Frequently Asked Questions For Incoming Exchange Students

KU offers on-campus housing in residence halls, scholarship halls, and student apartments. Visit the housing website to find out more information on each type of housing. 

Students who wishto live in on-campus housing should first sign a KU Housing contract for on-campus housing as soon as possible after being admitted to KU. When contracting, students will indicate their preference of either residence halls or apartment living. Note that indicating a preference does not guarantee that there will be spots available.  Approximately 24 hours after signing and submitting this contract, students will receive an email from KU Housing describing the accommodation selection process and assigning them their group number. This group number indicates when students will select their rooms.

When it is time for you to select your room, you will log into your myKU housing portal to do so. Study Abroad & Global Engagement holds rooms in the residence halls to ensure that all exchange students can live on campus, if they so choose. If placed on the waitlist, students will then have the opportunity to indicate their preferences (4 person room vs. 2 person room; renovated vs. unrenovated). The more flexible you are with your preferences, the more likely it is you will get a room. In early July, all students on the waitlist will be removed from the waitlist and will need to select a room in the residence halls if they wish to live on campus. Note that signing a contract for on-campus housing is binding so students who break the contract will be charged cancellation fees.

The on-campus housing contract is for the academic year (fall and spring terms) but exchange students staying for the fall semester only will be permitted to cancel their contract at semester without incurring cancellation fees

When contracting for on-campus housing, you have a range of options, including apartments (Jayhawker Towers, Stouffer and McCarthy), 10 residence halls, or 12 scholarship halls. If your first choice is not available, you may choose from one of the other options. If you’re having difficulty in the contracting process, contact KU Housing at 785-864-4560.

The scholarship halls are cooperative living communities in which “schol-hallers” take on tasks such as cooking, cleaning, and doing other chores. Exchange students interested in living in one of these communities must first sign an online contract for on-campus housing. Students are encouraged to preference residence halls on their contract. Once this contract is signed, students complete the scholarship hall application (found on KU’s housing website) Applications for scholarship halls are reviewed on a rolling basis, and offers are made depending upon availability in the individual communities. Additionally, scholarship hall students currently answer a single, short-questions survey at Scholarship Hall Application.

Students are encouraged to submit their application as soon as possible, as this increases the likelihood of getting in. Because space is limited, students are encouraged to choose a room in the residence halls when it is their designated time (i.e., if your group number chooses rooms on May 30th and you still have not heard from the scholarship halls, choose a room in a residence hall). It is possible that spots in scholarship halls could open up in the late summer, and if you are made an offer to live there, Housing can switch your contract from the residence halls to the scholarship halls.

You will sign up for orientation housing when you pre-register for orientation through the International Student Services (ISS) iHawk system. You will receive an email from ISS 1-3 months before arrival, which provides instructions on how to do so.

New exchange students enroll in classes after they have arrived on campus and completed the mandatory check-ins that take place during orientation (there are holds on your record that prevent you from doing so beforehand). Given that this is the case, you will be asked to submit course requests in your Jayhawks Abroad account shortly after being admitted to KU. Study abroad and Global Experience (SAGE)  will work to obtain any necessary permissions prior to your arrival and then you will meet with an advisor in Study Abroad & Global Engagement to complete your enrollment once orientation ends.

Students can view available courses online at classes.ku.edu. Click the “More Options” button to search by academic discipline. Each student is able to submit 5 different course requests through their Jayhawks Abroad account, as well as two alternate courses. When looking at course offerings, it is important to note whether or not they are at capacity (how many seats are available), what days/times the course is offered at, and whether or not there are any prerequisites. Some departments have restrictions on courses available to exchange students, especially when the course is required for graduation from KU and availability is limited. If there are courses you are interested in but are unsure whether or not it is possible for you to take them, please email osaexchange@ku.edu.

Say you were to look up the course ENGL 211. There are four different sections of this class, which meet at four different times during the week. The prerequisites for this course are listed under the course description, and the seats available indicated on the right hand side of the screen. The course meets MWF from 9:00AM until 9:50AM. The abbreviations used for days of the week are as follows: M = Monday, T = Tuesday, W = Wednesday, R = Thursday, and F = Friday. Note also that right next to the time it says “LAWRENCE,” indicating that this course is held at the Lawrence campus. In general, exchange students tend to enroll in courses on the Lawrence campus, as they are not allowed to enroll in courses at the medical school in Kansas City and the Edwards campus is about a 50 minute bus ride away.

