Academic and Disciplinary Policies

In the semester before studying abroad, students are automatically registered in REGR 4030-01, a 12-credit placeholder course to maintain full-time enrollment at Tulane while abroad. This ensures proper tuition billing, financial aid disbursement and eligibility to register for courses in the semester of return to Tulane. All holds on student accounts must be resolved prior to study abroad enrollment.

While abroad, students must be registered as full-time students. Overseas host institution policies regarding full-time status may vary from Tulane’s policies and must be followed even if those policies require more credits than Tulane. Full-time status at Tulane currently requires students to enroll for the equivalent of 12 U.S. credits. If a program requires a minimum of 15 U.S. credits, students must enroll in 15 rather than 12 credits. If students have any questions about whether or not they are full-time enrolled while they are studying abroad, they should contact the Office of Study Abroad.

To avoid the risk of falling below the 12-credit threshold for full-time status in the event of dropping a course, the Office of Study Abroad strongly urges students to register for 15 or more credits while abroad.

Students studying abroad must also comply with Tulane and host institution policies regarding maximum course loads. In general, overloading is not permitted. 

Participants studying abroad on Tulane-approved study abroad programs may not enroll in online courses coordinated by the program provider (e.g., ASU online through CIEE). Requests for exceptions to this rule may be considered by the associate dean for global education. Exceptions are rare and granted only in the case in which an online course is required to maintain progress toward graduation.

Students should speak to their Newcomb-Tulane College advisor and major/minor advisors prior to departure to discuss their proposed coursework abroad, as individual departments approve credit transfer within the major/minor. Students may also consult the pre-approved list for courses that departments have already reviewed for departmental credit. This list is not exhaustive but does indicate which courses have already been approved by a department.  

NTC core curriculum credit from abroad is awarded at the discretion of the NTC Office of Curriculum and Policy. If a student would like a study abroad course to fulfill an NTC core curriculum requirement, they must complete the core curriculum form after completing their first day in class. Students may petition the Center for Public Service for tier-2 public service credit from abroad.

For coursework completed on a Newcomb-Tulane study abroad program or through the independent scholar option, the Tulane transcript will automatically show all courses, grades and credits. The awarding of credit toward a major or minor is at the discretion of the relevant Tulane department or program.

Unless specifically noted in the program description on this website, grades earned by students abroad in the fall or spring will appear on their official transcripts but are not calculated into the cumulative GPA. Grades earned on Tulane faculty-led summer/short-term programs do factor into the cumulative GPA.

To receive Tulane credit for coursework abroad, students must take all examinations as scheduled. 

Students are strongly encouraged to retain a personal copy of all work submitted abroad and relevant course syllabi until all grades and courses have been posted to the official Tulane transcript.

Non-payment of housing or program charges from students’ host institutions may result in the withholding of transcripts by host institutions, which may impact a student’s ability to graduate on time.

Tulane’s regulations for S/U grades apply abroad with some restrictions: 

1. Students may not take an independent study or directed research course abroad on an S/U basis.
2. Students may not take S/U grades for courses offered on any Tulane summer programs. 
3. In accordance with Tulane policy, students may only take one course as S/U per semester.
4. Students may not take courses as S/U for an NTC core curriculum course or in the major/minor field. For specific restrictions, students must inquire with their major/minor departments at Tulane.
   1. Additionally, some academic semester/year study abroad programs do not offer an S/U option, or limit S/U options, and this takes precedence over Tulane’s regulations.
   2. The study abroad S/U deadline differs from Tulane’s on-campus deadline. Requests must be submitted to the OSA by email within 10 weeks after the first class meeting.
   3. Overseas program directors submit a regular letter grade to Tulane for courses taken on an S/U basis. The OSA will convert this grade for students with approved S/U requests on file.

Students are encouraged to exhaust all avenues for grade dispute through the program or host university before the dispute is presented to the Office of Study Abroad. Appeals must be initiated within one semester of the student's return to Tulane from abroad. All grade disputes will follow the process of an on-campus grade grievance procedure, escalating to the associate dean of global education if it cannot be resolved by the student and the host program.

Students may not reduce their courses below the stated minimum (12 U.S. credits or the program minimum, whichever is higher) unless there are extenuating circumstances for doing so (e.g., medical reasons).

Grades for coursework completed abroad are posted by Tulane as they appear on the official transcript issued by the host institution or program. If a host institution records a course grade as "incomplete" (“I”), the "incomplete" will be reflected on the student’s Tulane academic record.

Students are responsible for following the host institution’s policies and deadlines for completing any outstanding coursework. Once the host institution has replaced the "incomplete" with a final grade, the student must request that an updated official transcript be sent to Tulane. Tulane will update the student’s academic record upon receipt of the revised transcript.

Students who withdraw or are dismissed from a study abroad program before its completion will receive Tulane credit only for coursework documented as completed and awarded on the official transcript issued by the host institution or program.

The host institution’s policies determine how a withdrawal, incomplete course or completed module is recorded on the transcript. Tulane will post eligible coursework and credit as it appears on the official host institution transcript, in accordance with Tulane’s study abroad credit and transfer policies.

Students whose participation is interrupted by documented illness, injury, family emergency or other circumstances beyond their control should contact the Office of Study Abroad as soon as possible. The Office of Study Abroad will work with the student, host institution and appropriate Tulane offices to determine available options.

Please see the financial policies of your host program for details on financial consequences of early withdrawal or dismissal information.

Student feedback is crucial to the Office of Study Abroad's efforts to maintain a high standard for all Tulane study abroad programs, so students should take the time to consider all aspects of their study abroad experience and carefully complete the program evaluation sent to them by the Office of Study Abroad. The survey will take 20 minutes. Transmittal of credits and grades to the Tulane transcript will occur once students have completed their program evaluation.

Students are held to the Tulane Codes of Behavioral and Academic Conduct while abroad, as well as the codes of the host institution abroad. Students engaged in research abroad involving human subjects who plan to make further use of the data gathered upon returning to Tulane, must secure approval from the Tulane Institutional Review Board for their research design. 

Students who are on disciplinary probation during the semester or term in which they intend to study abroad are not eligible to participate in a Newcomb-Tulane study abroad program. Approvals will be revoked for students who are placed on disciplinary probation after being approved to study abroad. Students who are currently on disciplinary probation and wish to submit an application for a study abroad program that will take place after their probation ends may do so. However, such applications will be reviewed by the Office of Study Abroad on a case-by-case basis in consultation with Tulane’s Division of Student Affairs. If the application is approved by the Tulane Study Abroad Committee, the faculty director, host institution, and/or program provider will be notified of the disciplinary status. It is within the discretion of the host institution and/or Newcomb-Tulane College to place additional restrictions on a recently-disciplined student’s participation in a study abroad program participation in a study abroad program. For more information about the conduct process, visit: Code of Conduct | tulane

Students are restricted from studying abroad while on honor board probation. For more information please visit: https://college.tulane.edu/code-academic-conduct