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Education Abroad Office

Unaffiliated Programs

Whether an academic interest leads you to an institution with whom UofSC does not have an existing relationship, or you are pursuing a unique professional opportunity abroad, you will need to seek approval for any program that is not currently on our pre-approved list. 

Students must have a strong justification for submitting a petition. This is not a program approval process, but rather a case-by-case review of the individual student’s reasons for wanting to participate in a particular unaffiliated program. 

  1. Contact the Education Abroad Office to set up an appointment with an advisor to discuss participation in an unaffiliated program.
  2. Submit the petition by using the form below. 
  3. Simutaneously, you should also complete regular Global Partner application requirements.  (When selecting your program in this application, select "Other GPP.")

As a courtesy to students, petitions may be submitted prior to the stated deadline in order to meet other program or scholarship deadlines. Petitions will normally be reviewed within three to four weeks after submission. However, the review process may be longer during peak times of the academic year.

The petition review committee will respond to you within 3-4 weeks if all required information is included in the initial petition.

Possible reasons for the committee to deny a petition include:

  1. You do not provide a sufficient justification.
  2. The program does not meet minimum standards for approval. 
  3. You are petitioning for a program in which you are not eligible to participate.
  4. You knowingly provide false information in the petition. 

If, after you submit your petition, you receive further information about your program that may help the committee in the decision-making process, please contact the Education Abroad Office. 


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