Requirements

All students must meet these academic requirements to Study Away:

  • Be in good academic standing with no course deficiencies.
  • Complete at least 2 out of 3 distribution requirements in each division. You may not complete distribution requirements elsewhere.
  • Complete 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 complete one writing intensive course by the end of sophomore year.
  • Complete the Quantitative Formal Reasoning (QFR) requirement if you are studying away for the full year. Otherwise, you must complete this by the end of junior 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.
  • Complete 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 requirement. Williams does not have a GPA requirement to study away.
  • Return to campus after a leave of absence for a full and successful semester at Williams before embarking on a study away experience.

All Williams students are welcome to apply to study away. Sophomores and seniors must have confirmation of approval from their intended and declared academic departments as well as advisors prior to petitioning to study away.

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.

Students are expected to study the language of the country that they are in.