UNIVERSITY COLLEGE DUBLIN PRE DEPARTURE GUIDE.

Transcription

1 UNIVERSITY COLLEGE DUBLIN PRE DEPARTURE GUIDE

2 CONTENTS ACADEMICS 2 Grade conversion scale: 2 TRAVEL DOCUMENTS 3 Passports 3 Visa: Ireland Residency Permit 3 PAYMENT INFORMATION 5 HEALTH INSURANCE 5 EMERGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION: 6 PROGRAM CONTACT INFORMATION 6 ARRIVAL AND ONSITE ORIENTATION 7 HOUSING ARRANGEMENTS 7 LIVING IN YOUR HOST CITY 8 1

3 ACADEMICS All students are required to enroll in a full course load while abroad. Students studying at University College Dublin are required to take three courses/modules from the sciences and two courses non science courses/modules from those available at UCD for a total of 30 ECTS, which is equivalent to 15 Penn State credits. Students may find course options through the University College Dublin Course Search: Students must consult with their Penn State academic adviser prior to making course/module selections to determine how courses might fulfill graduation requirements and apply to each student s degree audit. To see what kind of credit students have received in the past for courses taken on this program, refer to the course equivalency list posted to the Penn State Education Abroad program page. Please be advised that this is a historical list intended for reference purposes only and does not necessarily reflect courses currently offered so DO NOT choose your courses from this list! Students will officially select their courses for the semester after arriving abroad and completing the on site course registration process. PLEASE NOTE: Students will finalize their course schedule after arrival, as part of your on site orientation program. Admission to particular courses on site cannot be guaranteed in advance of arrival. Be sure to have backup courses in mind in case your first choice courses are not available once you are on site. Upon receipt of a transcript and prior to course posting at Penn State, all students must complete a course equivalency process to ensure all courses taken abroad have been assigned a Penn State course number. All courses will count for credit at Penn State; however, not all courses taken abroad have been previously assigned a Penn State course number. For detailed information regarding the course equivalency process, please consult the Penn State Course Equivalency page. GRADE CONVERSION SCALE: UCD Percentage PSU Grade A A B A C B+ D B D C+ E C F D G F 2

4 TRAVEL DOCUMENTS PASSPORTS All students studying abroad will need to have a passport. If you do not have a passport, apply for one now! Your passport should be valid for at least six months beyond your return date in order to obtain permission to enter your host study abroad country. If your passport will expire early, you should renew your passport. Be sure your passport is signed and has at least one blank page for a visa or immigration stamp. Non US citizens should locate and contact your local embassy for information regarding passport regulations and visas. EU and dual citizenship holders should also contact their local embassy for details regarding their particular requirements. For details on how to apply for or renew a passport go to: You can also obtain information and forms from local post offices, county prothonotary s and county clerk s offices. VISA: IRELAND RESIDENCY PERMIT A visa is special permission from a government for certain visitors/students to enter and stay in their country for a period of time. Ireland does not require US citizens to have a visa while in Ireland; however, you must obtain permission from the Department of Justice, Equality, and Law Reform in order to stay for more than 90 days. The University of Limerick (UL) will give you further instructions on how to obtain your residence permit upon arrival. You can also read the immigration information on the UL website. Requirements for Initial Entry: Passport the permit will be stamped in your passport Official Acceptance letter from UL Proof of Departure (round trip plane ticket) Requirements for Registration at the Department of Justice, Equality, and Law Reform: Aliens Registration Form (available at the Alien s Registration Office) Passport the permit will be stamped in your passport Official Acceptance letter from UL Immigration Letter (provided by the UL Abroad Office during orientation) 150 euro application fee (payable by credit card or bank giro cash is not accepted) Proof of Medical Insurance (available from HTH Insurance, Proof of Sufficient Funds (evidence that you will have about $1500 euro, see for current conversions) o A letter from your source(s) of financial aid/scholarship (if applicable), stating how much money you are receiving from that source(s) funding must be listed in your name o If someone else (e.g., a parent or family member) is paying your way: a notarized letter of support (to verify sufficient funds) and the most recent original bank statement of that person or a letter from that person s employer, verifying his/her monthly salary 3

5 o If you are paying your own way: a letter indicating evidence of funds (see page 4) and your original bank statements or financial guarantee SAMPLE LETTER: CONFIRM FINANCIAL SUPPORT BY PARENT/OTHER [Date] Dear Consular Officer, I, John Doe, confirm that I am willing and able to support my son, John Doe, Jr., financially for the duration of his fall/spring/academic year 200x [insert the appropriate semester(s) and year] education abroad program at [name of university] in [City Name, Country]. I have provided my most recent bank statement/a letter of support from my employer to confirm my ability to provide financial support. If you need to contact me, I may be reached at: [Number and Street Address] [City, State, Zip Code] [Phone number] [E mail address, if available] John Jr. plans to fly to Ireland on [date]. Thank you for your assistance, [Parent s signature] John Doe [Parent s typed name] SAMPLE LETTER: CONFIRM INDEPENDENT FINANCIAL SUPPORT [Date] Dear Consular Officer, I, Jane Doe, confirm that I am willing and able to support myself financially for the duration of my fall/spring/academic year 200x [insert the appropriate semester(s) and year] education abroad program at [name of university] in [City Name, Country]. I have provided my bank statements for the past 3 months to confirm my ability to support myself while abroad. If you need to contact me, I may be reached at: [Number and Street Address] [City, State, Zip Code] [Phone number] [E mail address] I plan to fly to Ireland on [date]. Thank you for your assistance, [Your signature] Jane Doe [Your typed name] 4

