International Travel Handbook

RETURNING TO CAMPUS FROM STUDYING ABROAD

The Office of International Programs’ web site lists several ways to stay connected to your abroad experience.

The Office of Career Services (OCS) is a terrific resource for exploring other international opportunities.

Housing on Campus
To return to Harvard after a semester or year away, you must submit an Application for Returning Students, approximately a semester in advance of your expected return. Most students complete this application before they leave campus to study abroad. Students who submit the form after the deadline will be housed on a space available basis and charged a late fee.

Registration for Classes at Harvard
Online registration will be available a few days in advance of the beginning of the term. Study Cards must be submitted in person, approximately one week later. Check the Office of the Registrar’s webpage for specific dates and further information about registration and enrollment.

Financial Aid for Returning Students
Students wishing to apply for financial aid must request a financial aid application from the Financial Aid Office by February 1 for the following fall term and by October 1 for the following spring term. Late applicants cannot be assured financial aid. Students should complete a term bill worksheet, obtained from their Allston Burr Resident Dean and returned to the Student Billing Office, Holyoke Center 556, with payment before August 9 for a fall term return and before January 17 for a spring term return.

Study Abroad Evaluations
Your comments about your study abroad experience are invaluable to your peers and the Office of International Programs. When you return, you will be asked to complete an evaluation of your term abroad that can be shared with prospective study abroad students.

Re-entry Adjustment
Adjustment to coming “home” is often a surprise. Your own country and culture can stand in sharp contrast to the adopted country in the days just after coming home. People returning from abroad can feel disoriented and startled by their perceptions of their own culture, find themselves disliking their own home and missing the country they just left. Though the traveler has undergone a great transformation, things at home could seem the same. Similarly, your friends and family don’t know the “new you.” This can be a particularly difficult transition when it is unexpected.

Articulating your feelings about being away and returning can be helpful. Some students find that it is useful to write about their months away, while others prefer to reconnect with friends that they made abroad to discuss the process of coming home and missing their host country.

Bureau of Study Counsel (BSC)
The BSC has many counselors available to provide “students with an opportunity to explore their concerns in a confidential, supportive setting.” In addition, the Bureau offers various support groups, including the following, which may be of interest to you:
“Returning to Harvard: A Discussion Group” with Counselor Diane Weinstein.
Coming back to Harvard after time away can sometimes be surprisingly unsettling. Despite familiarity with the Harvard community, we might feel out of step with our cohort or taken aback by the renewed academic or social demands. This group will create a shared environment in which members can discuss and support one another in their return to Harvard. For more information call the Bureau of Study Counsel at (617)495-2481.

Planning to Go Abroad Again?
Visit the numerous international and regional Centers on campus as the OCS to learn about existing international opportunities and to receive advice.

For funding opportunities, visit the Funding Sources Database.


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