So you want to study abroad. That’s great!
We have two rules for study abroad in Political Economy:
- Go wherever you want to go.
- Take whatever courses you want to take.
Getting Started
FIRST, you must officially declare your major in Political Economy by completing a major declaration form and meeting with your major advisor. You must have major advisor approval to pursue study abroad. Your major advisor is Dr. John Louis Howard, Associate Director of the Murphy Institute.
Choose your study abroad destination based on where you truly want to go, not on how well it fits your major. If you are applying through Tulane’s Office of Study Abroad, or for a Tulane sponsored program, you do not need approval from Dr. Howard for your course selections. There is no need to email or meet in person to get course approval.
The Application Process
When you apply for study abroad, an automatic email is sent to Dr. Howard to confirm your standing in the major and to approve your application. You do not need to request a formal letter of recommendation or to meet with him in person to get approval for your program. Simply complete the application process and he will approve.
Understanding Your Credits
We will use any study abroad credits we can towards your major ELECTIVES, but usually it is not necessary. More than 90% of Political Economy majors who do study abroad do not need to use any of their study abroad credits to complete the major.
Important Reminders
Core Courses: We do not use study abroad credits for required Political Economy core courses (PECN 3010, 3020, 3030, 3040, and 6000). These must be completed at Tulane.
STEP 1 - Transferring Credits Back to Tulane: Responsibility for posting your study abroad credits to your Tulane transcript belongs exclusively to Tulane’s Office of Study Abroad and the Registrar. This is a completely different and separate process from applying credits to your major (Step 2), and Dr. Howard and the Political Economy program are not involved in this process.
STEP 2 – Applying Credits to Your Major: If needed, study abroad credits may be substituted into your major electives after they are posted to your transcript. You don’t need to do anything to make this happen. Most substitutions will be made by Dr. Howard during your senior year. This is a completely separate process from Step 1.
Finally, enjoy your time abroad and don’t constantly worry about your major! Get the most out of this experience and leave the worries about major completion and graduating on time behind.
The rules and reminders above should answer any questions you have about studying abroad. However, if you do have any questions, please email Dr. Howard at jhoward2@tulane.edu.
Bon voyage!
Important Notes on Other Study Abroad Programs
These rules do NOT apply to study abroad programs where you take a leave of absence and apply directly to a program, or to programs pursued through the Freeman School of Business.
The business school has its own set of rules governing study abroad which take precedence over all other processes and procedures. If you want to pursue study abroad through the business school you must follow their rules, not ours.
In the rare instance where you wish to take a leave of absence to study abroad, you must contact your NTC academic advisor, not your major advisor. Your NTC academic advisor will help you with that process, which is completely different from the process described above.
To learn more about study abroad experiences, please visit the Tulane Center for Global Education.
