Andrea Braunstein isn’t like many of her peers.
She began her application to study in Prague as soon as Winter Quarter began.
The sophomore got approval from her Communication Studies major adviser. She got approval from her history major adviser. She got a signature from her degree auditor. She obtained her transcripts. She’s even had her faculty recommendation written.
“I didn’t procrastinate,” she said. “All I have left to do are the essays so this really isn’t that big of a deal.”
Applications for Fall Quarter and full-year study abroad must be filed through the Study Abroad Office, 630 Dartmouth Place, starting Monday. Department Assistant Michelle Gere said fewer than 37 applications have been filed for Northwestern’s 105 affiliated programs. More than 450 students applied for Fall Quarter and full-year programs in 2004-05.
Gere said she has seen students scrambling to complete the various parts of the application to meet next week’s deadlines.
“There are always several students who wait until the last minute,” she said. “It puts a lot of strain on them and on the various program advisers.”
The basic application includes two short essays. Students must also fill out applications for second- and third-choice programs if they fear their program will fill up, Gere said.
All students must also receive approval from their degree auditors and their advisers in each major they have declared, as well as obtaining an official transcript.
“Most advisers are booked for appointments right now and there are few openings,” Gere said.
Students aren’t scrambling only because they procrastinated.
Gere said students often don’t realize they can study abroad in their academic programs, or their plans change.
Weinberg sophomore Aimee O’Malley has had a “heinous” time preparing her study abroad application after her plan to enroll directly in the University of Bologna in Italy was turned down by the Study Abroad Office.
“I wanted to go to Italy for as long as possible, as cheaply as possible and be as immersed as possible,” O’Malley said.
O’Malley said she felt she could save “tens of thousands of dollars” by enrolling directly and circumventing charges for NU-affiliated programs. She also felt she could be more immersed in Italian culture living among native Italian students if she did not go through an American program.
“I’ve been working with my (Weinberg) advisers bi-weekly since September, I have a binder full of research on what classes to take and where to live while in Bologna and I’ve been down to the Italian Consulate,” she said.
O’Malley’s advisers encouraged her plan to enroll directly, but the Study Abroad Office would not allow her to do so.
“They didn’t understand why I would want to directly enroll,” she said. “There’s so much extra paper work involved and risks of not getting your transcripts transferred, but I knew the risks.”
Now, O’Malley must rush through the process Braunstein began four weeks ago so she can still attend the University of Bologna next year through a NU-approved program.
“I have less than one week to fill out an application most have had months to do,” she said.
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