UCCS Abroad 101: Finances

Audio Transcript Auto-generated

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  Hello and on behalf of the International Affairs Office, welcome

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  to another segment of abroad.

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  One. Oh one.

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  Today we'll be talking about the financial aspects of going

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  abroad program cost, financial aid, scholarships and more.

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  After watching, I encourage you to check out our other

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  abroad, one of one videos which focus on the overall

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  process for going abroad, academics, the application process and more.

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  We know that costs can be a big factor in

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  whether or not you're able to go abroad, and that

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  sometimes trying to understand the processes involved with financing this

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  adventure can feel overwhelming.

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  We hope today's video can help break down the elements

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  as well as help.

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  You better understand the resources available to you so that

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  finances are not the barrier that prevent you from realizing

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  your dream of studying abroad.

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  Let's start with cost.

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  A program's overall cost is determined by its fear tuition

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  costs, any charges associated with obtaining a passport and or

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  visa health insurance, airfare, housing and personal and additional expenses.

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  Let's look at each of these for an introduction to

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  the overall cost landscape.

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  The single largest cost for an experience abroad is the

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  program fee itself This is for academic tuition and credit

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  toward your degree and typically includes room and other programs.

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  Specifics. You can find this information either on the program

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  page at education abroad dot u.

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  C C s dot e.

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  D. U or in the partner providers.

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  External website fees are determined by the program length location

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  and the provider running the program.

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  Shorter programs are often less expensive than longer programs, although

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  not always.

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  Additionally, some locations such as Scandinavia may be more expensive

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  than others simply because the cost of living is higher

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  in that area of the world, which drives operating costs

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  up. Another thing to note is that different elements may

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  or may not be included in your particular program of

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  interest, which does also affect cost.

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  For instance, one providers female cover tuition, housing and visas.

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  Will another providers fee may only cover tuition and visas,

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  making the first providers program look more expensive than the

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  second set First glance.

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  Take a look at the fee breakdown to get in

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  a sense of what's covered and what isn't, and make

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  sure you understand how fees really compare.

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  It's important to note that what each program fee covers

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  and remember that when you view the cost of a

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  program on a provider's website, you're not necessarily seeing what

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  you may need to pay out of pocket for, like

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  travel and personal expenses that are not covered by the

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  programme fee.

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  More on that in a minute.

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  A key element of program participation that may not be

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  included in the program fee is the cost of obtaining

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  your own personal passport and or visa.

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  This will be your own financial responsibility, typically costing about

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  $145 for a new passport.

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  Visa costs may or may not be included in the

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  program fee and will also depend upon the country are

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  traveling to, since each nation sets its own rules.

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  For instance, if you're interested in traveling to France for

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  a semester, you'll need to travel to Los Angeles for

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  an in person appointment at the French Embassy, the cost

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  of which you will be responsible for.

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  Make sure to research and factor in any applicable visa

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  costs when considering your program.

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  Another factor in the overall cost of your program is

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  health insurance.

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  All you see, CS students are required to carry international

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  health insurance with a certain minimum coverage.

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  Most U.

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  S health insurance carriers provide only limited coverage out of

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  country, such as emergent care only.

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  We recommend international student insurance, whom we have partnered with

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  to offer a plan that meets our minimum requirements for

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  as little as 85 cents a day.

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  Note that most U.

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  S health providers plans do not meet the minimums you

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  CCs requires, and it will likely be cheaper to purchase

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  the one we offer than to try to get your

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  current U.

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  S. Plan to match the minimums.

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  For more information, visit abroad dot U.

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  C C s dot e D u hover over going

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  abroad and click on health insurance.

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  Airfare, which is fairly central to going abroad, is also

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  usually not included in the program fee, so make sure

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  you plan for this, too.

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  Some providers enable you to book group flights through a

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  particular provider, which can be helpful if you've never booked

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  international travel before.

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  But that convenience can sometimes be more expensive than booking

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  on your own.

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  So do check out in commercial carrier rates as well.

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  A basic rule of thumb is to plan for about

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  $1000 for round trip airfare.

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  Housing is another huge piece of the total cost of

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  going abroad, its program specific and is often included in

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  the program fee but isn't always.

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  Sometimes it may need to be paid before any financial

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  aid is dispersed.

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  So when learning about the program that interests you keep

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  an eye out for specifics about housing, we can guide

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  you through any remaining questions you have.

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  And now for the fun parts.

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  An important budgetary factor is your own personal expenses.

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  You'll want to savor the local flavors and culture.

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  Find out what, if any, meals may be included in

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  your program and then budget for non catered meals as

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  well as anything else you want to buy, such as

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  in country transportation, local experiences, souvenirs, personal cares and so

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  on. Most providers suggest a good planning number to help

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  you get an idea of what to expect for your

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  program. Take a look at their budget sheets for more.

