Overseas students pay Penn

University policy forces students to pay full tuition while abroad. University policy forces students to pay full tuition while abroad.Margie FishmanUniversity policy forces students to pay full tuition while abroad.Margie FishmanThe Daily Pennsylvanian Students who successfully petition the College Committee on Study Abroad to gain access to non-Penn Abroad programs for transfer credit are free to embark on their respective adventures -- as long as they continue to pay Penn tuition. Since 1994, all four undergraduate schools have maintained a policy requiring that students continue to pay Penn tuition while studying for credit under approved international programs. Penn, in turn, reimburses the host institutions. But since on-site costs vary, Penn tuition often exceeds the cost of a number of non-affiliated foreign programs. Kathryn Simons, a 1995 College graduate, spent her junior year abroad on two such programs. Since she petitioned the committee two years before the College's study abroad tuition policy went into effect, she paid her host universities directly. While her Zimbabwe program was "comparable in price to Penn tuition," her France program cost approximately $8,000 -- about $800 less than Penn's 1993-94 tuition combined with the College's General Fee. "Penn is now making a pretty hefty profit," Simons said. And College and Wharton junior Gerardo Benitez added that "paying $15,000 to go [on Penn Abroad's] Oaxaca program is crazy," since someone enrolling directly in the Mexican institution "can pay about $2,000 [for tuition] and spend the rest of the $13,000 traveling." But former Oaxaca participant Deborah Horowitz said the program was "well worth the money," adding that administrators provided an extensive support network. Assistant Director of International Programs Geoffrey Gee said that when Penn's tuition exceeds the cost of a host institution, the excess funds go into the University treasury, and are usually used for campus facility maintenance or to fund financial aid packages, which students retain while studying abroad. "We save students a lot of effort because they are still eligible for scholarship aid," College Dean Robert Rescorla said. The process of reviewing petition programs frequently involves faculty and staff visits to the foreign locations of each program, which requires "substantial Penn resources." But since students petition for study abroad programs while still on campus and paying Penn tuition, why must they continue to support these services while studying under non-affiliated programs? College Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs Kent Peterman said the system balances out because some students require more resources than others, and made the analogy that an English major consumes fewer resources than a Biology major. Gee noted that Penn's study abroad policy highlights the University's "control phenomenon." "Study abroad is complementary to a Penn degree," he added. "Students receive Penn credit for Penn tuition." Yet students studying under approved non-affiliated programs receive transfer credit -- which is not calculated into their GPAs. And although other Ivy League universities adhere to similar guidelines, the majority of schools accept transfer credit from students who take leaves of absence to study abroad. Columbia University students may take leaves and apply for transfer credit, but they must petition to study under non-Columbia affiliated programs in France, Germany, England and Japan. And Dartmouth College considers international study leaves similar to domestic study leaves -- students solicit departmental pre-approval and receive transfer credit upon their return. The University of California at Santa Barbara, ranked first in study abroad enrollment according to a 1994-95 report by the Institute of International Education, maintains only 37 approved UC programs but offers hundreds of nonaffiliated host university programs for transfer credit pending departmental approval. And the University of Delaware, ranked second in the study -- three places above Penn -- advises students to apply for admission directly to their host institutions and visit the appropriate departments for transfer credit pre-approval. Students are not required to officially declare leaves of absence. But Bryn Mawr, Haverford and Swarthmore colleges -- the schools joining Penn in the local Quaker Consortium -- duplicate Penn's credit and financial policy with regard to international programs. College committee member Flora Cornfield characterized Penn as "one of the most liberal institutions in granting students credit from other institutions." But this liberal outlook may only extend to domestic situations and summer study opportunities. Students seeking visiting student status at domestic institutions may take leaves of absence, receive conditional credit approval from departments and count a maximum of five courses for transfer credit. Petitions are not required and the process is "relatively simple," according to College Advising Director Diane Frey. Students pay their host institutions directly. Penn is able to "establish a rapport" with other domestic institutions, Gee explained. International institutions operate under a "different educational system." And Rescorla said course evaluation for domestic institutions costs less than for foreign institutions. Although during the summer, students are able to enroll in courses at nonaffiliated domestic and international institutions for transfer credit, during the academic year the OIP keeps tight reign on students studying under nonaffiliated programs, requiring them to pay Penn tuition for non-Penn courses. The question then remains: does student tuition subsidize Penn courses or a piece of paper? "Penn tuition reflects the cost of a Penn education, which is what the student is getting even while he or she is abroad," Chodorow said.