Prospective Inbound Exchange Students 

Nomination and Application process

You must be officially nominated by your home university to participate in the exchange program at UC Irvine. 

For Inbound Bilateral Exchange Students

UC Irvine has established partnerships with several institutions abroad to give you the opportunity to come to UC Irvine as an exchange student.  

Nominations and Application Process

• Nominations will not be accepted directly from students. All nomination and applications inquiries should be directed to your home university study abroad coordinator. Home University study abroad coordinators nominate students through the Study Abroad student management system (provide link).
• Once a student has been nominated, the Inbound and Custom Program Advisor from the UC Irvine Study Abroad Center will invite the student to complete an application profile in their internal application system (link Via TRM here)

Requirements for Prospective Inbound Bilateral Exchange Students

Please reference our 2025 Inbound Bilateral Exchange Program Fact Sheet for more detailed information. 

• UC Irvine GPA requirement: 2.8 
• Language Requirements: 
  • UC Irvine accepts TOEFL, IELTS, AP Exams, IB Exam Scores and Duolingo Tests (DET)

Prospective inbound bilateral exchange students: connect with your home university’s study abroad coordinator coordinator to discuss to discuss your university’s internal process and requirements.

• Once student nomination has been received, reviewed and approved, the Study Abroad Center will communicate the additional steps to the nominated student.
• Application requirements after nomination: 
  • Complete a student profile our student abroad management system within 30 days of your nomination 
  • Official Transcript (Official English translation if applicable) 
  • Proof of Language Proficiency (if your native language is not English) 
  • Upload a copy of your valid passport

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Pre-Arrival for Inbound Exchange Students 

We’re excited that you are coming to UC Irvine as an exchange student. We have put all of the important information you need as a visiting student on a J-1 visa on this web site.  If you have questions about anything, FIRST, please read this site carefully to see if your questions have already been answered.  Then, if you still have questions, contact the Study Abroad Center for assistance! 

Important Dates for 2025-2026

• *Each student is assigned a 48 hour enrollment window. When the window opens, a student can access WebReg for 48 hours. After the 48 hours, that student can access WebReg only between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. (down time 4 a.m.-6 p.m.). Once all enrollment windows are open, Open Enrollment begins at 7 p.m. that day.
• International Center Check-In: Complete process as soon as possible upon arrival

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International Center: Immigration & Visas

The International Center is a separate office that works with all international students and scholars at UC Irvine. All visa and immigration-related questions should be directed to the International Center. You can contact the International Center via email (internationalcenter@uci.edu) or visit them in the Student Center South Building in G302 (map). 

Newly accepted students 

• You will soon receive additional information from the International Center about your DS-2019 and other necessary steps. Read all the information carefully and follow any instructions given. 
• You must complete the online International Center Visa Check-in Process – iNavigateUCI upon arrival in the US. After completing iNavigateUCI, you do NOT need to submit any documents for check-in to the International Center, unless you have received a request from our office. iNavigateUCI must be completed within 5 days of the PROGRAM START DATE on your DS-2019 visa document.

New International Student Handbook 

This handbook will provide you with critical information needed to maintain your F-1 or J-1 immigration status and take full advantage of its benefits. Keep it with you at the time you depart your current place to help you get started at UC Irvine. 

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Pre-Arrival Webinars, Orientations and Events

• Inbound Exchange Students Pre-Arrival Webinar  

https://youtu.be/T–OOLqJ_w0?feature=shared

• Inbound Exchange Students Welcome Orientation 
  • Coming Fall 2025 

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Enrolling in Courses

You will register for courses towards the end of the quarter before. New inbound students are considered “New Transfer Student” for registration purposes. If you are staying at UC Irvine for more than one quarter, you will be considered a “Continuing Student” after your first quarter. Students are registered as “Seniors” to help with secure early course enrollment windows.

You are required to enroll in a minimum of 12 units (normally 3 courses) each quarter. This is both a requirement of your visa and UCEAP. Most students enroll in 12-16 units each quarter (3-4 courses). Students are required to take at least 8 units each quarter in person. Students are not required to take classes in the school or department of their major. If a class in another department or school has no restrictions, they can take them.

Step 1: View and Select Courses

• View the Schedule of Classes, select the term and department name then click on the “Display Web Results” button. You can write down the course code (first column on the left) for the classes you plan to enroll in.
• Here are a few things to look out for as you explore classes:
• Class Type – “Type” (second column from the left) as some classes will have a lecture (“Lec”) and a discussion section (“Dis”) or a lab (“Lab”)
• Restrictions – “Rstr”(fourth column from the right) indicates if the class has required prerequisites** (code A) or are restricted to only students in that major (L) or school (N)
• You may also access the UCI General Catalogue on-line for course descriptions. Remember not all courses in the catalogue are offered each quarter and some may not be offered at all.
• If you need help selecting classes, contact the designated reciprocity Academic Counselor in your school. Please explain that you are a UCEAP Reciprocity student coming to UC Irvine. These Academic Counselors will not be able to advise you on the equivalency of UC Irvine courses to your home university, but they can provide assistance regarding details of courses offered here. You can also access the list Undergraduate Academic Counseling Offices.
• The School of Humanities also offers Academic English courses for non-native English speakers interested in improving their English skills.

