University of Otago

Unique study opportunities

• Discover many New Zealand and Pacific focused courses.
• Immerse yourself in New Zealand by taking courses that have field work and field trips.
• Learn about Maori culture and society in traditional and contemporary contexts by taking the course, Maori Society.
• Examine Pacific societies in traditional and contemporary contexts, with a focus on indigenous perspectives by taking the course, Pacific Societies. 

Language

Language Study: Optional

Foreign language study is available. Check the university course catalog.

Courses and credit

Requirements While Abroad

To successfully complete this program:

• Take a full-time course of study:
  • Minimum of 21 quarter/14 semester UC units per semester
  • Maximum of 28 quarter/19 semester UC units per semester
    • A 18 point Otago course= 7 quarter/4.7 semester UC units
    • Since most Otago courses are worth 18 points, most UCEAP students will take between 3-4 courses, or between 54-72 Otago points
• You may take one course per semester for pass/no pass credit

Course Numbers and Division

Courses that begin with a 1 will earn lower division UC credit. Courses that begin with a 2 or 3 will earn upper division UC credit. 

RESTRICTIONS

UCEAP does not allow students to take courses that begin with a 4 or higher at Canterbury. 

Medicine, dentistry, psychiatry, physiotherapy, pharmacology, pharmacy and other clinical courses are not available to exchange students. 

Catalogs and resources

• University of Otago Course Catalog: Browse undergraduate course offerings.
  • Semester 2 is the fall term.
  • Courses at Otago are called 'papers'.
• UCEAP Course Catalog: See a list of some courses students have taken on this program. This is not a current representation of course offerings on this program. Reference the above links to review recent course offerings.
• Campus Credit Abroad: Learn the types of credit (major, minor, general education, elective) students from your campus received at this location. If the course you want to take is not listed here, that does not mean you can't earn major, minor, general education or elective credit for it, as the database is not fully updated and does not list all courses, even if a UCEAP student has taken it before and has earned major credit for it. Let this database help you if it's able to, but don't let it detour you. It's ultimately up to your major advisor to determine the type of UC credit you'll earn for your classes abroad. 

Academic Culture

To help you acclimate to New Zealand campus life and culture, there are a few key differences and similarities with UC to be aware of:

• The New Zealand semester is longer and has a slower pace than the UC semester or quarter.
• Students address local lecturers and tutors informally by their first name.
• Similar to UC, the main forms of teaching are lectures (50-500+ students), tutorials (10-25 students), seminars (30+ students; half lecture, half tutorial), and labs/practicals.
• All lectures are recorded—beware of waiting until the last minute to watch them. In New Zealand, students are expected to be independent and show initiative. Instructors won't chase you up if you miss classes or assignments.
• Assignments tend to require heavy research and critical analysis.
• You’ll need to use New Zealand English for assignments.

Grades

You will earn direct UC credit and grades for all coursework. New Zealand university grades are criterion-referenced rather than norm-referenced (curved). This means that your performance on an assignment will be prepared to a predefined standard, not to the performance of your classmates. Your lecturer will advise you of this standard via grading rubric.

Grades for the fall semester are typically available in December. Requests for early grades cannot be accommodated.