Education Abroad

Academics: Studying abroad doesn't mean delaying graduation. Our team coordinates with your academic department, the registrar, and financial aid to help you plan a course of study that fulfills your requirements.

Understanding the Costs: Financing your experience is a key part of the planning process. The total cost depends on several factors: your destination, the program type, its length, and your personal spending habits. The good news is that many programs are comparable to the cost of a semester on campus, and some can even be less.

We Help You Make It Affordable:

• Financial Aid & Scholarships: Your existing federal financial aid and scholarships can often be applied. Meet with the Financial Aid Office to understand your package.

• Budgeting Tools: Refer to our sample budget sheet to help plan for all expenses, including tuition, housing, meals, travel, and personal costs.

• Scholarship Guidance: We actively highlight national, international, and program-specific scholarships throughout the application season.

What Impacts The Cost?

• Program Type: Exchanges often have the lowest tuition cost, while provider programs include robust support services. Direct enrollment means paying your host university's tuition rates. See our Programs Types page for differences.

• Location: Some countries have a higher cost of living than the U.S. You can use a cost-of-living calculator to see the difference in cost on items you buy every day. This will give you a good indication if you need to budget more or less money than you need on campus. Bigger cities tend to cost more than smaller cities. Numero is a good example of a cost-of-living calculator. 

• Housing: Most programs offer different housing options, which can impact program costs. Shared housing is often the lower-cost option, while private housing is often the higher-cost option. Keep in mind that homestays and dorms/residence halls may decrease your food expenses, as food is often included in this kind of housing. On faculty-led programs, housing often includes hostels or hotels that are included in the package price. Numbeo is a website that can help you determine the cost of living for any given place.

• Courses: For exchanges and faculty-led programs, you pay your home institution. For Direct Enroll and provider programs, you pay tuition to the other institution or provider. When choosing classes to take abroad, be aware of additional course fees for which you may need to plan. These additional fees may be those in courses with lab components, excursions/field trip fees, and internship/experiential opportunities.

• Transportation: Remember to budget for your international flight and local daily transport (buses, trains) as well as any personal travel you want to do.

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Your safety is our utmost concern. We prepare you for a safe and incredible experience through:

• Pre-Departure Training: We require students to go through safety and health videos before they depart the U.S.

• Travel Enrollment: We strongly recommend enrolling in the U.S. State Department's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program.

• Comprehensive Insurance: The South Dakota Board of Regents (SDBOR) mandates that all students have international health and travel insurance for their time abroad.

  • Program-Provided Insurance: Many program providers include insurance that meets or exceeds SDBOR requirements. Our office reviews all policies before departure for approval.

  • Automatic Enrollment: If your program does not provide adequate coverage, our office will automatically enroll you in the comprehensive CISI insurance plan to ensure you are fully protected.

• Support: Your host program provides on-the-ground support, and our office is always here for you and your family.

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We adhere to Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) privacy laws, which protect your educational records. For us to speak with your family about your specific details, you must complete a FERPA Release Form. We encourage students to take the lead in managing their abroad experience, but we are here to support families when authorized.

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Go as early as your freshman year, or if you are a transfer student, in your second semester. It depends on what you want to do, how long you want to be gone, and where you want to go. Many students have had multiple education abroad experiences during their time at South Dakota Mines.

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No, not at all! There are so many options, from short-term to summer, week, etc. It all depends on your goals and preferences.

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Only sometimes! A variety of programs are taught in English; however, learning the language can help you more fully adjust to the country's culture and area. The benefits of a foreign language can help in future career opportunities by enhancing your worldview and improving your personal skills in areas such as critical thinking (adapting to new circumstances), multitasking, and non-verbal communication.

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The world is a big place with unlimited options. You need to ask yourself: ‘Where do I want to go?’, ‘What do I want to do?’, ‘How long do I want to be away: semester, summer, short term, etc.?”

Afterwards, you can check our Degree Options Page for suggestions. These are either within the degree program, for your general education requirements, for humanitarian work, or other options.

We work with education abroad companies such as KEI Abroad, AIFS, API Abroad, and many more or you can go to one of our exchange partners in Germany, Norway, Peru or elsewhere. It is all up to you.

 

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 Yes, there are campus, national, and international scholarships we can discuss when you become a student.

Some of our education abroad companies give scholarships and discounts as well.

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• Attend an education abroad session (We have one each semester.)
• Talk to the Ivanhoe International Center staff
• Sign up for the Education Abroad Newsletter once you become a student - we send information about different opportunities and programs that may be of interest to you.

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