Study Abroad Approval for GE, AI, WID, or PE

The Office of Undergraduate Education (UE) is authorized to approve study abroad courses to meet the following SJSU requirements: General Education (GE), American Institutions (US1, US2, US3), Writing in the Disciplines (100W), and Physical Education (PE)

Academic Approval Form (Required Before Studying Abroad)

The Academic Approval Form must be completed before you study abroad. This required form ensures that the courses you take at your host institution can be transferred back to SJSU.

The Study Abroad and Away office uses this form to match your host institution courses with their SJSU equivalents and post them to your SJSU academic record. If the form is incomplete, inaccurate, or missing approvals, your abroad coursework and grades will not appear on your SJSU transcript.

For questions about the Academic Approval Form, contact the Study Abroad and Away office at spartansabroad@sjsu.edu.

How to Request Course Approval

To begin the course approval process, email undergraduate-education@sjsu.edu with the following information:

Required Information

  • Full name (First [preferred name] and Last)
  • SJSU ID number
  • Host university name and country

Course Information

  • List of courses you plan to take abroad
    • Include course titles
    • Indicate which requirement each course should fulfill (e.g., Area 4, US1, PE, WID etc.)
    • Courses worth fewer than 3 semester units must be paired with another approved course in the same area to fully satisfy the GE requirement

Course Syllabi

  • Attach a syllabus for each course (PDF preferred), or
  • Provide a link to the official course description or syllabus

Submitting complete and accurate information helps ensure a smoother approval process and timely posting of your credits.

What Happens Next

Once your request is reviewed:

  1. UE will initiate the GE Academic Approval Form (AAF).
  2. You will receive the form via DocuSign in a separate email.
  3. Please retain the finalized form for your Study Abroad records.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)

  1. What are the course numbering for Study Abroad courses?
    Lower division courses are given a course number of 092 (e.g., JPN 092), upper division courses are given a course number of 192 (e.g., JPN 192), and graduate level courses are given the course number 292 (e.g. JPN 292).

  2. Is approval for a specific SJSU GE course?
    approval is NOT for a specific SJSU GE course, only for GE Area.

  3. What happens if a course is less than 3 units?
    Courses that are fewer than 3 semester units, will need additional course(s) approved to fulfill the GE area unit requirement.

  4. The host campus does not have syllabi available, what can I send to have the course(s) reviewed?
    If the syllabus is not available students must email course description(s).

  5. My approved course is was not offered (or unable to enroll in it), can UE approved a different course?
    Yes, students will need to email UE with the new course information and syllabus.

  6. I want to take upper-division GE or 100W courses while studying abroad, but I don’t have upper-division standing yet. Can I still take them?
    Yes! Even if you haven’t reached upper-division status, you may still be able to enroll. You’ll just need to submit the “Request to Enroll in SJSU Studies/100W with Less Than 60 Units Completed” form for approval first.