Summer study abroad provides a meaningful complement to the College curriculum and can help students prepare for longer periods of study on semester- or year-long programs.

All students who participate in Columbia-sponsored programs earn direct credit for their courses. The Columbia-sponsored summer programs include: the Chinese Language Program in Beijing, the Business Chinese and Internship Program in Beijing, the Italian Cultural Studies Program in Venice, the Columbia University Programs in Paris at Reid Hall, and the Summer Ecosystems Experiences for Undergraduates Program (SEE-U).

Columbia College students seeking to study abroad on programs not sponsored by Columbia must be cleared by Senior Assistant Dean Scott Carpenter prior to the abroad experience. The Center for Undergraduate Global Engagement maintains a list of programs that have been reviewed and approved by the faculty as potential transfer credit. If you wish to receive credit toward your degree for course work completed abroad during the summer, please review the following guidelines and submit the Summer Study Abroad Credit and Course Approval Form.

Transfer credit for summer classes taken abroad on outside programs is awarded only for foreign-language courses, subject to the following conditions:

1. Credits for language study at the elementary and intermediate levels are awarded after the student takes a placement exam to determine his/her progress in the language. Advanced foreign-language instruction courses are accepted for academic credit upon review by the appropriate language department.
2. The only non-language instruction courses eligible for credit are courses which will satisfy the major or concentration. The course must be taken abroad in a foreign language and it must receive departmental approval to satisfy major or concentration requirements.
3. Limited exceptions can be made for awarding credits for summer courses taught in English. College credit can be granted provided that the course offers a unique experience in situ, such as a field-studies program or archaeological dig, where the study-abroad site functions a constituent part of the course and the program must be approved by the Center for Undergraduate Global Engagement. Departmental approval is required and the course must satisfy major or concentration requirements.