Study abroad

Exchange agreements are faculty/school-specific and in some cases subject area or course-specific. Download the relevant document to find out about the overseas opportunities in your faculty and see which institutions are open for exchange on your programme. You can study abroad at any of BU's current partner universities which are matched to your programme, bearing in mind it is ultimately at the partner's discretion whether they accept you as an exchange student.

To be eligible for a study exchange you need to be in good academic standing at the time that you apply. If you want to go abroad in the second year of your undergraduate course, you’ll need to apply before the end of your first year.

You may also be able to apply to go on exchange at Master’s level, dependent on your programme and academic approval.

Overseas study exchanges during your final year are rare, although not impossible, usually for specific degrees (e.g. BA (Hons) Multimedia Journalism). If you want to undertake an exchange in your final year, you need to apply before the end of your second year and you must have academic approval before you submit your application.

There are different deadlines for applications for studying abroad depending on the faculty you’re studying with, but the application process is broadly the same. There are three main steps:

1. Complete the BU Study Exchange Application Form and submit it after prior approval by your faculty's Study Abroad Academic Coordinator by the application deadline. First year students must apply in their first year at BU to go in either semester one or two of their second year. Opportunities for exchanges during your placement, final year or at Master's level are agreed on a case by case basis. Applications for 2023/24 will close at midnight on the 28 February 2023. 
2. Application forms are assessed by your programmes Study Abroad Academic Coordinator, who may contact you for an interview. The Global Engagement Student Mobility Team will inform you of your application outcome within a month of the deadline and nominate successful applicants to the host university.
3. Following nomination you will submit an application to the host university. The host university application stage of the process varies from university to university. Whichever application method you're following, it is your responsibility to be fully aware of your host university's requirements and deadlines. It is important that you also keep in touch with the Global Engagement Student Mobility Team, and update us on your progress.
   Please note that if you are going on exchange in semester two, there may be a delay of several months between the nomination and application stages, subject to your allocated institution's timelines. You will typically be contacted by the Global Engagement Student Mobility Team in August.
4. Once you have a) received your official acceptance letter from the host university and b) produced your Turing Scheme learning agreement you will be able to apply for funding via the Turing Scheme. Find out more about the funding on our Turing Scheme webpage.
   If you are in receipt of a Student Finance England loan, please contact AskBU to check what arrangements you need to make to receive your loan during your time abroad.

If you have missed the deadline above and you wish to study abroad, please contact the Global Engagement Student Mobility team.

Orientation sessions for successful applicants are held twice a year to support outgoing students with their applications. Dates, times and places will be communicated in due course.

The credits you study on exchange will be transferred back to BU so that they count towards your BU degree outcome. It is important to note that your units will only be recognised on a pass/fail basis, so that while you do not need to achieve the highest grade while on exchange you will need to pass the units to progress at BU. Any grades obtained while overseas will not count towards your final degree classification, instead the grades you receive for the remaining semester at BU will be doubled up to calculate your grade for the whole academic year.

If you have any queries of an academic nature, you should contact the Study Abroad Academic Coordinator in your faculty.

If you have any other non-academic queries regarding the application process, please email the Global Engagement Student Mobility Team or call us on 01202 968198.

Want to drop in?

Our drop-in sessions are every Monday (virtual) and Wednesday (in-person) afternoons during term time. During the summer holidays virtual drop-in sessions continue to take place every Monday, no in-person sessions are held. The sessions are open to all students wanting to find out about opportunities to study, work or volunteer overseas during your degree and the funding available to support you.

Mondays 1pm to 5pm: Join us online via Microsoft Teams (MS Teams), search “BU Study and Work Overseas Drop-in” in MS Teams or access the session in MS Teams.

Wednesdays 1 pm to 5pm: Visit us in-person in the Global Mobility Hub, Poole House, Talbot Campus (next to the student shop).