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Special Programs and Opportunities

Study Abroad

Numerous University of Houston colleges and departments offer opportunities to study abroad; i.e., within colleges: Architecture; Business Administration; Education; Hotel and Restaurant Management; Humanities, Fine Arts and Communication; Social Sciences; Honors; and Law Center; among others. Students may apply for an International Education Fee Scholarship (IEFS), available to students who have applied for study abroad programs. For more information, consult the appropriate college Dean's office or department, the International Student and Scholar Office (306 Student Service Center), or the UH international studies Web site http://www.uh.edu/academics/intlstu/.

Distance Education/Off-Campus Programs

Extending its reach to the community, the University of Houston offers many ways to meet educational goals at a variety of remote sites, including home. Classes and degrees are offered by instructional television via KUHT (PBS/Channel 8); Houston area cable companies; closed circuit (live, interactive) receive sites and tape viewing at various school districts, community colleges, corporate/industrial sites, community receive sites, the West and North Houston Institutes, UH System at Fort Bend and beginning fall, 1997, the University Center (north of The Woodlands); tape purchase; and face-to-face courses at the North and West Houston Institutes, UH System at Fort Bend, and in fall, 1996, the University Center.

The West Houston Institute at Cinco Ranch is located approximately 37 miles west of downtown, on South Mason Road (between Interstate 10 and Westheimer Road), and houses classrooms, conference rooms, faculty offices, reading/study areas, and microcomputer labs. The West Houston Institute also offers a variety of continuing education courses. For more information on these non-credit classes, see the Continuing Education section. The North Houston Institute, located on Sam Houston Parkway (North Belt just east of Interstate 45), provides courses to the north Houston community. UH courses are also available at the UH System at Ft. Bend, located in the Wharton County Junior College Centraplex on Julie Rivers Drive (off Corporate Drive and Hwy. 59). Staff at each of these sites can assist students with admission, advising, registration, and fee payment activities. For current information, call the West Houston Institute at (713) 395-2800, the North Houston Institute at (713) 405-4500, or the UH System at Ft. Bend at (713) 275-3300.

Instructional Television Program

Extending its reach to the community, the University of Houston offers instructional television courses (ITV) to students at home via KUHT (PBS/Channel 8) or Houston area cable companies through numerous closed circuit receive sites throughout the region. These sites include various school districts, corporate/industrial locations, community receive sites, the West Houston Institute and the North Houston Institute, and the UH System at Ft. Bend.

All instructional television (ITV) credit courses are fully accredited UH junior, senior, and graduate level courses. Students enrolling in them must meet all requirements and pay full fees and tuition. Ten selected degree programs may be completed by taking courses at home or at designated receive sites. However, all freshman and sophomore level courses must be taken on the UH campus, or at a local community college.

ITV courses are broadcast live from the university's production studios to various remote receive sites via one or two-way video and two-way audio, which allows a student to interact with the instructor as well as students at other sites. Tapes of these classes are later aired on KUHT and various cable stations and are recorded by students participating in the class from home. Videotapes of each class are also available in the M.D. Anderson Library for make-up or review for a two-week period following a broadcast. For selected courses, students may purchase tapes of the entire class at the beginning of the semester, or they may view these tapes at various community colleges (e.g., Alvin, Galveston, Lee, and North Harris Montgomery).

The University of Houston offers selected courses OnLine. Students must have the necessary hardware and software to access the Internet to register for these classes. For additional information about ITV or OnLine courses, call the ITV hotline at (713) 395-2810 or outside Houston, 1-800-OUR-UHTV.

Graduate-Level Inter-institutional Agreement

The University of Houston has a reciprocal arrangement with other universities in the Houston area that enables enrolled, full-time graduate students from participating institutions to take a maximum six hours of graduate-level course work per semester at the University of Houston for residence credit. Similar benefits are available to University of Houston students at participating institutions.

Other graduate institutions participating in the inter-institutional agreement are Baylor College of Medicine and Rice University.

The program agreement with other institutions specifies services to be provided, including special admission arrangements, institutional liaison, and arrangements for registration.

Institutional guidelines for program agreements provide for registration and departmental advisor and chairperson approvals of combined university course loads. Students should initiate this process by obtaining an interinstitutional agreement program form from the Office of Admissions, 128 Ezekiel W. Cullen Building, (713) 743-1010.

Students enrolling in courses at the University of Houston will be billed according to the legal requirements of the Texas Education Code. University of Houston graduate students enrolled through the interinstitutional agreement at other participating institutions will be billed according to the rules adopted by that institution's governing board. (See Tuition and Fees for additional information.)

