Application process exchange

McGill Exchange

Interested in doing an Exchange in Winter 2024?

All Arts students applying for a McGill Exchange must attend one of the information sessions.

The sessions will cover: the application process, eligibility requirements, the degree planning form, the course equivalency system and there will be Q and A session

EACH of the sessions will be held virtually on Thursdays as of March 16 from 3:00 to 4:00 pm.

You can register here: OASIS Booking

Please note that students on exchange are not permitted to take online courses

An Exchange is an incredible opportunity to live abroad, immerse yourself in a new culture, and gain international perspectives in your field of study. You will be studying at one of McGill’s bilateral partner universities, paying tuition for 15 McGill credits, and earning credits that will transfer back to your McGill degree.

For more information about the McGill Exchange Program, please visit the McGill Abroad website and review the PDF iconArts OASIS McGill Exchange Fact Sheet

IMPORTANT NOTE: Health and safety vary widely across the world, from country to country. As such, study abroad terms may be cancelled by McGill and/or its partners at any time. It is therefore recommended to plan serious financial commitments accordingly and carefully review all cancellation policies (e.g., travel, accommodation, insurance, etc.)

NOTE: All study abroad activities for Fall 2020, Winter 2021, Summer 2021 and Fall 2021 were cancelled.

To contact the Study Away Team: email studyaway.arts [at] mcgill.ca (use your McGill email and include your student ID number).

Application Periods:

TERM DATE
Fall Term ONLY December 5, 2022 to January 15, 2023
Fall & Winter Term December 5, 2022 to January 15, 2023
NEW ! Winter Term ONLY TBC (previously April 15, 2022 to June 15, 2022)

Eligibility Requirements:

At the time of application you must:

  1. Have a McGill CGPA of 3.00 or greater in the McGill BA, BSW or B.Th. degree. Your latest CGPA in Winter 2023 will be used to determine your eligibility for Faculty approval and for ranking in the Exchange nomination process. You must also maintain a McGill CGPA of 3.00 or greater to begin your exchange term.
  2. Make sure that your Minerva record is up-to-date:
    • ALL grades and credits in preceding terms must be reported.
    • If you have a missing grade (i.e. grade of K. L or NR on your Minerva record), you must ask your course instructor to send an email from their McGill email account confirming the grade you have earned in this course. It must be emailed to studyaway.arts [at] mcgill.ca BEFORE the Exchange application deadline in the following format: "Grade Confirmation in COURSE NUMBER" for LAST NAME/ FIRST NAME; STUDENT NUMBER”.
    • Please ask your professor to copy you on the email so that you will know that the grade has been sent to us.
    • Any transfer credit earned during an approved study away in a previous term of study must be articulated on your Minerva record.
  3. Be currently registered as a full-time resident student in the McGill BA, BSW or B.Th. degree in Winter 2023 and Fall 2023 at McGill.
    • Full time status means a course load of 12 or more completed credits per semester.
    • You will not meet this requirement if you are on an Exchange or an Independent Study Away in Winter 2023 and/or Fall 2023 or if your Minerva record indicates "Non Resident" as your status.
    • Students returning to their McGill studies immediately after a Faculty approved Leave of Absence in Winter 2023, must email studyaway.arts [at] mcgill.ca to have their Exchange eligibility assessed well in advance of the Exchange application deadline and to complete any required additional steps.
  4. Have a minimum of 15 credits remaining to complete for your McGill degree. Students are charged for 15 McGill credits of tuition per Exchange semester.
    • You must have completed at least 24 graded McGill credits by the start of your term abroad. Courses taken under the Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory option are not graded credits.
  5. Make sure that the Faculty of Arts minimum credit and program and degree residency requirements are met. Students will NOT be permitted to exceed their BA credit limit to study away.

NOTE 1- Social Work and Theology students: You must first discuss your plans to take courses at another university with your program advisor. (See Social Work program advisor or Theology program advisor). Your program advisor must send an email from their McGill email account confirming that you have departmental approval. It must be emailed to studyaway.arts [at] mcgill.ca BEFORE the Exchange application deadline in the following format: SWRK/Theology approval for LAST NAME/FIRST NAME; STUDENT NUMBER and EXCHANGE TERM

NOTE 2- Graduation: Students who are taking one or more courses at another university during their term of graduation WILL NOT be eligible to graduate at the end of that final term. The Study Away team will add the NEXT available term of graduation to your Minerva record.

