Frequently Asked Questions

• Financial Aid will be disbursed through PittPay just like a standard, on-campus semester. In order for financial aid to disburse, you must be enrolled in credits and meeting the requirements for each individual award you wish to use.
• For Panther Programs, you will be billed for all charges on PittPay. Your financial aid will disburse and pay towards those charges. If your financial aid exceeds what you owe the University, the overpayment will be refunded to you via PittPay eRefunds.
• For Pitt Recognized Programs, you will be billed for all charges by your third party program provider. Once you are enrolled for credits, you will be billed on PittPay for a Global Experience fee. Your financial aid will disburse and pay off this fee first. Any additional aid that exceeds what you owe Pitt will be refunded to you via PittPay eRefunds. You should use this refund to pay your program provider.
• We encourage all students to enroll a bank account number through PittPay eRefunds so that your refund can be deposited directly into your bank account. If you do not register a bank account on PittPay, a check will be mailed to your address of record. Especially while traveling around the world, a mailed check will significantly delay your ability to access your refund.

• To use your university awarded merit scholarship, you must be enrolled full time (12 or more credits for an undergraduate), meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress, and have term of usage remaining. You may receive a scholarship for a maximum of 8 terms and the Study Abroad usage will count towards the 8 terms.
• Other scholarships may be usable on study abroad but could vary by the department that awarded you the scholarship. We recommend contacting the area that notified you of the award to verify your eligibility for specific scholarships.
• Scholarships awarded by the Global Experience Office for the purpose of study abroad can be used during your program.

• Yes, if there are charges on PittPay and you meet the requirements for the scholarship.
• Checks from outside scholarship agencies should be dropped off in person or mailed to the Student Payment Center for the quickest applying of the funds to your account. Scholarships from a Source Outside the University | Student Payment Center (pitt.edu)

• Financial Aid cannot disburse to a student’s PittPay account until we are within 10 days before the start of the semester. The federal government prohibits accessing financial aid earlier than 10 days prior to the start of each term. The start of a semester is determined by the Pitt academic calendar, not the start date of your Global Experience.
• In order for your financial aid to disburse once we reach that 10 day window, you must be enrolled in your program credits and meet the requirements for each type of financial aid award.
• Refunds will begin to process after financial aid has disbursed. Once a refund is generated, it can still take 3-5 business days for the refund to reach your bank account if you are enrolled in PittPay eRefunds.

Generally, you will be able to use your scholarship toward the cost of your global experience program.  You need to speak with the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid, Financial Aid Wellness Center (or similar office on your campus) to verify how much of your scholarship will be applicable to the program.

If your program provider has a due date that is before your will receive your financial aid refund, contact your program provider and request their version of a due date deferral form. Most providers have a form that you can complete that states that you will be receiving financial aid, but you won’t receive it until a date later than the due date. There is typically a student section and a financial aid administrator section to be completed. The provider may provide a due date extension for some or all of the amount owed until you receive your refund.

Yes.  See our Scholarships page for a list of available scholarships and applications. Keep in mind that scholarships for global experiences are competitive and will not cover the entire cost of the program.  You should make alternate plans for paying for your program in case you are not awarded a scholarship. 

If you are eligible for the Fall and/or Spring terms you do not have to complete any forms. If you are eligible during the Summer term, you would complete a Summer Aid Request via docusign from the Financial Aid website - Financial Aid Forms - Financial Aid | University of Pittsburgh

It is your responsibility to determine what vaccines you may or may not need based on where you will be studying and traveling.  Keep in mind that some countries may even require proof of vaccination before allowing entry or issuing visas.  Most of our providers require full vaccination of the Covid-19 vaccine, medical exemptions may not carry over to other countries.
The Global Experience Office cannot give you advice on vaccines, so you must check with the Centers for Disease Control, Allegheny County Health Department (or your home county’s health department), or your family doctor.

Your program manager, host university, or program provider will give you specific information on booking flights after you have been accepted to the program.  You should not book flights before then.

We’ve all been a "first time traveler," so we’ve put together a guide to help you get ready for your first trip abroad.  From airports and baggage to money and cell phones, find everything you need to know in the link below.  If you would like to attend a live presentation, sign up below. Still have questions?  Get in touch with your program manager or advisor.

Packing for a global experience program can be daunting.  Check out our First Time Traveler’s page for more information. 

The US Department of State maintains a comprehensive list of travel alerts and warnings for American citizens overseas.  The Global Experiences Office has different policies for undergraduates, graduate students, staff, and faculty traveling to countries with active travel warnings. Email us at globalexperiences@pitt.edu for more information.

You should speak with your doctor or health care provider and insurance company as soon as possible.  Given that many medications available in the U.S. are not available overseas or only available in different dosages, you should plan on taking a sufficient medication supply to last you the entire duration of your program.

As a Pitt student participating in a global experience, you are required to maintain international health insurance, which must include: Health, accident, and hospitalization coverage Medical evacuation coverage Repatriation of remains coverage Students who are participating on approved programs and who follow Pitt Global Experience procedures are covered under the University's International SOS Policy.  For more information, contact globalexperiences@pitt.edu.

It is your responsibility to determine what vaccines you may or may not need based on where you will be studying and traveling.  Keep in mind that some countries may even require proof of vaccination before allowing entry or issuing visas.  Most of our providers require full vaccination of the Covid-19 vaccine, medical exemptions may not carry over to other countries.
The Global Experience Office cannot give you advice on vaccines, so you must check with the Centers for Disease Control, Allegheny County Health Department (or your home county’s health department), or your family doctor.

Your program manager, host university, or program provider will give you specific information on booking flights after you have been accepted to the program.  You should not book flights before then.

Yes.  Remember that personal travel must not conflict with classes, internships, and mandatory excursions.  Travel or travel-related delays are never an acceptable reason for missing part of your program.

The US Department of State maintains a comprehensive list of travel alerts and warnings for American citizens overseas.  The Global Experiences Office has different policies for undergraduates, graduate students, staff, and faculty traveling to countries with active travel warnings. Email us at globalexperiences@pitt.edu for more information.

If you are planning on living in on-campus housing, you should speak with Panther Central at 412-648-1100 or check the website for more information at https://www.pc.pitt.edu/housing-services. If you are planning on living off-campus, you can either sign a lease before you leave or find a sublet.  The Office of Off-Campus Living (www.ocl.pitt.edu) maintains a list of available sublets in and around Oakland.