New Faculty Programs
Whether you're a study abroad veteran or crafting your first program, the Office of International Programs (OIP) is here to help! Visit this page to learn about the process, resources, and policies for creating a new study abroad experience.
Global Chats: Are you a Seton Hall faculty member or administrator interested in learning more
about study abroad or sharing a new program idea with OIP? Sign up for a Global Chat! These sessions can be one-on-one or include up to three other faculty or administrators
you invite.
Quick Question: Email studyabroad@shu.edu for any question about building your study abroad program.
Translate Your Passion
It Starts With You: Make global travel more rewarding by incorporating your unique interests into the study abroad experience you create for your students. Go beyond the typical tourist itinerary and design a program that reflects your passions. Your enthusiasm will energize your students, so choose a location or format that excites you, whether it's related to your academic focus or personal interests.
Questions to Consider: Reflect on your knowledge and comfort level in different countries. How proficient are you in the local language, and how crucial is it for leading the program? Consider your prior experience in a particular country and any professional or personal connections that could enrich your students' experience.
Meaningful Travel: Study abroad should not be an extension of tourism. It's an opportunity for students to connect and learn from local communities on a global scale. Focus on meaningful excursions that align with your passions and enhance the academic experience, ensuring a genuine engagement with the destination.
Proposal Process
Seton Hall faculty who are full-time employees can submit new proposals for 2026 programs until April 1, 2025. Proposals must be approved by the faculty's Department Chairperson, Dean, and the Provost Office. If the program is outside the faculty's home department, it also requires approval from the Chairperson and Dean of the other department or school.
Faculty Learning Community: Have questions or want to develop the best program? Click here to learn how the Study Abroad Faculty Learning Community can help.
New FLP Proposal Form: When you are ready to submit your proposal, click here to access the online proposal form.
What Happens After Your Proposal is Submitted:
• After you submit your proposal, the Office of International Programs (OIP) will review
it for errors and contact you if needed. OIP will then forward your submission to
your Chair, Dean, and finally the Provost’s Office for approval.
• Chair and Dean approvals are due by June 1, and Provost’s Office approvals by July
1.
• During this process, OIP will create your Faculty Led Program (FLP) webpage and guide
you through next steps, including vendor bookings and the FLP Launch Form.
• Once all approvals are received, OIP will notify you and ask you to complete the FLP
Launch Form with final program details.
Spring Embedded
Spring Embedded Programs are academic courses with a special international experience during Spring Break or Post-Finals, woven into the traditional spring semester. Undergraduate students pay their typical semester tuition with no additional cost if their course load is 18 credits or less. Here are some advantages and considerations for Spring Break or Post-Finals programs.
Spring Break Advantages:
• Travel is less expensive than during the high tourist season starting in May
• Courses can include pre-departure and post-return sessions for reflection
• Weather may be more favorable in tropical and arid climates compared to Post-Finals
travel
Spring Break Considerations:
• Limited to about 10 days of travel during Spring Break
• Weather may be less ideal in temperate or subarctic climates
• Fewer pre-travel class meetings and preparation compared to Post-Finals programs
Post-Finals Advantages:
• Programs can last up to two weeks
• Entire semester of classwork before travel ensures better preparation
• Weather may be more favorable in temperate climates compared to Spring Break
Post-Finals Considerations:
• Travel can be part of the Spring semester if academic components are completed before
Summer I
• Travel can start the day after Final Exams and include non-academic activities post-travel
• Seniors will have their graduation delayed until August
• Travel costs may be higher as late May begins the high tourist season
• Limited time for post-program sessions due to the immediate start of Summer Session
I
• Weather may be hotter in tropical and arid climates compared to Spring Break
Summer Abroad
Summer Abroad Programs offer traditional class-based and experiential learning in international settings, available during Intersessions or across Summer Sessions 1, 2, or 3. Consider the following advantages and considerations when creating a Summer Abroad Program.
Advantages:
• Ideal for creating experiences lasting more than 2 weeks, unlike Spring Embedded
Programs.
• Longer duration allows for deeper cultural immersion, beneficial for language courses
and other offerings.
• Opportunity to offer multiple courses abroad due to ample instructional hours available.
Considerations:
• Summer Programs Abroad require payment for individual course credits in addition
to the program fee, separate from flat-rate semester tuition.
• Students receive a 25% tuition discount for Summer Abroad Programs, increasing to
50% for month-long programs. Numerous study abroad scholarships are also available
to support summer journeys.
Winter Programs
Winter Programs offer traditional class-based and experiential learning in international settings during the two-week Winter Session in January, after New Year's and before the Spring Semester. Consider the following advantages and considerations when creating a Winter Program:
Advantages:
• Experience summer in the southern hemisphere which provides a unique seasonal contrast
• January is typically a low-travel period globally, offering reduced crowds and lower
travel costs
Considerations:
• Winter Programs require payment for individual course credits in addition to the program
fee, separate from flat-rate semester tuition.
• Consider the cold weather in northern hemisphere locations during January, especially
for outdoor excursions.
Faculty Learning Community
To support new FLP submissions, OIP and the Center for Faculty Development invite interested faculty to join the Study Abroad Faculty Learning Community. Workshops cover Study Abroad Fundamentals, Itinerary Building, Budgeting, Globalizing Curriculum, and Web/Digital Content—essential for developing a new study abroad program.
Sign up for virtual workshops that suit your schedule. For personalized discussions, schedule a Global Chat. Notify your Department Chairperson if you plan to participate, although attendance is optional for submitting a New Program Proposal. These sessions offer valuable resources for shaping your study abroad idea.
Globalizing Your Curriculum
Course Selection: When selecting a course for study abroad, consider the audience. Courses with many
prerequisites may limit enrollment. Successful Faculty Led Programs appeal to majors
while also being accessible as School and College requirements or electives.
