Faculty-Led Study Abroad Program Proposal Guidelines

Faculty-Led Study Abroad Program Proposal Guidelines

Please prepare your study abroad program proposal along with the Non-Standard Program Approval Request (page 3) to submit for the Committee on Non-Standard Tuition and Administrative Arrangements to review. The department chair and dean must sign the Non-Standard Program Approval Request form prior to submission.International Education Services (IES) IES and the Office of Summer, Winter and Special Programs (OSWSP) can help with completion of this form.

Faculty-Led Study Abroad Program Proposal Deadlines:

Summer proposals should be submitted by July 1 of the previous year.

Winter proposals should be submitted by December 15 of the previous year.

Items to consider when putting together a new Faculty-Led Program (FLP):

1. Program statement: Objectives (must address rationale for location); safety, health and security/risk management plan; housing; summary of faculty expertise and experience relevant to the program, previous experience in education abroad, success rate in recruiting, program excellence; summary of in-country support; explanation of role(s) of any UMBC faculty and/or staff accompanying the program; how attractive it is to students and whether it has a broad enough interest; marketing strategies; application procedures. It is also important to consider if it will compete with an existing program, could both sustain enrollment if approved? Each program proposal must include at least one onsite support staff.

2. Detailed draft of daily itinerary, including excursions, site visits and ratio of free time and scheduled time. Program dates are at the discretion of the faculty member, but cannot overlap with class instruction during UMBC fall and spring semesters. Summer program dates should coincide with an existing summer session to accommodate financial aid eligibility. In order to be eligible for financial aid, a student must be enrolled in at least six credits during the summer term. Financial aid is not generally available for winter programs, with the exception of Pell Grants.

3. UMBC course syllabus should specifically outline how the culture/location is essential to course objectives. If the course is new, it must be approved through the Undergraduate and/or Graduate Council and available in the UMBC course catalog before the start of registration for the term. Some professors have used existing special topics courses in the past.

4. Detailed budget that should include program related costs (local transportation, housing, classroom rentals, meals, excursions, and so on), IES administrative fee ($200.00/student), SBS administrative fee ($100/student), and OSWSP fee [$22 Auxiliary Facilities Fee (per credit hour) + $20 Special Session Fee (flat fee)], flights, and other additional expenses out of pocket. It should identify faculty travelers’ costs and salary and how those costs will be included in the total program cost. The budget should also include a payment schedule that addresses application fees and other pre-payments. The budget, as well as the projected enrollment numbers, must be realistic, as lower-than-anticipated enrollment will change the budget. Please also be mindful of fluctuation in exchange rates. It is vital that the program be self-supporting, as IES does not have the funds to support program shortfalls.

5. In order to allow for more affordable programs, UMBC tuition can be waived with approval from the Committee on Non-Standard Tuition and Administrative Arrangements. Students are still responsible for paying standard UMBC summer session fees. The OSWSP will be responsible for paying faculty salaries (based on the approved budget) and IES will be responsible for reimbursing faculty expenses (based on approved budget). If a tuition waiver is not requested, please keep in-state and out-of-state tuition charges in mind when calculating the budget.

Note: The faculty-leader must be in regular contact with IES throughout the program planning process. All students are required to submit a UMBC registration packet prior to going abroad.

FLP Budget Guidelines

Please consider the following guidelines when designing your program and completing the FLP budget. Please contact IES with any program budgetary questions or concerns.

Program Related Costs:

1. The program fee includes all costs necessary to cover program components (housing, excursions, local transportation, meals, mandatory health, evacuation and repatriation insurance for students and faculty leader, leader expenses and compensation/fringe benefit, and administrative fees).

Our faculty directors get a flat rate of $3,500 (plus fringe benefits) so for the program budget, calculate in $3,800. The length of the program and the number of credits associated with the program do not change thesalary. If two faculty members are going and co-teaching one course they split thesalary. If they are teaching discrete courses they can each receive a fullsalaryif the program budget can accommodate it (i.e. as long as twosalariesdon't make the student program cost prohibitively expensive). In addition faculty directors get a meals and incidentals stipend at half the federal foreign per diem rate and all their transportation costs, accommodation, and program related costs are covered.

2. Group flights are strongly encouraged and must be included in total budget but not necessarily in the program fee charged to students.

3. Other additional expenses that must be included in total budget include: books, passport/visa, additional meals, additional local transportation and personal spending money.

4. Faculty support costs: total faculty travel costs (including per diem) and salary.

5. Academic costs: local lecturers, classroom rentals, host school tuition, etc.

6. Transportation costs: local group transportation, international airfare.

7. Student housing: must include accommodation for the entirety of the program, including overnight excursions away from primary study site.

8. Meals: specify what meals will be included in the program fee and what meals students are responsible for covering. Included meals are factored into the total program fee and any meals not covered by the program fee should be outlined in additional estimated costs. When meals such as breakfast are included in hotel stays, do not include them here.

9. Activities: museums entrance fees, tickets for events or productions, other admission costs, excursions, etc.

10. Supplies: cost of supplies that will be required for teaching or conducting activities.

11. Other: expenses that do not fit into other categories [first aid kits, communication costs, postage, bank/wire fees (UMBC charges a flat $35 fee for each wire transfer), foreign transaction surcharges, gratuities, etc.]. It is also important to note what costs must be paid in a foreign currency and to conservatively estimate the exchange rate. All budgets must be submitted in US dollars.

12. Standard fees: IES/SBS/OSWSP fees (see page 2, point 4) and insurance.

13. Payment schedule: Application fee, deposit, remaining balance due dates. Please consult with IES.

14. Additional estimated expenses: amount students should expect to pay on top of program fee.

15. Any additional revenue at the end of program is reallocated for study abroad scholarships. In the event that a program runs over budget while abroad, the department must cover the difference, as IES does not have the funds to do so.

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Faculty-Led Study Abroad Program Proposal Guidelines

Last updated: July 16, 2015