Overview
Cara Welch (Modern Languages and Cultures), Program Director
Commitment to international education is part of the liberal arts philosophy of St. John Fisher College. The Foreign Study Program extends the campus curriculum to include offerings at 100 programs around the world. Official affiliation arrangements with the American Institute for Foreign Study (AIFS), Central College Abroad, and the Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE) provide our students the opportunity of an academic experience in Africa, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific. In partnership with Hobart and William Smith College, we also offer a faculty-directed program in Galway, Ireland each spring semester.
More information is available on the Foreign Study website.
Study Abroad programs for a semester or year are open to all juniors and seniors with a minimum 2.75 grade point average. Sophomores with a minimum 3.00 grade point average who have declared a major and secured approval by their department may also participate. Students who apply for participation in a foreign study program must also be in good disciplinary standing at the College and must adhere to the Fisher Code of Conduct while abroad. Transfer students must have completed at least one semester at St. John Fisher College before applying to study abroad.
There are exciting options for students in most majors who plan their academic careers early. International internships are available in London, England, Florence, Italy, and Perth, Australia, as well as at several other sites which require a foreign language. Nursing students may participate for a full semester provided that it is during the second semester sophomore year or they may select a summer placement option between the junior and senior years.
Through the affiliate programs, students are officially registered at St. John Fisher College and the grades earned abroad are calculated into the St. John Fisher College grade point average. The cost for participation in an affiliated program varies upon destination. All students are charged standard Fisher tuition plus an additional fee of $350 for each term abroad. Students considering studying abroad should meet with a financial aid counselor to discuss how this registration may impact their financial aid. Fisher is one of the few area colleges to promote international study by extending financial aid to a wide range of programs. Consequently, Fisher students from almost any background may take advantage of foreign study opportunities.
Fisher conducts its own four-week summer programs (Fisher in France, Fisher in Italy, and Fisher in Spain) to encourage students to explore a cultural immersion experience with Fisher faculty. These programs all include language study plus an additional course for a total of seven credits.
The campus Foreign Studies Program Director, Dr. Cara Welch, also maintains a collection of reference materials to assist students in selecting programs throughout the world to meet their personal academic needs. Students attending programs other than official affiliates must make prior arrangements with the program director and the registrar for transfer of credit only.
In either case, all students are required to file a written report with the program director evaluating personal and academic experiences of the program before credits for study abroad may be transferred and recorded.
Students participating in Foreign Study automatically receive Incomplete grades at the end of the semester, as transcripts do not normally arrive in the St. John Fisher College Registrar's Office until two to three months later. Once the transcript arrives from abroad, students have three weeks to submit the required Foreign Study Evaluation to the Director of Foreign Study. (If the transcript arrives during the summer months, the student has three weeks into the start of the new semester to submit the report.) If the report is not submitted in that time frame, the grades from abroad will be changed from incomplete (“I”) to failing (“F”) grades. After this action, students must appeal to the Committee on Academic Standing for permission to file the report so that the failing grades on their records may be removed and replaced with credits and grades earned from study abroad.
Applications for spring are due October 15; for fall, March 15. Summer school programs and volunteer and work programs are also available.
Note: Completing a full semester in an approved foreign language-based study abroad program or an intensive Fisher summer program fulfills the College Core foreign language requirement for B.A. students.