Developing International Exchanges
Types of exchanges
Exchanges can involve either faculty or students or both and are defined as relationships that support traffic both ways. The University also has a number of international relationships and projects that are not defined as exchanges.
- Informal exchanges — Ad hoc faculty visits, Fulbright awards, leaves, sabbaticals, or unregistered arrangements
- Student exchanges — Reciprocal student exchanges through the U of M Learning Abroad Center
- University-wide exchanges — Exchanges that are not associated with a specific department or college
- University of Minnesota exchanges around the world — List of exchanges by world region
A note on nomenclature: The Office of International Programs uses the global nomenclature of the Institute of International Education (IIE) in New York. IIE developed this nomenclature to track statistics related to international students in the United States, which it publishes annually in its Open Doors report. This nomenclature is now widely used for general international educational exchange purposes.
Informal exchanges
Informal academic exchange activities do not need to be documented by official exchange agreements; however, the Office of International Programs keeps records of these activities as a resource for future activities. (See Informal.)
Informal exchange activities that do not need official exchange agreements:
- Ad hoc faculty visits to foreign institutions for lecturing or research
- Fulbright teaching or research awards or individual sabbaticals and teaching or research leaves (Be sure to refer to OIP's information on funding individual activities)
- Individual arrangements that could be facilitated more appropriately under the University's consulting provisions for faculty
Student exchanges
Reciprocal student exchange opportunities can often be worked into general university-to-university exchange agreements. The Learning Abroad Center office can provide assistance to departments and colleges in setting up programs that will allow students to earn credit by transfer. Contact Heidi Soneson at 625-2571 or sones001@umn.edu.
Learning Abroad Center has a catalog of existing University student programs by country, and a list of universities that are already part of the International Student Exchange Program (ISEP) or other multilateral networks or agreements. If student access has already been established through another program, many administrative hurdles have already been accomplished toward offering University of Minnesota students the opportunity for study abroad. Visit the Learning Abroad Center Web site.
If a department is interested in establishing a study abroad program that does not include incoming students from the foreign institution, Learning Abroad Center can also assist. Call 626-9000 or send e-mail to UMabroad@umn.edu.
University-wide exchanges
University-wide exchanges must go through special approval channels and should be considered only when the purposes of the agreement cannot be carried out under the purview of a particular college or unit. If a university-wide exchange is contemplated, consult with the Office of International Programs before beginning negotiations.