NOTE 3 - Inter-Faculty Transfers: If you have accepted a nomination to participate in a Fall or full year Fall/Winter McGill Exchange for an upcoming academic term of study under your current faculty, please note that the approval will not automatically transfer to the BA degree. You must indicate that you have been nominated for a McGill Exchange in the “Comments” section of the Minerva Inter-Faculty transfer application at the time that you apply. The Exchange nomination will be evaluated according to Faculty of Arts eligibility requirements.

NOT meeting the eligibility requirements or not submitting the information requested will result in an application REFUSAL.

    Application procedure - follow our steps for a successful application:

    Step 1 - Degree Planning

    Review the Plan & Prepare section of this website. A well researched degree plan is an important part of the study abroad process. Carefully read the Arts OASIS Degree Planning website for important information about planning your degree.

    You are advised to complete an Arts OASIS Degree Planning Worksheet following the instructions in the Degree Planning Guide before submitting an application to study away to ensure that your plan meets your academic requirements. If you need help with this process, book a Degree Planning appointment with an Arts OASIS Advisor and make sure you meet with each of your departmental program advisor to carefully plan the courses needed for each program of study.

    Keep in mind the degree requirements for the B.A degree when planning your study away:

    1. You must satisfactorily complete a minimum of 60 credits at McGill University.
    2. A minimum of two-thirds of all program requirements (Multi-track, Honours, Faculty program) must be satisfactorily completed at McGill.

     

    Step 2 - Research and Review

    It is important to ensure that you have researched and reviewed all requirements BEFORE submitting a Minerva Exchange application. The McGill Exchange Office, located in Service Point, oversees all aspects of the Exchange nomination process and conducts the lottery that selects nominations to McGill’s bilateral exchange partners. Arts OASIS will assess whether BA students meet the academic eligibility requirements to receive “Faculty Approval” for a McGill Exchange. Exchange nominations for the Faculty of Arts are ranked by CGPA and the nominations are selected by a university wide lottery.

    1. Carefully read all the information on the Arts OASIS Study Away website including the Plan & Prepare and Transferring Credit sections
    2. Review the Information on the McGill Abroad website, especially the “7 Steps to Going on Exchange”
    3. Research the partner universities on the McGill Abroad website. Please ensure that you are only choosing partners that are indicated as “Open to all faculties” or “Arts”

    The Minerva Exchange application allows you to rank a maximum of four (4) different host universities. Selecting the same host university for two different terms of study or two different campuses will count as two separate choices. Use your 4 choices wisely!

    The host university choices that are open to students in the Faculty of Arts are listed here. Note that Minerva is not set up to restrict you from selecting schools that are not open to students in the Faculty of Arts so make sure that you select a host university that is open to Arts students!

    McGill Exchanges take place in either the Fall, full year or Winter term. Due to high demand, the majority of exchanges are one semester in duration. Before submitting the full year application, consider the popularity of the host school since these will have limited spaces and students may not be permitted to complete a full year there.

    The number of exchange spaces available at each host institution is limited, and varies from year to year. Making a selection on the Minerva Exchange application is not a guarantee that you will be nominated to the school of your choice or for the term of study you selected. Due to limited exchange places, you may be nominated to a host institution or term of study that you did not select in your application.

    At the time of application for a McGill Exchange, you need to submit a minimum of eight (8) courses per host institution for each term you plan to participate in an exchange. This list of courses serves only as a preliminary study plan to demonstrate that the course offerings at the host institution are compatible with the requirements of your McGill degree. Your completed Arts OASIS Degree Planning Worksheet will assist you with this process. The courses you list on the Minerva Exchange application do not need to be approved on the McGill Course Equivalency System or by your departmental program advisor at this time. The courses you list on the exchange application are not binding.

