For study exchange

General Eligibility

To participate in an exchange you must have completed one year of undergraduate study, and remain registered as a full-time student at University of Aberdeen while abroad.  You must also be mindful that during your exchange you will be serving as an ambassador for the university.

Academic Eligibility

Undergraduate students planning a period of study abroad must:

• check if there are any restrictions for your degree subject regarding when you can go abroad
• achieve 120 credits by the end of year 1, or 240 credits by the end of year 2. Students going abroad for the full year or first semester must not have any outstanding resit exams
• have achieved a C average* (Engineering students must have the majority of their Grades at A1-A5; Psychology students need a B2 average with no grades at D)
• have the support of the relevant Go Abroad Tutor(s)
• have satisfied any other academic criteria as determined by your subject area(s)

If you intend to complete a Joint Honours degree, you must meet the above conditions in both subject areas.

* Average grades will be calculated from your graded results only, pass/fail grades will not be included.

Go Abroad Tutors

The Go Abroad Tutor is your point of contact for all academic matters relating to studying abroad.

Every subject has a dedicated Go Abroad Tutor for exchange and for some subjects there are multiple Go Abroad Tutors. Who you speak to will depend on your degree programme and/or other factors, such as location or type of mobility. If you are studying on a joint degree you will have two Go Abroad Tutors, one for each subject.

Find a list of our Go Abroad Tutors here

To start your research, consult our list of partner universities, making sure they teach appropriate courses for your degree programme at the right level and that they are open to exchange students, and determine where you want to go. You will be able to apply for up to five host universities across our exchange partners. You can rank these in order of preference on the application and exchange study plan.

We realise that the choice of options can appear a little overwhelming at first. To help kickstart your research, we have compiled a list of destinations by degree, where students have gone for non-compulsory study exchange over the last five years (NB this list does not include Languages/5-yr LLB/MChem or Engineering projects). Please note that this list is not exhaustive, ie just because we haven't sent someone from your exact degree programme to a particular host destination before, that doesn't mean that it is not possible. Please also note that this list is not a guarantee that a particular host destination is suitable for 2024/25 study exchange, as the course offering may have changed.

If you missed our Outgoing Study Exchange Application Session for the academic year 2024/25, you may wish to watch the recording. This provides an overview of how to complete the application documentation, the process and timescales relating to application, as well as a reminder about fees, funding and other costs associated with a study exchange.

To help with your research, you can request permission to view Feedback Reports that our previous Go Abroad students have written following their study exchange. These reports contain information from students about their time abroad and cover aspects such as their host institution, accommodation, living costs and what life was like as an international student abroad. Current University of Aberdeen students can request access by emailing GoAbroad.Outgoing@abdn.ac.uk.

As part of the online application you will need to upload two documents:

• a copy of the Degree Calendar for your programme, to show the compulsory courses which you will need to match during your exchange period.
• a completed Exchange Study Plan (a description and examples of how to complete this have been provided below)

Exchange Study Plan

You will need to complete the Exchange Study Plan with your provisional course choices for your preferred partner universities, and your reasons for choosing these partner universities.  You must ensure that your preferred partner universities teach suitable equivalents for any compulsory courses you would need to take if you were in Aberdeen, and these need to be open to exchange students. You can find out what your compulsory courses are using the Degree Calendar for your programme.

If you have no mandatory courses in Aberdeen for the semester or year that you plan to study abroad: eg Languages students doing their residence abroad, or students on one of the 5-year LLB options; then you can freely select any courses that are relevant to your programme. The History Department also does not require any specific course matching, so History students are fee to choose any history courses.

For your exchange study plan, it is mostly important that you match your compulsory courses. However, when abroad you will be expected to take the equivalent of 60 Aberdeen credits per semester.

• For European destinations, 60 Aberdeen credits equates to 30 ECTS
• For International Exchange, please refer to our Credit Load Guide

If your application to study abroad is successful, you will finalise your course choice with approval from your Go  Abroad Tutor(s) prior to going abroad.

You will also be asked to answer the question ‘Why did you chose this host’ in one or two paragraphs, 200 words maximum. We are most interested in why you would like to study at your chosen institutions, rather than your general motivations to go abroad. We want to hear your academic motivations, not holiday aspirations. Do not spend your 200 words telling us why you want to go on holiday. Don't tell us how beautiful the city is, how you've always had a 'calling' to visit that country, how you can't wait to go skiing or surfing.

