first-generation college students with $30,000 grant
• UNT to offer PBS' Small Business School online
• John R. Todd named interim associate VP
• Spring 2004 enrollment up 341 students over Spring '03
• UNT to celebrate Black History Month
• UNT to help sponsor Association of Teacher Educators national conference in Dallas
• UNT offers career counseling
• Survivor makes for family fun at Elm Fork
• UNT assistant professor of English national Creative Writing Fellowship

homepage