Graduating Seniors

Studying abroad in your final semester or term prior to graduation is not recommended; however, it may be feasible under certain conditions.

Transcripts from host institutions often take several months to be issued from host institutions and they cannot be rushed. Therefore, OIE cannot guarantee that grades will be received in time to complete graduation requirements.

If you choose to study abroad the semester prior to your intended graduation date, you will likely need to delay May graduation to August, or December graduation to May. It may be possible to still walk in commencement with the Registrar’s Office approval. 

Students who plan to study abroad during their final semester must complete the Graduating Senior Acknowledgment Form and submit it to their Study Abroad Advisor along with their study abroad application.

If you wish to discuss graduation considerations in more detail, please contact the Study Abroad Advisor for your program of interest.

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Studying Abroad After Graduation

Students who participate in short-term study abroad programs in the term following their ISU graduation date are considered "visiting graduate students" and must apply as such.

Note: Visiting graduate students are not permitted to apply to semester-long programs. Additionally, not all short-term study abroad programs are open to "visiting graduate students". Please contact the Study Abroad Team if you have a specific program of interest.

Requirements to Apply

1. In order to participate in an ISU program, participants must meet the Illinois State Study Abroad general eligibility requirements as well as any program-specific eligibility requirements.
2. Submit an Illinois State University Admissions Application, pay the application fee, and be accepted for admission at Illinois State prior to the study abroad application deadline.
3. Complete an ISU Study Abroad program application in the My Study Abroad portal by the designated application deadline. The program of choice must have graduate-level offerings. 
   • Visiting students will be assessed a non-refundable $300.00 Visiting-Student Administration Fee upon acceptance in addition to the $300.00 Non-Refundable Study Abroad Application Fee.

Steps to Apply for Visiting Graduate Student Admission

1. Start your graduate student application online.
   
   • If you are not/have not been an ISU student, click the “Create an Account!” button and make your profile.
2. Sign in by entering your ISU University Login ID (ULID) and Password
3. Once signed in, scroll to the second box, “Apply Now for Admission”
   1. Click the green box “Visiting Non-Degree Seeking Applicants” for graduate students
   2. The screen will prompt you to “Start New Application”
   3. Follow the steps to complete your application
      • Be sure to choose graduate visiting student when applying. The application will ask you to enter in your undergraduate graduation date (ex. 05/2023)
   4. Following your submission of your application, you will be contacted by someone from the ISU Admissions team asking for your digital signature for a disclaimer statement. This step is required to complete your application.

Note:

• Students must pay the Illinois State University visiting student application fee through Admissions (in addition to the Visiting Student Administration Fee and Study Abroad Application Fee through OIE).
• If you plan on completing a future graduate degree program at ISU, you will need to begin a separate “Graduate Application” on the link above. It is acceptable to have more than one application at one time for two different terms (e.g., A Visiting Non-Degree Seeking and a Graduate Application).

If you have any questions/concerns, please contact the ISU Office of Graduate Admissions at GraduateAdmissions@IllinoisState.edu or (309)438-2583.

After Study Abroad Program Concludes

Students are responsible for requesting an ISU transcript upon completion of the program.