UVM Academic Units Interested in Bilateral Exchange Programs
The Office of International Education is responsible for administering bilateral exchange programs between UVM and international institutions. Successful new partnerships require involving OIE early on to most efficiently manage information gathering, assessment, and negotiation and signing of new exchange agreements.
What is a UVM Bilateral Exchange Program?
A UVM bilateral exchange program is an agreement between UVM and an institution abroad in which tuition waivers are exchanged. UVM undergraduate students pay the exchange tuition rate to UVM, leaving those monies for students from the partner institution to use. In turn, the student at the partner institution pays their tuition and fees to their home institution, leaving them for the UVM student to use while that student is abroad. Outbound students from UVM must be matriculated undergraduate students; inbound students may be at the graduate level at the home institution, but traditionally they take undergraduate level courses at UVM unless your unit provides space at the graduate level.
How to Create a New Exchange Program
- The sponsoring academic unit dean's office completes page one of the UVM Academic Unit Exchange Proposal intake form and emails it to the OIE Academic Unit Liaison, listed at the right.
- OIE requests an initial approval from Transfer Affairs regarding accreditation and credit transfer.
- Upon approval by Transfer Affairs, OIE requests that the academic unit complete the remainder of the proposal.
- Upon receipt of complete academic unit proposal, OIE requests further information from the prospective university partner overseas.
- Upon receipt of the prospective partner information, OIE staff identify potential opportunities and concerns and consult with the sponsoring academic unit.
- The Provost's Office approves pursuit of the partnership.
- OIE negotiates signing of the exchange agreement with the partner.
- Marketing materials and a strategy for recruitment is discussed by the sponsoring academic unit and OIE.
Timeline for Creating a New Exchange Program
- The deadline for UVM students to apply for an exchange program for the spring semester is August 10. The deadline for the fall semester is January 10.
- Most students begin to consider where they will apply to study abroad 6-12 months in advance of application deadlines.
- Many institutions abroad have deadlines in September or October for their students to apply to study abroad for the following academic year.
- Academic units wishing to create a new exchange program should know an agreement signed in the fall will likely result in the first exchange of students the fall of the following year.
- Depending on the complexity of the partner institution's legal requirements, the step of negotiating the exchange agreement can take several months.