International Exchange

Requirements

Students in the Bachelor of Arts degree who wish to apply for an exchange opportunity must meet the following requirements:

• Be at an academic level of 3A or above (9.5 units or two years of continuous full-time study completed) by the time of the exchange. Exchanges in your final 4B term are not recommended as they can result in transcript and graduation delays.  

• Hold a Minimum Cumulative Overall Average (CAV) of 70% at both the time of application and exchange endorsement.

• Have completed at least four University of Waterloo courses with numeric grades counting in averages at the time of application.

• Maintain a minimum academic standing of Satisfactory (SAT) in all academic plans at both the time of application and exchange endorsement.

• Have ‘Fees arranged’ status in Quest.

Academic Integrity and Misconduct

As a participant in the exchange program, you will be trusted to act as a representative of the Faculty of Arts and the University of Waterloo. Accordingly, the Faculty of Arts has the final decision on whether to endorse a student for exchange, taking a student's academic and non-academic record into account. 

• An application may not be endorsed or your nomination to the Host University may be revoked prior to the exchange term if academic performance suggests a student is unlikely to be successful on exchange. 

• Unprofessional conduct or behaviour, including any history of academic or non-academic misconduct, may result in your application not being endorsed or your nomination to the Host University may be revoked prior to the exchange term. 

Exchange

For an academic exchange term Arts students pay regular tuition fees (for 2.5 units) to Waterloo. There is no extra tuition charged to participate in an exchange program, though some partner Universities might charge an incidental student services fee for you to study there for the term.

Exchange students also need to pay for housing, food, books/supplies, and airfare. Most host schools provide an overview of approximate costs, which can be found on Waterloo Passport or the exchange partner’s ‘fact sheet’ for exchange students online.

AccessAbility Services (AAS) Registered students - Reduced Course Load (RCL) Tuition Discount

Outbound exchange students are charged tuition for a courseload of 2.5 credits per exchange semester regardless of the number of credits they earn at their exchange destination. However, if you have medical documentation from your registered health care professional that specifies a need for a reduced course load, you may be eligible to pay reduced tuition during your exchange term. For more information students should consult the AccessAbility Services website.

Summer and short-term programs

Looking for an alternative to a term or year abroad? These shorter programs are culturally immersive experiences that will give you a taste of study and travel. Short-term summer programs last between 2-4 weeks and are often non-credit options. Some programs can be credited towards your Waterloo degree but are subject to academic approval.  

Some programs will allow you to pay tuition to Waterloo, while others will have you pay tuition to the host school. Please contact a Global Learning Coordinator (studyabroad@uwaterloo.ca) for more guidance.    

Internships

Shape your career path and gain relevant, hands-on experience in a different country. Some internship opportunities qualify for a work term credit. Discuss these options with your Co-operative Education advisor. Please note, not all instructions on the application page apply to internships.  

All students interested in an internship must apply through Waterloo Passport. Please contact a Global Learning Coordinator (studyabroad@uwaterloo.ca) for more guidance.  

OSAP

Exchange students can apply for OSAP to help arrange their Waterloo tuition fees for their exchange term and cover expenses while on exchange. Please refer to the OSAP website for more information. Have more questions about OSAP while abroad? Contact the Student Awards & Financial Aid Office.

Financial Aid

Students matched to go on exchange can submit an application to Student Awards and Financial Aid to be considered for International Experience Awards funding (up to a value of $2,000) to support the costs of their exchange term.  

Student Awards and Financial Aid also administer the President’s International Experience Award which provides a $1,500 award to eligible students who are pursuing a study, work or volunteer experience abroad. These awards are limited to students who received the President’s Scholarship of Distinction upon admission to Waterloo.

• Review the advice from the Global learning team (International Experience Centre, NH) on getting started with an exchange application.
• Book an appointment with the Arts Faculty Exchange advisor (Arts Undergraduate Office, PAS 2439) to discuss your application options and destination choices. 
• Contact your academic advisor(s) to discuss your study plan / co-op plan and the possibility of completing an exchange term.

Co-op students should pay close attention to the term dates for destinations and consider if they are able to attend that destination if matched based on their progress in their co-op sequence. Winter/Spring exchange terms often have term dates that do not align with Waterloo’s trimester schedule and overlap with academic or co-op work term

If students need to make a change to their co-op sequence (depending on the exchange partner and their term dates and examination policy) they should speak to their academic advisor before accepting a match.

1. Complete the Mandatory Go Abroad Info Session in LEARN under self-registration and score 100% on the final quiz to gain access to the Waterloo Passport exchange application portal.
2. Submit your application in Passport exchange application portal by the application deadline and pay the application fee.
3. Once applications close, the Arts Faculty Exchange Representative will review your application and academic record and confirm your eligibility in the Waterloo Passport system. The ranking and matching process is then completed by the Global learning team. For questions about the ranking process students can email studyabroad@uwaterloo.ca
4. The Global learning team will contact you and confirm if you have been matched with an exchange opportunity.

Students matched to go on exchange will follow this process:

Step 1: Accept / Decline your match

Students offered a match must accept/decline by the deadline specified by the global learning team on their match process webpage.

Step 2: Nomination

After you accept your match, the Global Learning team will nominate you to the exchange partner. This is an administrative step that typically involves no action on the part of exchange students. The exchange partner will have an established time period within which they accept nominations which can typically be viewed online. For questions about the nomination process students can email studyabroad@uwaterloo.ca

Step 3:  Application & Course Approval

Once your nomination is processed, you will be contacted to complete the exchange partner’s application process.  You must submit all application materials in the manner instructed by the exchange partner’s specified deadline or risk losing your exchange opportunity.