Step 2: Enroll in courses

Waiving Prerequisites:  

• You will be assigned an “Enrollment Window” – the date you can begin enrolling in classes. Use WebReg or StudentAccess to view your enrollment window (see the Quarterly Academic Calendar or the Important Dates section above to determine when your enrollment window will be available). Enrollment in your desired courses is not guaranteed; to increase your chances of enrolling in your desired course, we recommend that you enroll in classes as soon as your enrollment window opens. Please note, you need to activate your UCInetID BEFORE using WebReg of StudentAccess.
• Review all course enrollment instructions carefully before attempting to enroll. This video on enrolling in classes and definitions of terms from the Registrar may also be helpful. The SOC also contains instructions on how to enroll in lecture and discussion sections.
• Students arriving in Fall Quarter may receive information about summer academic advising sessions — you are NOT required to attend these due to your exchange student status. If you emailed about this, contact your department and explain that you are an inbound exchange student visiting UC Irvine on a J-1 visa. Failure to correct this may result in a hold being placed on your record, whereby you will not be allowed to enroll in classes in subsequent quarters. 

**Enrolling in Courses with Restrictions : 

You may not be allowed to enroll in certain classes or enter UC Irvine under certain majors due to prerequisites or departmental restrictions. While there are no exceptions for major restrictions upon entering UC Irvine, you may receive approval or clearance to join a course with prerequisites from the department or professor To determine if a course has a restriction, look in the Schedule of Classes (SOC) under the “Rstr” column and see if there is a restriction code. The key to the restriction codes is at the bottom of each page. You can also look in the UCI General Catalogue to find out the title and description of the prerequisite course for each course you wish to take. 

Waiving Prerequisites

If you can demonstrate that you have sufficient knowledge of the subject to take the class (e.g. you have taken similar classes at your home university), you should be able to add the class without having taken the specific prerequisite at UC Irvine. 

If you wish to add a class with a prerequisite that you believe you have fulfilled at your home university:

A. Email the Academic Counselor in the school that is offering the course. Some Academic Counselors can either waive prerequisites on your behalf or determine if you meet the prerequisite and allow you access to the course. Please only contact ONE academic counselor at a time. Use the Template for Prerequisite Clearance Request when emailing them.

Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences (ICS) does not accept inbound exchange students!

• Please do not attempt to enroll at UC Irvine under the majors, minors, or graduate level programs in the UC Irvine School of Information and Computer Sciences listed here. 

Social Science Courses ONLY– Prerequisite Clearance Request Form 

Note: Students arriving in fall quarter should expect to NOT have prerequisites cleared until late August. 

Per policy, the School of Social Sciences doesn’t allow Reciprocity Students to take upper division writing courses (numbered 100-199 with a “W” at the end, ex. Soc Sci 172AW). 

Paul Merage School of Business Courses ONLY– Prerequisite Clearance Request Form 

Inbound exchange students are allowed only to enroll in undergraduate level courses, they will not have access to any graduate level courses. Students are advised to review the UCI General Catologue to find out which courses are restricted to graduate students only. 

Paul Merage School of Business has 7 Core Classes, including MGMT classes, that cannot be taken by students who did not enter UC Irvine as Business Administration majors. Please contact the Paul Merage School of Business for more information. 

Engineering Undergraduate Senior Design Project Courses 

The classes listed below require prerequisite courses that must be taken during Fall quarter if a student wishes to enroll in the Winter. These courses will only be available to inbound exchange students who are visiting UC Irvine for the Fall or Academic Year. 

 B. If you are not successful getting approval from an academic counselor, you can contact the professor of the course before you arrive. Search for the professor’s name in the UCI Directory to obtain their contact information and request their permission to add the course. They may ask about your background in the subject, so be prepared to e-mail/fax a transcript and/or course descriptions of previous courses you have taken. Please note, some professors are on vacation over the summer/winter holidays and/or are unavailable.

C. If you don’t hear from the professor before the quarter begins, you can wait until you arrive and talk to the professor in person. Bring relevant course descriptions and evidence of classes you have taken at your home university, as described above, so that the professor may evaluate your background in the subject.

Major Only Courses

Due to a lack of space in specific classes, some are restricted to “majors only”. If you are not admitted into the major at UC Irvine, you most likely will not be allowed to take that class. 