    Step 3 - Submit your application

    In order for your exchange application to be considered you must submit the following by the deadline:

    1. A completed Degree Planning Worksheet (See instructions)
    2. The Minerva Application

    NOTE: If you do not submit the information we request by the deadline you have been given, found in the "SAO comments" of your Minerva Exchange application, your application will be FACULTY REFUSED.

    It is the student's responsibility to check their McGill email account and the Minerva Exchange module regularly for important notices as this is our official means of communication during the application process and during your term away.

    If you have a "HOLD"on your Minerva record, please consult this website for information on the impact this will have on your study away application. If the hold is not cleared by the deadline you have been given in the "SAO comments" in your Minerva Exchange application, your application will be FACULTY REFUSED.

    You are limited to one Minerva exchange application per academic year.

     A $150.00 non-refundable application fee is charged to your student account once you submit the application on Minerva.

    1. Degree Planning Worksheet:

    • Follow the instructions in the Degree Planning Guide to complete your Arts OASIS Degree Planning Worksheet
    • Your completed Degree Planning Worksheet must be submitted from your McGill email account, before the deadline, to Arts OASIS at studyaway.arts [at] mcgill.ca. Subject line for email: Degree Planning Worksheet, [EXC term application ] [Family Name/First Name], [Student ID number].

    2. Minerva Application

    1. Review the Minerva Exchange Application Screenshots.
      • Submit this application by the deadline. No late applications will be accepted.
      • To access the application: On Minerva, navigate to: Student Menu > Student Records Menu > Exchange/Study Away Menu > Request for Exchange

    Tips & Tools for your Application:

    • Don’t rush through your application! Click on the Question Marks or Help tabs in the Minerva Application for explanations.
    • The application will time-out after 90 minutes of inactivity, so it is advisable to have your text/course lists ready to paste into the application. This way you won’t lose your work or miss the deadline.
    • Once you submit your application it cannot be modified. You will not be able to change your choices of partner universities. If you want to make changes, you will have to cancel your application and complete a new one before the deadline.

    Step 4 - Approval

    Check your McGill email regularly to avoid missing important notices about your McGill Exchange application. As your application is being assessed by Arts OASIS, your application status will be updated on Minerva.

    Once Arts OASIS has completed the review of your application, a faculty decision of “Faculty Approved” or “Faculty Refused” will be indicated in the “Faculty Application Status” field of your application.

    Nomination Level:

    If your application is "Faculty Approved", your name will be added to a list of students that will be sent to the McGill Exchange Office for the nomination process. For more information about nominations, please see the information on the McGill Abroad website. Once you have accepted the McGill nomination, you will receive an email from the McGill Exchange Office with instructions on how to submit your application to the host school

    What happens after you accept the Exchange Office’s nomination?

    Your record will be updated to non-resident status for term(s) you will be on exchange. You will be billed McGill tuition for 15 credits that term, irrespective of how many courses or credits you take at the exchange university. As well, if you are already enrolled for courses at McGill during your exchange term(s):

    • These McGill courses will be dropped;
    • Your transcript will indicate "Term Away/Exchange" (for a winter term exchange, your record will be updated to non-resident status after September);
    • You will not be able to register for McGill courses in that term(s); and
    • Your McGill courses will not be re-instated if your plans change.

    Step 5 - Next Steps

    Pre-departure Orientation

    All students participating in a university-sponsored international activity including an Exchange are required to register for a Pre-departure Orientation.

    Exchange students will receive instructions from McGill Abroad regarding Pre-departure Orientation. Do not complete the webform.

    To acquire more information about Pre-departure Orientation, consult the McGill Abroad website.

    Travel registry

    Students are required to register their Exchange activity using the McGill Student Travel Registry app as soon as possible and at least 4 weeks prior to departure. Information about how to download and register using the app can be found on the McGill Student Travel Registry website.

    Failure to register your trip in the McGill Student Travel Registry and/or not completing Pre-Departure Orientation may also result in consequences including cancellation of your activities and the loss of academic credits for your activity.

    If you have any further questions regarding these requirements, please contact McGill Abroad at mcgillabroad [at] mcgill.ca /safetyabroad [at] mcgill.ca

     

     

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