Case Studies: When developing your study abroad proposal, integrate course content and supplementary materials that enrich the student's experience. Include scholarly articles linking course themes with real-world applications in the destination country. Prepare local guides to deepen academic exploration on-site, enhancing the learning beyond basic tour experiences.
Assignments: Incorporate innovative global assignments such as student-led site presentations instead of traditional in-class activities like PowerPoint presentations. Foster learning through symposiums or discussions in scenic locations abroad. Encourage reflective components like journaling to critically assess the study abroad experience.
Class Discussion: To prepare students for interactive study abroad experiences, integrate ice-breakers and destination-focused discussions throughout the course. This is crucial for Spring Embedded Programs to enhance travel fulfillment. Facilitate student connections with local guides via pre-departure video chats to foster familiarity before arrival.
Building Your Itinerary
Immersion Mindset: Choose a destination within a country and focus on one region to deepen students'
understanding beyond typical tourism. Most tourism today is what is referred to as
horizontal travel where a group skips from site to site while not delving into deeper.
Consider instead having a vertical travel approach where your students get to immerse
themselves in a particular city or region and come to fully understand its many layers
that the typical visitor would not be exposed to.
Excursions and Guides: Each excursion should tell a story and align with course objectives. Decide if you will lead outings or partner with local guides. Consider student involvement, transportation logistics, and the benefit of pre-arrival research. Tailor guide involvement to complement student knowledge levels, ensuring a scholarly rather than tourist experience. Many museums and sites around the world allow faculty to act as local guides for their class. Students really connect with faculty that lead at least a portion of their own excursions.
Service Learning: Incorporate service-learning to engage students with local communities, aligning with university values. These opportunities give students the chance to sincerely engage with local populations that a tourist would never have the ability to do. Contact the Center for Community Research and Engagement for guidance.
Meals: At the very least we recommend including welcome and farewell meals. While group meals foster camaraderie and cultural understanding, including too many will not only brings up the cost of the program but might hamper students from building crucial intercultural skills they would gain by navigating local food scene on their own. Think through what type of program you want to provide and what balance you want to strike between included meals and on-your-own dining.
Free Time: A healthy amount of free time allows for students and faculty to decompress and reflect as the journey unfolds. Free time is not just for relaxation but can be a tremendous confidence builder that allows students to navigate the local culture on their own. Overly regimented itineraries may lead to student and faculty fatigue. Make sure you’ve placed enough free time into your itinerary to avoid burnout.
Vendors and Budgeting
Faculty should start planning early for their Faculty Led Program (FLP) by considering
structure, vendors, and costs. Here's what you need to know about study abroad budgeting:
Questions to Consider:
• Do you want the program fee to include roundtrip flights for all students?
• How many meals and which accommodations or excursions include meals?
• When are tour guides necessary for excursions and when can you lead an excursion on
your own?
• What local transit options are safe and cost-effective?
• Are there student discounts for sites like museums?
Faculty Led Program Budget
A Faculty Led Program Budget includes the budgeted cost (in U.S. Dollars) per student
(based on the program's minimum enrollment). The following budget items that are typically
included depending on the type of program: Roundtrip Group Flights, Student Housing,
Excursions, Group Meals, Local Transit.
Included with every Faculty Led Program:
• GeoBlue International Health Insurance ($3 per day, covers healthcare and evacuation
abroad)
• Faculty Costs (the total faculty costs of flight, housing, excursions, group meals,
local transit and GeoBlue health insurance, divided by student enrollment minimum)
• 5-10% contingency for unexpected costs, as typically included in vendor proposals
Travel Vendor Guidelines: Faculty Leaders must use a 2-bid vendor process. You will submit your bids using
the FLP Launch Form. Please keep in mind the following requirements:
• All vendors must accept payment by check or Wire Transfer, not credit cards or cash
advances
• Vendor deposits, up to $500 per participant, are due at least one month after Seton
Hall's deposit deadline.
• Faculty must structure the program to align with vendor’s requirements and Seton
Hall’s payment schedule.
• All Vendors must produce a W-9 (domestic vendor) or a W-8BEN-E (international vendor)
• All Vendors must have General Liability Insurance
• Vendor balances must not be due within one month after the student's final program
payment deadline.
Vendors and Payments: All Faculty must select from the following pre-vetted vendors. For an up-to-date list of these pre-vetted vendors please email studyabroad@shu.edu. Faculty may propose another site-specific vendor if there is a unique need for their services that a pre-vetted providers cannot provide. Payments to vendors are managed by your School or College coordination with the Division of Finance. OIP does not manage payments to vendors. Please reach out to your school or college’s finance point-of-contact for more information.
Web and Digital Content
Each Faculty Led Program has its own year-round webpage, linked from Spring Embedded
Programs, Winter Abroad Programs, or Summer Abroad Programs pages. The new Faculty
Led Program Submission Form requires:
• Program Name: Reflect the uniqueness of the program, distinct from course titles.
• Program Headline: A brief, engaging sentence for the program webpage, flyers, and social media.
• Program Overview: A concise, engaging description (2-3 paragraphs) highlighting program uniqueness
and advantages, avoiding a syllabus-like format. Relevant Seton Hall links or videos
can be included.
• Faculty Biography: A paragraph-length bio focusing on the faculty's expertise in the destination country
and passion for international course content, distinct from their Seton Hall profile.
• Faculty Photo: Preferably in the program's destination country, for the webpage and marketing materials.
• Student Testimonials: Up to two testimonials (150 words each) illustrating the program's impact, with each
quote followed by the student's first name and degree program.
• Cover Photos: A captivating image for the top of the program webpage, capturing the essence of
the experience.
Faculty can request content updates after the page goes live by emailing studyabroad@shu.edu.