Department chairs should also understand the difficulty of registering for classes while abroad and grant study abroad students admission to otherwise full classes upon their return. Another option would be mandating that the registrar's office communicate with and register those who are abroad for classes. Something must be done to ease the advance registration process for students who are studying abroad. Beyond registration purposes, it is important for major advisors to maintain contact with students who are abroad because otherwise students find themselves completely isolated from the Penn academic community. Advisors should send out a monthly mailing to students abroad and students should respond accordingly.
More frequent correspondence is encouraged.
All University advisors should play an instrumental role in the study abroad process. First, they must help students personally evaluate the benefits and detriments of study abroad. Second, advisors should help students who do want to study abroad organize their schedules so that they will be able to do so. The OIP should provide mandatory workshops for advisors so that they can learn basic information about international study. The OIP needs to communicate with advisors regularly to update them on the ever expanding study abroad options.