Requirements to Study Away

To study away you must:

• Be in good academic standing with no course deficiencies. 
• Have completed at least 2 out of 3 distribution requirements in each division. You may not complete distribution requirements elsewhere.
• Have completed two Writing Skills courses by the end of the sophomore year if you plan to study away for a full year. If you plan to study away for one semester, you must have completed one writing intensive course by the end of the sophomore year.
• Have completed the Quantitative Formal Reasoning (QFR) requirement if you are studying away for the full year.
• Declare your major and discuss your plan to study away with the chair of the department or designated advisor.
• Meet the language requirements of the program.
• Have completed all 4 P.E. credits by the end of your sophomore year. (Contact Carolyn Miles, Associate Director/Student-Athlete Services, if you need to make arrangements for Study Away approval and completion of PE credits.)
• Have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 for most programs. Some programs may require a higher grade point average. Williams does not have a GPA requirement for study away.
• Have returned to campus after a leave of absence for a full and successful semester at Williams before embarking on a study away experience.
• As a general rule, students can only study away for up to two semesters during their time at Williams. The only exception to this rule is if students choose to study away through Williams-Mystic. In this case, students can study away through Mystic along with having two additional semesters away (three semesters total). 

Many, but by no means all, programs require 2 years of college-level language study or the equivalent, which can be determined by taking a placement exam. You are required to study the language of the country that you are in as language is an important piece of cultural immersion.