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Faculty-led Programs

Texas A&M University courses taught overseas by Texas A&M faculty.
  • The courses are typically taught in English, with the exception of language credit programs.
  •  Students are provided with an academically enriching experience in the host country, complemented with culturally relevant excursions.
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Developing a faculty-led program, short term (2 to 10 weeks) or semester-long, is a lengthy process that involves early discussions as well as timely completion of a detailed proposal form. The general recommendation is to submit the proposal 12 months ahead to allow state approval, development, recruitment and student preparation for the program. Discussion with the academic department and college should start beforehand for preapproval of the academic content. All faculty-led programs taught abroad need department and college approval, so it is best to begin discussion there.
 

Step 1: Department and College Support

Faculty wishing to create such a program should meet with the appropriate academic department head and Education Abroad College Liaison. Colleges may have their own deadline for proposal submission.
 

Step 2: Creating and Submitting a Proposal

Education abroad college contacts and Education Abroad staff can guide faculty in the course proposal process. Faculty are encouraged to visit with Mrs. Pascale Parker, Associate Director at (pparker@tamu.edu or 979.845.0544) for assistance and resources.

Resources:

Step 3: Once a Proposal is Approved by the College

Faculty may start planning programs abroad, working closely with Education Abroad to coordinate logistics, funding, and other administrative processes. Education Abroad staff will initiate contact with the faculty once the approved proposal is sent to our office. This office will provide assistance throughout the many phases of development, implementation, and post-program activities as well as in emergency and crisis situations abroad.
 
Education Abroad offers two service levels for faculty-led programs: Standard service, which is fully supported by Education Abroad; Limited service, which is supported more by the faculty’s home department and/or college. Each service level comes with a different fee charged to the students. Please see the Service Levels Matrix as a summary of how the office can support you, depending on your department and business office needs and choice. For more information on service levels please review the below documents.
  Once a faculty-led program has been approved, the faculty member will be notified by Education Abroad. Ideally, we will begin working on the program one year before departure. This gives time for program development, recruitment, processing applications and preparing students for departure. Please refer to the following timelines for more information and steps on how to prepare for a program. Keep in touch with your college education abroad liaison for specific details throughout the development process.
 
  • Timeline for development and delivery of faculty-led program
  • Checklist for Limited Service Program (for programs managed by department)

    There are a variety of avenues through which faculty led programs can be advertised. Faculty members should follow up with their education abroad liaison to recruit students within a particular college, department, or across campus. Your liaison will assist with recruitment efforts when applicable. Below are a few ways in which programs can be advertised:
    • Classroom presentations
    • Informational meetings (during the day or after 5:00pm)
    • Email advertisement
      • bulk emails, listservs, and interest lists
    • Webpages
      • Education Abroad, department/college
    • Resource tables on-campus
      • locations such as the MSC, Koldus, Sbisa, near the college
    • Chalkboard messages—can be placed in various classrooms in many academic buildings
    • Flyers for departments and message boards
    • Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and or other social media outlets
    • Brochures for advising offices
    • Study abroad fairs
    • YouTube video

    Marketing guide

    For faculty working with Education Abroad to build the program from recruitment to delivery, your education abroad liaison and office will work with you to build a timeline, a budget, and navigate the various financial set ups required for the program and students. If your department chose the limited service model, please contact your department and the business office in charge of all financial aspects of the program.

    Coming soon:
    • Contracts and Agreements with foreign vendors
    • Prepayments and invoices
    • Payments on site and the role of the custodian (faculty leader)
    • Program cost and students’ financial responsibility

    Education Abroad has compiled a few documents that should help you with budgeting and managing your working funds while abroad. As always, your study abroad liaison will be available to walk you through these procedures and answer questions specific to your program.
     
    Whenever possible, program expenses should be paid before program departure.
    The Working Fund is an entrusted advance entrusted to a Texas A&M employee (custodian) to be used for incidental expenses that were not pre-paid.
    Coming soon:
     
    • Working Fund PowerPoint
    • Faculty Meal Form
    • Working Fund Spreadsheet
    The primary contact for working fund questions, concerns, rules, procedures, and reconciliations is:

    Donna Lovell
    Travel & International Support
    Academic Affairs Business Services
    Tel. +1 979.458.3621 | Fax. +1 979.862.2696
    Email: dlovell@tamu.edu
    Additional tasks and resources will be provided to you upon your return. Currently, we ask faculty to complete an evaluation of their experience when they return. Students are also asked to evaluate their experience as well. The results of these evaluations are invaluable for making adjustments and improvements to future faculty-led programs.
Faculty-led Program Proposal Forms: for faculty interested in teaching Texas A&M University courses to students at a location outside of the United States. Left click to open in Explorer or right click and save link as in Chrome or Firefox. Then open from desktop by right clicking and choosing open with adobe reader.  Proposal Modification Form: used to modify an already approved study abroad program proposal.
Left click to open in Explorer or right click and save link as in Chrome or Firefox. Then open from desktop by right clicking and choosing open with adobe reader.   

Other On-Campus Departments and Offices that provide assistance to Education Abroad