The Student Experience: Exchange/Study Abroad Program
By: Mazen Eid
@therealmazen1
The International Programs and Services Office (IPSO) announced that applications are now open for the Exchange/Study Abroad program.
The deadline to submit applications is by 4pm on October 28.
Study Abroad Senior Officer Pensee AbdelGhany says that there are two ways to apply for the study abroad program – either directly to the IPSO or to the host university and continue the process with the IPSO’s assistance.
When it comes to planning financials, the office encourages students to take into account all the variables that are not covered by the university.
“You should consider health insurance, housing and needs, books and school supplies, personal expenses, and airline tickets when planning for your semester abroad. All of these are not paid for by AUC,” AbdelGhany said.
After the deadline for applications closes, the screening process begins.
“We first do an eligibility screening for the GPA, then the general evaluation of your resume and your personal statement. Then, you have an interview with a faculty member from the school you belong to,” AbdelGhany explained.
The student applicant is scored based on these evaluations; that score then determines the level of priority for the universities chosen.
If the university is unavailable, due to COVID-19 or other circumstances, the IPSO looks at the other preferences chosen by the student.
As for the exchange program, the registration process is similar, but has slightly different requirements: AUC students pay AUC tuition, as usual, while students at partner universities pay their respective tuition when they attend AUC. The GPA requirement to apply for exchange is 3.0.
“You pay the equivalent of 15 credits at AUC even if you register for less in the exchange program. Deferred payment is not an option in the exchange program,” AbdelGhany added.
When Muhammad Al-Kashef and Mustafa Amr, juniors majoring in Accounting, saw that the program was available, they rushed to apply for the study abroad program for Fall 2022.
“I want to register for the core curriculum courses, and fortunately, there were many courses that could substitute those at AUC. It turns out that the grading system is in the pass/fail system, which attracted my attention even more,” said Amr.
They both applied to the American University in Barcelona (AUB). The majority of the process was easy, but Al-Kashef faced some obstacles.
“The IPSO helped me in the registration process for the university abroad. However, the only issue is, I cannot meet the minimum credit hours needed to apply [12 credit hours] because I already took most of them [courses] here at AUC,” said Al-Kashef.
Business junior Tayam Al-Badawi and Finance junior Mostafa Al-Esseily shared some of their experiences in the study abroad program this past summer at AUB, giving positive feedback about their time there.
“We learned so much from this experience, and we had fun doing so. The professors at AUB realized that we were international students, and they were very understanding, and we did not feel the cultural differences between us and the other students during lectures,” Al-Badawi said.
Both students chose the same accommodation, and they always experienced new cultures together.
“We were surprised by the large number of Arabs that we met on campus and in Barcelona. We were exposed to many different cultures by getting to know some residents of Barcelona who were from all over the world,” Al-Esseily added.
They both agree that the memories they created there were irreplaceable. They said that if they get another chance to do it again, they will.
“Maybe next time we’ll go to a university in Rome, Italy, or maybe try the exchange program this time,” added Al-Esseily.
Another student, Jonathan Nabil, had a more unique experience than his colleagues Al-Badawi and Al-Esseily.
“The accommodation that I picked wasn’t in the best place in Barcelona. Word is, police officers are afraid to even enter the block, due to gang violence; so that’s something anyone should be aware of,” Nabil claimed.
He also claimed that his fellow Arab students were mugged in this area while on their way back home but that they were “miraculously” unharmed.
“It was a dark alley, leading to their apartment. A group of masked men surrounded [the Arab students], asking for their valuables. The masked gang overheard them speaking Arabic, so they let them go,” Nabil added.
He advises applying students to do their research, when looking for accomodation.
“We always recommend that you stay at the dorms of the host university,” said AbdelGhany, at one of the information sessions held by the office.
But at the heart of the exchange program is the focus on the differences and similarities in different cultures and building bridges between them.
Thomas Hammer, a junior from Norway, is an exchange student studying Anthropology at AUC this semester.
“I live downtown, and I was a little surprised to see how developed and Americanized [AUC] is. It feels like it’s a tiny American bubble in the Middle East,” Hammer said.
Hammer found the class discussions interesting, and described the overall atmosphere as friendly.
“The campus is beautiful. It’s very lively. Sometimes people are playing music in the breaks, and I’ve been enjoying [my time here at AUC] a lot,” he added.
