Application

Application

Petitioning

Bowdoin students who have unusual academic needs may conclude that a program or university that does not appear on Bowdoin's program options list is best suited to meet those needs. Such students should submit a petition to the Off-Campus Study Office no later than 5:00 PM on 23 February 2009. If you are considering a petition, you should make an appointment in the OCS Office no less than two weeks before that deadline to discuss the viability of your choice and to receive a blank petition form. You should also by then have discussed the program thoroughly with your prospective major advisor. The petition is a longer, more detailed version of the application, in which you explain in addition what unusual academic needs your proposed program or university will meet that cannot be met by a program on the options list. You will need to supply documentation of the program and proposed courses (such as a photocopy of the relevant pages of the catalogue) -- four pages is usually plenty.

Before embarking on a petition, please consider carefully the criteria that Bowdoin considers in placing programs on its options list, and whether your proposed program would satisfy those criteria. The most important factors are a curriculum that is consistent with Bowdoin's, high academic quality, attention to cultural immersion, and an administrative structure that offers good student support, including concern for health and safety, and is understanding of Bowdoin's requirements. Programs considered to be unsuitable, as well as those that fail to meet the broad criteria above, include those that focus on internships or subjects outside the Bowdoin curriculum, focus on travel to multiple locations, have a term that includes less than twelve teaching weeks, or are not selective in admitting students with an appropriate background.

Bear the points above in mind in looking at unfamiliar programs, which vary widely in quality, aims, and focus. The fact that an organization advertises in the Orient, or that somebody has tacked its posters to bulletin boards on campus, does not show that it has any connection with the College. Do not be influenced by claims that credit will transfer (that is Bowdoin's decision to make). Although it is not insignificant that students from selective schools might have attended in the past, even prestigious schools can have different curricular needs and traditions from Bowdoin's; and, upon investigation, such claims by programs can turn out to be based on participation of a single student many years ago, or not for credit. Finally, do not choose an unlisted program because you assume that there will be fewer Americans in that location, or simply because you want to do something "different"; once you have eliminated the programs that are unsuitable, you are unlikely to find that those you are left with offer anything significantly different.

In order to speed the process as much as possible, you should provide two copies of the petition and all accompanying documentation to the OCS Office, for distribution to the review committee. You will normally be informed of the decision about two weeks after the deadline. By no means all petitions are approved; you may want to be prepared to apply to a program from the options list as a backup.