Will I receive financial aid if I participate in an Study Abroad/Away program?
Students receiving financial aid will continue to be eligible for financial aid while they are participating in a St. Olaf semester sponsored program and remain as a full-time student.
The only form of financial aid that students cannot receive while participating in an off-campus study program is student employment.
Will I get any extra scholarships if I choose to go on an Study Abroad/Away program?
St. Olaf has many endowed scholarship funds that are made possible by generous St. Olaf alumni and friends of the College to help reduce the cost of an off-campus study experience.
Some of these funds are for specific programs, while others are for any off-campus program.
Students who receive these funds must complete a thank you letter to the scholarship donor. Advancement will reach out for these requests
Funding varies from year to year and is never guaranteed.
What is the timing on St. Olaf Study Abroad/Away study scholarships? Do I have to submit an application?
Generally students apply in February for Semester or Year-long programs, find out in March if they’ve been admitted to the program and get scholarship news in April.
The timing for January Term programs are that students apply in April, are admitted in May and find out about scholarship possibilities in June-July.
There is NO application for these scholarship funds. All students are automatically considered for these scholarships.
Are there any scholarships that aren’t from St. Olaf that I can receive while participating in a Study Abroad/Away program?
There are some external programs that have scholarships available for qualified students. These scholarships are normally tied to a specific program (for instance, money from the DIS: Copenhagen program may only be for students participating in the DIS: Copenhagen program). Almost all of these programs are semester or year-long programs.
Here is the list of programs that, as of Fall 2024, had external scholarship funding:
CIEE Programs
IES Programs
DIS Programs
CGEE Programs
College Year in Athens
Australia – CAPA UTS
SIT Programs
A federal scholarship is the Gilman Scholarship. Students must receive the Pell Grant to be eligible for the Gilman Scholarship.
Can I borrow loans to help pay for their off-campus study experience?
Loans may be available to assist with the costs associated with study abroad opportunities. Contact your financial aid counselor to see what loan opportunities are available to you.