Inbound Exchanges: Graduate

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Students apply on-line through Ohio University's Graduate College. Click “Apply Now” at the bottom of the page. Application fees are waived and no GRE scores are required. If students pay the application fee by accident, it will not be refunded.

Students must use the following application codes in the Graduate Application System. Students who fail to do so will need to resubmit their entire application.

• SDU Denmark; Salzburg U.; Leipzig U.: ND9906 (Global Exchange Partnerships) 
• U. Sevilla, Spain: ND5229 (Spanish) 
  

All materials, except for the Certificate of Good Standing and letters of recommendation, should be uploaded to the application electronically by the deadline. Click “Applicants” on the sidebar and select “Upload Supplemental Application Materials.”

Email the Certificate of Good Standing and recommendation letters directly to the OHIO inbound exchange coordinator at globalaffairs@ohio.edu . 

Send original documents when required

• Certificate of Good Standing: Completed by the director of the international office at the home institution. Email the form directly to the OHIO inbound exchange coordinator ( globalaffairs@ohio.edu ). The Certificate of Good Standing is available online at the Graduate College website under the application materials section (click on plus sign to expand).
• Academic Transcripts: When prompted, upload a copy of home university transcripts online. Do not send original transcripts or certificates. These are not required and will not be returned.
• English Language Proficiency: See below.
• OHIO Courses: Applicants must submit a list of 8-10 of the OHIO courses they are interested in taking. NOTE: When compiling the exchange course list, use the corresponding semester of the previous year in  OHIO's course offerings . Course offerings are subject to change.
• Letters of recommendation: Two academic letters of recommendation are required for most exchanges. Students from U. of Sevilla and Salzburg U. must provide three letters of recommendation. The letter writer should email all letters to the Office of Global Affairs ( globalaffairs@ohio.edu ).
• Statement of interest: Submit a 1-2 page personal statement, covering background and interest in this exchange and OHIO.
• Additional documents: Students from U. of Sevilla and Salzburg U. must further submit a resume/CV and a statement of interest in both English and the native language. Advisors, please contact OGA if you have questions about specific departmental requirements.

NOTE: Missing documents or incomplete applications will delay the application process. Exchange student applicants should always work with the international advisor or exchange program coordinator at the home university to ensure that the application is complete and all required documents are provided.

Non-native speakers of English must demonstrate English proficiency by submitting official test scores for either the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System(IELTS). Photocopies and/or faxes of English proficiency scores are not accepted. 

Students must fulfill these requirements in order to take academic courses at OHIO.

Official scores must be reported directly from the testing agency to OHIO. The OHIO institutional code for TOEFL is 1593. Scans or hard copy result pages are not accepted.

OHIO operates on the semester system. The academic year begins with fall semester. Each semester consists of 14 weeks of classes and one week of exams. Few graduate courses are offered during the summer sessions and most OHIO students leave Athens. Consequently, we discourage exchange students from attending during summer. 

The OHIO academic calendar is available on the registrars website . The tentative academic calendar for 2025-2026 is:

• Summer term: May 12 – August 16, 2025
• Fall semester: August 25 – December 13, 2025
• Spring semester: January 12 – May 02, 2026
  

Tentative arrival dates for undergraduate students are May 08, 2025 for summer term; August 10, 2025 for fall semester and January 4, 2026 for spring semester. Arrival dates are confirmed in students’ welcome packets. Do not book airfare prior to receiving a letter of admissions and confirming arrival dates. 

Exchange students apply for J-1 U.S. visa status:Upon admission, students will be advised to request their DS-2019 through the International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) student system (iCats). Students will receive detailed information via email. Students will receive an email from ISSS with an attachment of the form DS-2019 containing detailed information on accessing and signing the form.

Upon receipt of the completed email DS-2019, check the document carefully and notify Global Affairs ( globalaffairs@ohio.edu ) immediately if there are any mistakes.

For more information on visa application and visa requirements, please see https://www.ohio.edu/international-student-scholar-services/visa-inform… (opens in a new window).  

U.S. immigration regulations require that students be enrolled as full-time students. Graduate exchange students must enroll for a minimum of 9 credit hours per semester (approximately 3 courses). Classes must be taken for a letter grade. Online courses do not qualify. 

Exchange students who are receiving a teaching or graduate assistantship will have different requirements. Learn more on the graduate college webpage . 

All international students are automatically enrolled in the OHIO Student Health Insurance. Students will be automatically billed for the cost of the insurance plan after they arrive in Athens. A waiver may be requested, but because of the strict federal and local policy coverage requirements, it is most frequently denied.

Information and costs of this insurance plan can be found on-line at the student insurance website . 

Graduate exchange students are welcome to live in OHIO's residence halls. This is convenient if staying only one semester. Note that the typical age of the student population in OHIO’s residence halls is between 18-21. Between academic semesters when classes are not in session, regular on-campus housing closes and all students are asked to move out until classes resume for the next semester. Interim housing is available between semesters for a fee.

It is the student’s responsibility to reserve and confirm permanent and interim housing. Housing information is available on-line at the OHIO Housing website and the Off-Campus Housing webpage Further directions are sent to admitted students. 

Airport: The closest and most convenient airport to Athens is the John Glenn Columbus International Airport in Columbus, Ohio.

Transport to Athens: Please refer to communications from International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) during pre-arrival for the most current transportation offerings.  

Exchange students are required to attend an on-campus international student orientation. The orientation requires students to arrive one week prior to semester start. Detailed Orientation information will be published 1-2 months before arrival at ohio.edu/international-student-scholar-services/orientation-information. 

Students register for courses upon arrival during orientation. Pre-registration is not available. Each student is assigned an academic advisor to help with registration and academic course concerns. Courses may be full, cancelled or unavailable to incoming exchange students. Students should be flexible and have a broad set of course interests. 

Access to course information is available on-line. Be sure to check course offerings for the correct semester and do not use the comprehensive course catalog as many courses are not offered each semester. 

Students should be fully aware of the cost involved in exchange participation at OHIO at the time of application. For details on expected costs, refer to the provided expense estimate for graduate students. 

Graduate exchange students will receive an instructional (“tuition”) fee waiver, covering the per-semester instructional fees at OHIO. This “tuition waiver” does not cover general fees. Graduate exchange students are responsible for paying general fees each semester they study at OHIO. Students from most partner universities are additionally responsible for paying a $150 incoming international student fee.