Enrolling In Classes That Are Full

WAITLIST: You may be unable to enroll in a course because it has reached maximum capacity, but some departments may active a waitlist for specific courses to allow students the opportunity to request a seat in the class should space become available. 

OPEN ENROLLMENT: During the second open enrollment period (see Quarterly Academic Calendar), you may still able able to add your courses. 

Upon Arrival at UC Irvine: If you are still unable to get access, reach out to the Inbound and Custom Program Advisor, Casie (cbonstei@uci.edu). 

Class Fees

A few classes (ex: some Film Studies classes) may have additional fees associated with the class, as noted as code “C” in the “Rstr” column. These fees are NOT included in your UCEAP exchange and you are responsible for paying these fees yourself upon arrival to UC Irvine. The fees will be billed to your ZotAccount. 

If you have problems or questions about enrolling in courses, contact the Inbound and Custom Program Advisor, Casie Bonstein, at cbonstei@uci.edu.  

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Housing 

The Student Housing web site contains profiles of both on-campus and off-campus housing options available to UC Irvine students. You may e-mail the Student Housing Office directly (housing@uci.edu) regarding both on-campus and off-campus housing questions.  

Please keep in mind that on-campus housing is only offered to students arriving in the Fall and students enrolled at UC Irvine for the Winter and Spring quarters. Students only enrolled at UC Irvine for the Winter quarter are not eligible for on-campus housing. 

To review your housing options and procedures, select the appropriate choice below: 

On-Campus Housing for Undergraduate Students under 25 years of age arriving in FALL 

On-Campus Housing for Undergraduate Students under 25 years of age arriving in WINTER 

On-Campus Housing for ALL Undergraduate Students 25 years of age and older 

On-Campus Housing for ALL Graduate Students 

Off-Campus Housing for ALL Students 

Important Notes: 

Please review the UCI Off Campus Housing page to avoid scams and fraud when searching for housing. 

Be aware many local apartment companies like the Irvine Company DO NOT usually allow subleasing of units and entering into a sublease agreement with someone and not directly with the housing company may be an illegal non binding contract and could result in eviction or loss of funds. 

If you leave your housing before the end of the agreement, you may be subject to a cancellation fee. Check all terms and conditions. 

If you apply for more than one housing option, accept only one.  You will be financially responsible for all agreements you accept. 

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Fees and Health Insurance 

Inbound exchange students are NOT required to pay UC Irvine Registration Fees, however, all students ARE automatically assessed the mandatory Health Insurance Fee. In some cases, you may also be responsible for laboratory fees, studio fees, etc. For your registration fees to be waived on your UC Irvine Zot Account, the Study Abroad Center will input an electronic “fee waiver” as follows: 

Registration Fees: Waived about two weeks before the UC Irvine fee payment deadline for each quarter you will be attending UC Irvine. 

Health Insurance Fee: ** All students attending UC Irvine are required to have health insurance ** Undergraduate students are insured by the Student Health Insurance Plan (UC SHIP). Graduate Students are insured by the Graduate Student Health Insurance Plan (GSHIP). Coverage details can be found here. All registered students can go to the Student Health Center (SHC) for medical treatment. Information about their services can be found on their website. SHC will also send you information describing the UC Irvine entrance examinations required of all inbound students. Read that material carefully and follow any instructions that are given. You will need to provide your immunization records to UC Irvine either before you leave or upon arrival, so be sure to obtain this information, in English, from your doctor. 

1) PAYING FOR HEALTH INSURANCE: If you wish to use the UC Irvine insurance (recommended), you will need to pay your health insurance fee before you arrive to UC Irvine by logging into your Zot Account. 

The 2024-2025 cost of UC SHIP is $884.37 for Fall, $884.37 for Winter, and $884.37 for Spring. The GSHIP fee is $2,280.80 for Fall, $2,280.80 for Winter, and $2,280.80 for Spring. 

2025-2026 not yet available 

You are responsible for making this payment each quarter! The deadlines to pay your health insurance fee are the same as the fee payment deadline and can be found here: UCSHIP Coverage Deadlines 2024-2025 

2025-2026 not yet available 

2) OBTAINING A HEALTH INSURANCE WAIVER:

The deadline to submit a waiver is September 13, 2024 for Fall quarter, December 9th, 2024 for Winter quarter, and March 3rd, 2025 for Spring quarter. After this date, a fee of $50 will be administered. Check out this chart explaining the Waiver Periods for 2025-2026 

2025-2026 not yet available 

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E-mail Account

Every UC Irvine student is assigned an account which provides free e-mail access. To use your UC Irvine e-mail account, you need to Activate your UCInetID. E-mail is the primary method of communication between the Study Abroad Center and inbound exchange students. You are required to have and regularly read your UC Irvine e-mails. Without it, you will miss crucial information!   

To set up your UC Irvine email, go to the New Student Setup.