What does academic approval mean for a study abroad program?

Academic approvals mean that if you find a class you want to take in a particular academic area on an approved study abroad program AND receive a course equivalency for it from a Study Abroad Liaison, then you will receive direct Purdue credit and a letter grade for that class.

By default, you will earn letter grades for Purdue-equivalent courses in academic areas that have been approved for direct credit for your study abroad program.  To check the approved academic areas for your program, visit the program page found through the Program Search on our website and scroll to the “Purdue Credit” section.

• If the phrase "Specifically from" appears before an academic area, only the listed department(s) from that school or college can be considered approved.  For example, if a program lists College of Health and Human Sciences approval specifically from PSY, then Psychology would be approved for direct credit but other Health and Human Sciences departments such as Kinesiology would not.
• “Specifically from" generally means a program offers courses in the approved academic area mentioned.  However, this does not necessarily mean the program offers more or better options in this area than other programs without this note that are also approved by the same school or college.

In addition, students should understand what academic approval does NOT mean:

• This does not mean the program offers every class/major/academic area that Purdue does.
• Space may not be available in every class.
• Some classes may not be open to exchange or visiting students.
• Every class may not be offered in every semester.
• Academic areas at the host institution may vary slightly from Purdue’s departments. In this context, the academic approval refers to the area you are hoping to receive credit in at Purdue.
• Students should consult class listings for the program(s) they are interested in and check by desired term of study to explore what is likely to be available.