Your exchange study plan is only read by University of Aberdeen staff and not by the host institution, as this is an internal application. If you are selected for exchange, you will need to complete a separate application directly to your host institution.

Remember you can apply to up to five preferred host universities and an Exchange Study Plan page should be completed in full for each one.

Example Exchange Study Plans:

• For all other subjects Exchange applications*
• For Engineering students
• For Language students applying for third year
• For Law students applying for third year

Study Exchange Applications

Our main application round and clearing windows for study exchange in 2024/25 have now closed.

If you have missed the application period but you are interested in a study exchange for Term 2 of the 2024/2025 academic year, please contact the Go Abroad team and we will see if it will be possible to offer you a last minute place at one of our partner universities. Please note, this will depend on where we have places remaining and when our partners' deadlines fall. We cannot guarantee that there will be a suitable option for your degree, but we are happy to look into it for you.

Please email us on: GoAbroad.Outgoing@abdn.ac.uk 

Please note:

• Unfortunately we are not able to offer Turing funding to September Clearing students or late applicants. If you are successful, you will need to be able to self-fund your exchange. You may be able to receive a Swiss European Mobility Programme grant if you are offered a place at one of our Swiss partners.
• If you already hold a study exchange offer for the 24/25 academic year, you cannot apply for a different host.

Other Opportunities

If you have missed the opportunity to go abroad for a semester or year long exchange or traineeship, you may wish to consider one of our short term opportunities instead.

Please sign up to our newsletter or follow us on Instagram: @abdngoabroad for updates about future exchange opportunities.

Selection

We have a limited number of places at each of our partner universities and therefore the application process is competitive. The selection process is based on academic merit and the strength of your exchange application. The final allocation decision is made by the Go Abroad Team and Go Abroad Tutor(s). We cannot guarantee that all students meeting the academic eligibility criteria will receive an exchange place.

Offer Letter

All applicants will be notified of the outcome a few weeks after the application deadline. 

Successful applicants will receive an offer letter with allocation details, the terms and conditions of the offer and instructions on how to accept or decline. The offer needs to be accepted by the deadline stated on the offer letter in order for an applicant to confirm their exchange place.

At this stage all selection and allocation decisions will remain conditional on applicants continuing to meet the academic eligibility criteria for the exchange programme by the end of the academic year, and continued adherence to the terms and conditions of the offer.

Next Steps Meeting

Applicants wishing to accept the exchange offer will be required to attend a mandatory ‘Next Steps’ information meeting to prepare them for the exchange process. This will cover available funding for study exchanges and how to apply. However, initial guidance regarding funding, finances and fees can be found here.

Next Steps Meeting for 2024/25 study exchange was held on Wednesday 13 March. A recording is available for those not able to attend.

Nomination and Application to your exchange host

If you decide to accept your offer, the Go Abroad Team will share your contact details with the host institution to nominate you for the exchange.

After receiving this nomination, the host institution will normally contact you directly with further information about their own application procedure which you must complete. Procedures and deadlines will vary by host institution.

Please be aware that some institutions will have very tight application deadlines so if an offer is made to you, please make sure you routinely check your University of Aberdeen email so you do not miss any application information and guidance from either the Go Abroad team or from your host.

Pre-departure Meeting

Before embarking upon your exchange, you will be required to attend a mandatory ‘Pre-departure’ information meeting, with practical advice and guidance for your upcoming time abroad. These will be held at different times of year depending on when your exchange or traineeship is due to start.

Pre-departure Meeting for FY/Term 1 study exchange or traineeships: Spring 

Pre-departure Meeting for Term 2 study exchange or traineeship: Autumn - time and venue TBC.

If you have any questions having reached this point of our extensive outgoing information, please send a photo of the village of Witts End in Bedfordshire along with your question to GoAbroad.Outgoing@abdn.ac.uk so we know you are at your wits’ end (ie confused)! When we receive questions without a fabulous photo of the village of Witts End in Bedfordshire attached, we know the senders haven't read this glorious information-filled page (see where we're going with this?).