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  Then, for even more fun.

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  Consider that you may want to travel around inside your

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  host country or to other areas within reach of the

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  region where you'll be staying.

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  Your program may offer planned excursions that aren't included in

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  the program fee.

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  So take a look at the provider's website to see

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  if any interest you and add that to your personal

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  expense budget.

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  Taken together, these elements combined to form the true overall

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  cost of your education abroad experience.

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  Make sure to take them all into account when considering

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  whether program will be affordable for you.

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  And one more thing.

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  It's critical to note that some of these costs will

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  be up front, such as the program, deposit, airfare and

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  travel documentation, and therefore occur before financial aid has been

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  dispersed. So plan accordingly.

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  I'll talk more about financial aid in just a minute,

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  as I said at the beginning, and we know cost

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  isn't often a factor for many U.

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  C CS students, and we work hard to make sure

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  our program offerings are affordable as well as amazing.

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  And for those of you for whom cost is a

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  huge piece of being able to go abroad, we've got

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  extra affordable program options up on our website.

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  Check out the short term slash summer programs under $2500

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  and semester programs under $10,000.

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  Tabs on the left menu for more.

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  You can also search by these categories on the program

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  search page under themes and meta majors.

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  Now that we've talked about costs, let's talk about how

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  you can finance this experience.

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  There are several ways you can finance your education abroad

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  experience in addition to adhering to a realistic budget.

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  So let's talk about financial aid and scholarships.

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  First things first, you're you CCS Financial aid can travel

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  with you, which can help you finance your trip with

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  third party and exchange programs.

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  In order for your aid to transfer, you must take

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  a full course load, depending on the session.

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  You're abroad for six credits for the summer and at

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  least 12 credits for the semester.

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  Speak to the Office of Financial Aid as early as

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  possible because the earlier they know you're planning to go

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  abroad, the better they'll be able to advise you on

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  how to use your financial aid to your best advantage.

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  Additionally, make sure you have a current faster on file

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  or file one.

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  If you don't aid cannot be dispersed without it.

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  The courses you take while abroad also must be related

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  to your degree here at U.

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  C. C ESS for aid to transfer, which the study

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  away form helps us to ensure.

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  Make sure to meet with your academic advisor and talk

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  about your course options early on in the process so

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  that you'll be able to be on track when you

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  meet with financial aid.

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  For more information on academics abroad, take a look at

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  our abroad, one of one segment on academics.

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  Finally, financial aid won't be dispersed into a program.

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  Actually starts on your enrollment has been confirmed, so keep

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  that in mind when planning your budget.

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  Any upfront costs like airfare and travel documentation, will need

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  to be covered by you.

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  For more information on education abroad and financial aid, you

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  can visit abroad dot u C C s dot e

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  d U and under get started.

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  Click on the finances tab.

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  If you have financial aid specific questions, you can contact

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  the Office of Financial Aid via email at FinAid S

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  E at u C C s dot e.

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  D U or by phone at 7192553460 You can also

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  visit their website at U C.

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  C s dot u to use slash FinAid or stop

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  by their office in Craig Moore Hall to a one.

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  Another great way to help finance your time abroad are

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  scholarships. Your program provider may have some specifically for their

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  students, which you can find information about on their website.

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  Sometimes there isn't even a separate application.

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  You're automatically considered just by applying for the program.

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  There are also great national scholarship options to like the

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  Gilman, which is for federal Pell Grant recipients.

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  You can find out more about available national scholarships by

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  going to abroad dot u C c s dot e

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  d U and again under the get started tab, click

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  on the finances tab.

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  Additionally, if you receive certain scholarships for your time at

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  U. C.

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  C. S like the Daniels Scholarship, there may be specific

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  funds for education abroad.

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  As part of that award that you can take advantage

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  of. Take a look at your awards and talk to

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  a scholarship counselor to see if any of your scholarships

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  qualify. No matter what.

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  You should always apply for any scholarships you think you

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  may qualify for, because you never know.

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  And if you don't apply, you definitely won't receive any.

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  If you've got scholarship questions, reach out to the scholarship

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  office via email at scholarships at U.

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  C C s dot e d u or by phone

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  at either 719255 33 90 or 719255 51 64.

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  I know that's a lot of information, but I hope

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  this video has helped you understand the financial piece of

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  education abroad.

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  Better as always.

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  If you have questions or would like to set up

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  a meeting, you can reach us via email at International

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  at u C C s dot e d u by

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  phone at 7192555018 on Facebook at U.

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  C. C s international affairs on instagram at at U.

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  C. C s Underscore International and on Twitter at at

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  U. C.

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  C s Internet.

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  You're also welcome to stop by our office in Copper

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  House 92 oh two, or visit our website at abroad

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  dot u C.

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  C s dot e D.

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  U. Thanks for watching and happy planning.

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  We can't wait to see where you'll go