Program Development and Budget Process

Now that you have a solidified program idea and have done some preliminary research, it’s time to formally develop your program. This page is designed to help you understand the proposal and budget process. The Education Abroad office is here to walk you through each step.

Proposal Deadline for New Faculty-Led Programs

A call for new Faculty-led Study Abroad proposals will open on January 15, 2025. The proposal deadline for new faculty-led study abroad programs is April 15, 2025, for programs that will run in Spring 2026, Summer 2026, and Fall 2026. New faculty-led study abroad programs include any programs that have not run before and programs that are running again but have a new location and/or course.

Faculty must submit the Phase I proposal by this deadline. Download and save the proposal form before filling it out.

Prior to the April 15 deadline, we encourage faculty to:

1) Watch the Faculty-led Study Abroad Fundamentals webinar to learn about the faculty-led development process and how to get started. 
2) Meet with your Department Chair and Study Abroad Liaison about your program idea.
3) Meet with RIT Global to share program ideas and get feedback on program feasibility, program model options, best practices, etc.
4) Familiarize yourself with the Faculty-led resources on our website. 

Renewing Programs: Faculty renewing a program need to notify the RIT Global office of their intent to offer a program the following year (Spring 2026, Summer 2026, Fall 2026) by the April 15 deadline. You will then work with the Education Abroad team to submit your Phase I Proposal in a timely manner. However, if you are changing the location and/or course, you must submit the Phase I proposal by this deadline.

If you have any questions about the proposal process, please contact Zhanna Ivanova at ziiegp@rit.edu.

Faculty-Led Proposal Phase I

You will need to complete the Phase I form outlining the academic rationale for your program. Present it to your Department Chair and Dean for review and approval. Submit the final document and approval to the Education Abroad office. 

Download the Phase I Form (save it to your computer before filling it out).

Faculty-Led Proposal Phase II

Complete the Phase II form outlining the program and travel logistics. Submit the final document to the Education Abroad office for approval by Risk Management and RIT Global. Download the Phase II Form and save the proposal form before filling it out

Budget Planning

Use this budget template to help you estimate program costs (the link will download an Excel file to your computer). Once you’ve done some research, you’ll bring this to a meeting with Education Abroad to build the total program budget and student budget.

Important Contacts

Successful study abroad programs are a team effort. Here are some important contacts and resources you may need to reach out to:

College Study Abroad Liaisons

CAD
Christine Shank 
crspph@rit.edu

CET
Melissa Aponte 
mxacet@rit.edu

CLA
Lauren Hall 
lxhgpt@rit.edu

CLA
Trent Hergendrader 
wthgsl@rit.edu

CHST
Ashley Jackson 
adjiao@rit.edu

COS
Catherine Mahrt-Washington 
cewsse@rit.edu

GCCIS
Gina Shevchuk 
gmsics@rit.edu

KGCOE
Amy Neufeglise 
alpiao@rit.edu

KGCOE
Matt Marshall 
mmmeie@rit.edu

NTID
Matthew Anderson
mkaieo@rit.edu

SCB
Hillary McCormick 
hemiao@rit.edu

Financial Study Abroad Liaisons

CAD
Jason Spaid 
jesssc@rit.edu

CET
Katie Smith
kmkcto@rit.edu

CHST
Sueann Maynard 
samcto@rit.edu

CLA
Israel Brown 
ixbgla@rit.edu

COS
Angela Dolliver 
agdcto@rit.edu

GCCIS
Kim Shearer 
kbsast@rit.edu

KGCOE
Anne Stevens 
amscto@rit.edu

NTID
Christy Kuhn 
clknfb@rit.edu

SCB
TBD

SOIS
Mary Merkel 
mrmspa@rit.edu

Education Abroad Contacts

Jenny Sullivan

Director of Education Abroad and International Fellowships
585-475-3224

Current RIT Partnerships

View a list of current approved overseas partners and travel operators/tour vendors who might assist you in the development of your program.