6 PAYMENT INFORMATION Please share these basic payment details with your folks at home if they are paying (in whole or in part) for your education abroad program. Billable and non billable expenses are outlined on the Penn State Education Abroad program page. Billable costs will be posted through the Bursar s office. Students will have all standard payment options and can apply financial aid and scholarship funds toward their education abroad program. While the Education Abroad office makes every effort to provide you with accurate program costs, institutions around the world determine program costs at different times, it is difficult for Education Abroad to provide actual cost information until shortly before the beginning of a program. You are encouraged to consult your program s budget sheet on a regular basis as it is frequently updated with the most current cost and billing information available. The Education Abroad office is not responsible (or in any way liable), at any time, for late or last minute changes to our partner institutions costs. HEALTH INSURANCE All students have been issued a comprehensive policy with HTH Worldwide Insurance: Policy No. HM 3015 A 08. Also see information on PSU Education Website under Health & Safety Insurance. Policy information will be ed to each student after he/she is enrolled by the Education Abroad office. In an emergency, call Receipts for medical costs should be submitted to: HTH Worldwide Attn: International Claims One Radnor Corporate Center, Suite 100 Radnor PA USA 5

7 EMERGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION: First Point of Contact, On Site: , UCD Centre for Study Abroad or , UCD Medical Emergency Service Penn State, During Business Hours: (814) , University Office of Global Programs (814) , Nimisha Thakur, Education Abroad Advisor (office) Penn State, After Hours Emergency Contact: (e.g., in case of a life threatening accident or illness abroad): (814) , Penn State Police Services Police Services will notify the appropriate EA staff member(s) regarding true emergency calls received after hours. PROGRAM CONTACT INFORMATION Agriculture, Program Coordinator: (first point of contact for academic issues) Science, Program Coordinator: (first point of contact for academic issues) Penn State Abroad Adviser Dr. Frank Monahan Int l Relations Officer University College Dublin Room 3.40 Agriculture & Food Science Centre Belfield, Dublin 4 IRELAND Phone: Fax: frank.monahan@ucd.ie Ms. Joanna Long International Student Co ordinator University College Dublin Science Program Office Belfield, Dublin 4 Ireland Tel: E mail: joanna.long@ucd.ie Nimisha Thakur 410 Boucke Building University Park, Pennsylvania (814) nxt5031@ip.psu.edu 6

8 Phone & Fax: if you need to call your on site coordinator prior to departure, or fax any forms to the study abroad office on site, you need to understand how to call or fax internationally: 011 is the international calling code from the US to any country abroad except Canada. Materials you receive from your host institution usually will not list this code in front of phone or fax numbers, so you just have to remember that you must dial 011 before any other numbers. 353 is the country code for Ireland. You may sometimes see this code preceded by a plus sign (+) in materials you receive from your host institution (e.g., +353 ). The next number is the city/regional code. The final set of numbers is the local phone number. Note that local phone numbers abroad do not necessarily have 7 digits like most US local phone numbers. If a phone or fax number abroad lists a zero in parentheses before a city/regional code, do not dial the zero from the US. It would only be used within Ireland. ARRIVAL AND ONSITE ORIENTATION Know what is expected! You will receive pre arrival information from your host institution later this semester, including information about arrival, orientation, and life on your host campus. In order to be well prepared for your program, be sure to read all your pre arrival materials carefully, and if possible, take them with you for reference after arrival. In the meantime, review the International Student Handbook and other information available on the UCD Center for Study Abroad website: Arrival on site: If at all possible, try to arrive on site on the suggested arrival date. If you arrive early, be prepared to be responsible for your own lodging, meals, and incidental expenses for any days/nights prior to the suggested arrival date. If for any reason you must arrive after the suggested arrival date, at least make sure you are there prior to the start of your on site orientation program. While the Education Abroad office makes every effort to provide you with accurate program dates, UCD reserves the right to make changes to their academic calendar at any time, and they sometimes make such changes quite late during the semester. Students should not purchase their plane ticket until after receipt of the official UCD acceptance packet, with exact dates. Students may also refer to the University website for dates: On site orientation: Your on site orientation program will be an important part of your initial adjustment process, and you are expected to attend. On site orientation covers important information about your courses and academics, your host city and cultural adaptation, and local health and safety information. HOUSING ARRANGEMENTS Once you have been officially accepted to UCD, the UCD Center for Study Abroad will send you information about housing, along with an application for on campus housing. Students are typically placed in dorm rooms, with access to communal kitchens, bathrooms, and living areas. 7

9 UCD student residences typically consist of apartments for three/four persons. Each student has their own single room and shares bathroom and kitchen facilities. On campus housing is limited. The UCD Centre for Study Abroad also facilitates students in suggesting suitable off campus housing. Off campus housing is typically in houses within walking distance of Dublin city centre and on a bus route to UCD. enda.carroll@ucd.ie PLEASE NOTE: Housing assignments are usually made quite late in the semester before you leave and in some cases may not be finalized until early in the semester when you actually plan to leave. Do not expect to hear about your housing assignment until very shortly before your departure. In rare cases, you may not get your housing assignment until after you arrive on site. LIVING IN YOUR HOST CITY Dublin, the Irish capital, is a vibrant, walkable city of about 1 million inhabitants. The city is a popular tourist destination because of its many historic sites, restaurants, pubs, and entertainment. More information about Dublin may be found in Irish travel guides, or on Dublin s website, 8