As part of the application process, you should meet with your academic advisor(s) and the Arts Faculty Exchange advisor to confirm your exchange course choices, required course load, and the process to submit courses for transfer credit assessment.  

Step 4: Pre‑Departure Planning

• Accepted applicants receive an offer of acceptance letter, required for visa applications and often for on‑campus housing.
• Students are strongly advised not to book flights or accommodation until the official offer/acceptance letter is received.
• Co-op students may need to make changes to their co-op sequence to accommodate the exchange term.
• See here for detailed pre-departure planning support for staying well on exchange.

Step 1: Understand your course options

When reviewing your course options for exchange we recommend that you:

1. meet with your academic advisor(s) to review your study plan and confirm course options for your exchange term (e.g. Courses for your academic plan(s), your degree breadth requirements, electives etc.)

2. meet with the Arts Faculty Exchange advisor to reviewthe courses offered at the exchange partner and a list of Arts courses pre-approved at your exchange destination.

Important notes on course equivalency:

• Core courses required for an academic plan may not be eligible for transfer credit and this decision is at the discretion of the academic department.

• It may be possible to earn transfer credits that can apply towards your academic plan(s) but this cannot be guaranteed for every course you take on exchange. Course learning outcomes, contact hours, and credit weightings vary worldwide. We recommend you also plan to enroll in courses on exchange that can meet Arts Breadth requirements and/or general course electives for your degree.

Step 2: Confirm your required course load

All outbound exchange students must be enrolled in a full-time course load for their exchange term.

A full-time course load is often within a specified credit range, similar to the practice at Waterloo where a course load of 1.5 to 2.5 units constitutes full-time enrolment. It's important that you understand the credit system of your exchange school and select an appropriate course load and so that you can receive 2.5 units of transfer credit when you return from exchange. The Waterloo Passport program page confirms the course load required to be a full-time student for every exchange partner. 

Can I take less than 5 courses while on exchange?

• Faculty of Arts students are expected to enroll in the number of courses required to be considered full-time status at the host school.
• You can take fewer than 5 courses at the host institution but be aware that doing so may result in you receiving fewer than 2.5 Waterloo transfer credits when you return.
• You will still pay for a full course load at Waterloo.

Submitting your courses prior to your exchange term lets you know the transfer credits you can expect to receive when you get back to Waterloo. If you do not get your courses approved before departing for exchange, you risk taking courses that may be in eligible for transfer credit.

When should I submit courses for transfer credit assessment?

• Once the partner school has updated their website to show the academic options for the term you are going abroad, you can submit the course outlines for transfer credit assessment.  For students submitting courses for their exchange partner’s application form, the Arts exchange advisor will endeavour to have your submissions assessed prior to the exchange partner application deadline.

• Even if a transfer credit assessment is pending, you are advised to submit your application by the deadline.

• Course enrolment is not guaranteed by the exchange partner – this first step helps the exchange partner assess pre-requisites and course demand. Often students will then need to self-enrol in classes closer to the start of the exchange term. Please confirm this on the exchange partner’s incoming exchange student website.

• Transfer credit will not be approved for courses that are directly equivalent to courses you have already completed at Waterloo.

• You are expected to confirm all of your transfer credits prior to the end of the add/drop period at the partner University. We will work as quickly as possible to review time sensitive requests.

How many courses should I submit for transfer credit assessment?

When submitting the Arts transfer credit request form, please follow these instructions:

• Limit the number of courses you submit via the webform to the number of courses you intend to enrol in. Subsequent assessments can be accommodated once an exchange term begins if your schedule changes.

• Do not submit courses for assessment if the course is not yet confirmed as available for the term you are abroad.

• Submit a course outline / syllabus if possible. At a minimum, the course description and credit weight must be indicated along with a URL link to the University webpage for that course (not their student handbook).

• Do not email an Arts academic advisor directly for assessments.

For non-Arts subjects, refer to each faculty's international exchange page for their course approval process:

• Engineering
• Environment
• Health
• Mathematics
• Science

How do transfer credits appear on my transcript?

Courses completed on an exchange term are awarded non-numeric transfer credit (CR/NCR.) Non-numeric grades are not included in the calculation of your UW averages.

Transfer credits are awarded as either:

• a direct course equivalent (e.g. ECON 101), or
• a generic subject equivalency (e.g. ECON 1XX.)

Generic transfer credits are awarded when a course subject area at the partner University aligns with a subject we teach, but no specific direct equivalency exists in our curriculum.

Transfer credits can have varying unit weights. A direct course equivalency will be awarded the credit weight that the course carries at Waterloo (e.g. ECON 101 = 0.5 units) however, if a course is weighted at a higher credit weight at the host University, a generic credit can also be added (e.g. ECON 1XX) to adjust for the credit weight differential.

Some exchange partners may request that students confirm their transfer credits by submitting a formal Learning Agreement to the host school prior to the start of term. If required, the Faculty Exchange advisor can confirm your approved transfer credits and credit weightings once your course enrollment is finalized.

Arts Exchange Advisor
artsinternationalexchange@uwaterloo.ca
PAS 2439 | 519-888-4567, ext. 45870

Advising Hours:
Monday to Friday
10:00 a.m. to noon | 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.