Concurrent Enrollment

The University of Houston has concurrent enrollment agreements only with the University of Texas Health Science Center and Texas Woman's University. Senate Bill No. 250, Acts of the Sixty-fifth Legislature, Regular Session, 1977, provides for the following tuition procedure:

1. Students must secure academic advisor and department chairperson approval first, and then must register first at the institution with the lower minimum tuition and pay that tuition charge in full.
2. Generally, only the hourly rate is paid at the second institution. However, if the minimum amount is less at the first institution, students must pay the difference between the two minimums to the second institution, but not less than the hourly rate. Students must bring to the second institution proof of payment at the first institution.
3. If students are considered Texas residents by one institution at which they are registered, they will be considered Texas residents at each of the institutions at which they are concurrently registered. Students who are concurrently enrolled at two or more campuses within the University of Houston System may be able to pay less in student service fees and general use fees than each campus would separately require. Such students should consult the Bursar's Office at any UH System campus for more information.

For more information on concurrent enrollment, contact:

the Office of Admissions
128 Ezekiel W. Cullen Building

(713) 743-1010.

Continuing Education

The Division of Continuing Education provides a broad array of noncredit programs and courses designed to enrich students' experiences. Courses in accelerated language learning (seven languages), advanced English for foreign professionals, cross-cultural business communications, supervisory and leadership skills, computer skills, team-building, continuous improvement, creative and fine arts, personal financial planning, and many others are offered on campus as well as other locations throughout the area. To enhance career opportunities and promotability within their fields, students also may select from an array of professional certificate programs, including Certified Employee Benefit Specialist, Chemical Dependency Counseling, Interior Design, Interior Decorating, Floral Design, Training and Development, and Leadership and Team Development Skills.

In partnership with UH departments, using faculty as well as practicing professionals from business and industry, the Division's programming staff works closely with public and private sector clients to design and deliver quality instructional experiences at the work site, or if preferred, at a university facility. In addition, several UH colleges and departments offer noncredit programs of their own to students, alumni and the general public. For more information about the Division of Continuing Education's offerings, call 743-1060 or 1-800-OUR-LINK, or contact us by e-mail at keylink@uh.edu.

Army Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC)

The objective of the Army Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) program is to produce high quality leaders for the United States Army. Upon completion of a degree and the ROTC advanced course, students may be offered a regular or reserve commission in the United States Army, Army Reserve or National Guard. The graduate student program requires students to attend a paid six-week advanced ROTC camp, complete 12 semester hours of military science, and maintain full-time enrollment and good scholarship. Qualifications for entrance in the ROTC program include:

1. prior military service, or
2. completion of a six week basic ROTC camp, or
3. appropriate ROTC qualification courses.

While in the ROTC advanced course, students will receive $150 monthly stipend, a paid six-week summer camp (following the first year of the advanced course), and consideration for Army ROTC scholarships and other competitive awards.

Interested students should contact the Department of Military Science at 743-3875 or write to:

epartment of Military Science
University of Houston
Houston, TX 77204-5320

Veterans and Dependents G.I. Bill

Veterans and dependents who wish to claim education benefits should visit the Veterans' Services Office. Requests for enrollment certification should also be made in the Veterans' Services Office.

Recertification is necessary each semester for veterans who wish to continue drawing benefits. Enrollment certification cannot be processed until a degree plan/requirement checklist and Advisor Verification of Veteran Enrollment form for the semester certified is in the veteran's file and initial payment for courses is made.

Students in need of applications for educational benefits or information of a technical nature should contact the nearest Veterans Administration Office. For more information contact the Veterans' Services Office, 27 University Center Satellite, (713) 743-5490, or visit the Web page at http://www.uh.edu/campus/vets.

Oak Ridge Associated Universities Consortium

The University of Houston is a member of Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU), a consortium of colleges and universities and a management and operating contractor for the U.S. Department of Energy located in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. ORAU works with its member institutions to help their students and faculty gain access to federal research facilities throughout the country; to keep its members informed about opportunities for fellowship, scholarship, and research appointments; and to organize research alliances among its members. Undergraduates, graduates, postgraduates and faculty have access to a multitude of opportunities for study and research. Students can participate in programs covering a wide variety of disciplines including business, earth sciences epidemiology, engineering, physics, pharmacology, ocean sciences, biomedical sciences, nuclear chemistry, and mathematics.

For more information about ORAU and its programs, contact ORAU at (615) 576-3306.