Some courses offered at KU consist of only a lecture component, where others include both a required lab and/or discussion section. When planning your schedule, make sure to pay attention to lecture times as well as lab/discussion times, as you will need to enroll in both if a discussion or lab is part of the course.

If there is a course that you are interested in taking but that does not have any available seats, it is still okay to submit the course as one of your requests. Study Abroad and Global Engagement will request permission from the department, however, the instructor may or may not grant permission, as it depends on room capacity as well as whether or not he/she is willing to take on additional students. This is one of the reasons we ask for two alternative course requests.

Undergraduate exchange students must enroll in between 12 and 15 credit hours (typically 4-5 courses) and graduate students must enroll in 9 credits (typically 3 courses). Some graduate students can be approved for a maximum of 12 credits, depending on your program. Even if you do not plan to take the maximum courses allowed, please still submit at least 2 alternate courses so that you will have as many options as possible. 

Exam Schedule

Exams take place during the final week of the semester. Final exam times may differ from actual class times, so be sure to check online to confirm.

Academic Calendar

You should plan to stay on campus through the last day of final exams because you will not know your exam schedule until your enrollment for the semester is finalized. Although residence halls close on the evening of the last day of final exams, exchange students living on-campus can make arrangements through Housing Department to check out the following day.

All international students are automatically enrolled in the KU health insurance plan unless they apply for a waiver and it is approved. Information about the minimum requirements and health insurance waiver application process. Health insurance is not covered by the exchange agreement, so you will be billed for it after you have arrived at KU via the Enroll and Pay system. Insurance is coordinated by the International Student Services Office (ISS), so you will want to direct any questions to issinsurance@ku.edu.

You will be able to see a physician at Watkins Health Center at no charge, unless there is a medical procedure performed or you have an ancillary charge for lab, x-ray, pharmacy, or Physical Therapy (none of which you may need). The costs for those services are generally covered at 100% by the KU insurance.

Students will take a blood test that checks for TB during International Student Orientation. It is covered by the KU insurance at 100%.

Exchange students are not able to purchase the combo online until they have gone through orientation as there are holds on their records that prevent them from doing so. After August 1st, students cannot purchase them online anymore but can purchase them in-person at the Allen Field Ticket Office after completing orientation and obtaining their KU student ID card.

Please refer to the US Department of State website regarding the J-1 Visa Exchange Visitor Program.

You may not arrive more than 30 days before the program start date shown on your DS-2019. Upon completion of your exchange program, you have a grace period of 30 days to depart the United States.

Yes, orientation is mandatory so please plan to arrive in Lawrence on the arrival date specified or earlier. Orientation activities will officially begin the following day. In the fall there are separate orientations for graduate and undergraduate students, however, graduate students may choose to attend the undergraduate one if they prefer. Graduate orientation typically begins 3 weeks before classes start and the undergraduate one 2 weeks prior. There is only one orientation in the spring (for graduate and undergraduate students) and it typically begins about 1.5-2 weeks before classes start. 

Students are encouraged to sign-up for the orientation housing option when they pre-register for orientation. Details regarding how to pre-register will be sent via email by International Support Services (ISS) 1-3 months prior to arrival. The cost of housing during orientation is the student’s responsibility (unless an ISEP or Tsuda student) and will be billed via the KU Enroll & Pay system after arrival.

The drive from the Kansas City Airport to Lawrence takes approximately 45 minutes so it is important to make shuttle arrangements prior to arrival. There is a limited free shuttle as well as a number of commercial airport shuttle options that can be booked prior to departure.

Study Abroad and Global Engagement will cover the following fees for incoming exchange students:

• Tuition and Course Fees (max of 15 undergraduate credit hours and 9 graduate credit hours)
• Technology Fee
• International Student Services Fee
• Infrastructure Fee
• Student Fee 
• Wellness Fee

The Student Fee and Wellness Fee fund access to recreation and fitness center, on-campus bus system, library and software resources, health center and student events. 

Exchange students will be responsible for housing and meals (unless a Tsuda or ISEP student), books,  KUID card ($15), Orientation Fee ($235), ISS Check-In Fee ($40), and the required health insurance (subject to change but currently $709 per semester).  These will be billed after you have arrived on campus and enrolled in your classes.