Exchange opportunities offered through the Centre for International Experience (CIE) provide both undergraduate and graduate students with the opportunity to take core or elective courses at any of our partner institutions, as non-degree students.
Registration: You will be registered at and pay tuition fees to U of T.
Funding: Exchange opportunities through the CIE are eligible for a needs-based International Experience Award (IE Award) Other fundings may be available as well depending on the opportunity, for which students are usually automatically considered based on eligibility criteria.
Safety Abroad: All students must register and complete Safety Abroad requirements.
Transfer Credit: While on exchange, you are likely to be able to transfer credits back to count towards your degree at U of T.
Please note that prior to going abroad, you need to consult your department/registrar to ensure eligibility to transfer credits upon return from your experience.
You will have the opportunity to complete a semester or a full year experience abroad. Such experiences are mainly course-based opportunities at one of U of T’s partner institutions, but we are now increasingly proposing a variety of experiences, such as placements or research, most of the time combined with courses.
Academic calendars and sessional dates vary by country and institution, so please ensure that the program of your choice is compatible with your timeline.
You can browse the list of opportunities here.
Most of the opportunities CIE offers on exchange are open to both undergraduate and graduate students, but some restrictions may apply. Please make sure that you choose an option that is compatible with your program at U of T and the restrictions at the host institution. Restrictions are usually mentioned on each experience page.
Please note that some divisions offer specific exchange opportunities for graduate and professional students such as Rotman School of Management, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy.
Some partner institutions offer a range of short term experiences (modules, certificates, projects), such as the Cross-Cultural College with Kwansei Gakuin University in Japan, or a selection of international placements.
You can view a list of available short term experiences here.
Summer School
Some partner institutions offer summer schools on exchange basis. It works as a semester-based exchange, meaning that you enroll at and pay your tuition to U of T. Once back to Toronto, you will transfer your credits to count towards your degree.
Some schools accept independent applicants (not on exchange), which means that you may be able to register independently, pay the program fees to the host institution and manage your own credit transfer to U of T. If you decide to opt for this option, please refer to the Independent Summer Program section in Non-Exchange Opportunities.
You can view a list of experiences here and search for “summer school”
Summer Research Exchange Program (SREP) for Undergraduate Students
If you are interested in doing research, you may spend between 8 to12 weeks abroad. CIE proposes a growing list of summer research exchange opportunities every year.
Students can complete credits towards their degree and gain international work experience. If you receive credits, your will be expected to pay for U of T tuitions
Students work under the supervision of the faculty at the host institution in pre-designed projects or in self-designed projects.
SREP students qualify for a fixed amount of funding and can apply for an additional needs-based International Experience Award (IE Award) offered through CIE.
For more information please contact us at learning.abroad@utoronto.ca.
SREP experiences can be found here.
When looking into opportunities to learn abroad, pay close attention to the eligibility requirements as they vary by program. Some opportunities may be open to specific Faculties or programs, and they usually require minimum credits and GPA.
Going on exchange with the Centre for International Experience will give you the opportunity to choose from a selection of about 170 international institutions around the globe.
The exchange program is offered to certain faculties and departments. As a degree seeking student, you must ensure that you are eligible for the exchange program with your faculty or division, and degree. The following Faculties are pre-approved for exchange:
- Faculty of Arts & Science (St. George campus)
- University of Toronto at Scarborough
- University of Toronto at Mississauga
- Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design
- Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work
- Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering
- Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education
- Faculty of Law
- Faculty of Music
- School of Graduate Studies
Please note that access to graduate courses are not guaranteed and require special permission from the graduate program. Please consult the Student Exchange Program before applying.
Transfer Credits
The applicant must:
- Be enrolled as a degree seeking student (undergraduate or graduate) at the time of application deadline.
- Be registered in at least one course at the time of application.
- Be in good academic standing and have a CGPA of at least 2.25 for undergraduates or B for graduates with most recent sessional GPA of at least 2.25 at the time of application deadline.
- Have completed at least 4.0 U of T credits by the time you go on exchange.
Language, CGPA and credit requirements can vary by destination. Check out the experiences page for further information.
Please note: if you go abroad in the winter semester of your final year, you will not be able to graduate in the June convocation.
Learning Abroad reserves the right to refuse applications based on overall review. For any questions, contact Learning Abroad team.
Your faculty or department may need to issue an approval before application or departure. For specific departments or faculties, you may need certain requirements prior to departure.
Contact your faculty or department office, or contact us for further questions.
If you require accessibility assistance, we will help you find an exchange opportunity that suits your needs. You will be introduced to programs in institutions that meet your accommodation requirements. We encourage you to contact CIE and your Accessibility Officer with detailed information so that we can help you plan for your exchange program.
If you are planning on going on exchange, you will need to consider the cost associated. To make sure you are prepared, please consult the funding section of this website and the following video.
Money Matters
Also pay close attention to timelines and deadlines when looking into opportunities to learn abroad as they are program specific.
Summer Experience and Select Fall / Full Year Exchanges: December 4, 2023
Fall and Full Year Exchange: January 17, 2024
Summer Experience: February 14, 2024
Winter Exchange: April 3, 2024
*Each experience has a different deadline, so please check the specific deadline indicated on experiences page.
**Students from Faculty of Law should apply by the deadlines specified by their faculty.
It takes approximately at least 8 weeks from the application deadline for the CIE to review and respond.
Follow the next steps of the process and apply to the host institution that you are conditionally nominated to.
Upon receiving your admission letter, upload it onto the Application Portal
Visit the Before You Leave page to find out your next steps on what to do “before you leave”
Learn more about Safety Abroad procedures and mandatory workshop prior to departure/start of your experience.
When applying for a CIE exchange opportunity, you can opt to apply for an International Experience (IE) Awards as well. Please make sure to review the IE Awards in the Funding section for more details.
You an explore other funding opportunities and note experience-specific funding that is highlighted on individual experience pages.
With the Centre For International Experience (CIE)
To apply for an exchange program with the CIE, you will need to make sure you have identified your preferred options applicable to you and your program via the experience pages.
You will find all application procedures and requirements, eligibility criteria, and timeline on the Apply for Exchange page.
With Another Division at U of T
You will need to follow instructions given by your division (Rotman School of Management, Pharmacy…). Please refer to the relevant pages on your division´s website.
