University of Arizona

University of Arizona (UArizona) is located in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885, UA was the first university in Arizona and now has more than 43 000 students enrolled across 11 schools and 20 colleges. Its facilities include seven libraries, nine museums, a planetarium and an entire ecosystem under a glass dome called Biosphere 2.

Academic Highlights

UArizona is renowned for research in areas as diverse as astronomy, medicine, optics, entrepreneurship, and dance. It is particularly well known for its research in space science, having being awarded more grants from NASA than any other university in the US. It is currently leading a mission to send a spacecraft to gather and return with samples from a near-Earth asteroid.

Location

The UArizona campus is located in Central Tucson, and occupies more than 155 hectares of the oldest continually maintained green space in Arizona. The campus is roughly divided into quadrants with the north and south sides delineated by a grassy area called the Mall. Tucson is a bicycle-friendly city with a strong Hispanic culture and is surrounded by the beautiful desert scenery of the Saquaro National Park.

Did you know?

Iconic photographer Ansel Adams helped found UArizona's Centre for Creative Photography, the largest institution in the world devoted to documenting the history of modern North American photography.

Handbook/Catalogue

UArizona's course catalogue (select your preferred area of study under Subject and under Course Career)

Academic Restrictions

• Undergraduate students are required to study 12 credits minimum, 15 credits maximum (4-5 classes). Note that some Faculties at Monash require students to do a full-time load of 15 US credits to count as 24 Monash credit points. You will need to confirm this with your crediting Faculty.
• If you are a studying at a Bachelor’s level (undergraduate), you cannot take classes in law, business, nursing, pharmacy or visual communication.
• Some programs (Fine Arts, Performing Arts, Media Arts, Music, Dance, and Architecture) require a portfolio or an audition before advanced coursework can be taken.

Full-time Credit Load Equivalents

Amended October 2019

Academic Calendar

UArizona Spring Semester (Monash semester 1): early January – early May
UArizona Fall Semester (Monash semester 2): late August – mid December

UArizona Dates and Deadlines

Note

• The listed disciplines are not necessarily exhaustive and other fields of study might also be available at the institution.
• Approval to study particular subjects at any institution is always at the discretion of the departmental/discipline and faculty advisers in your managing faculty(ies) and subject to available places at the host.

Accommodation

The University of Arizona has two offices on campus dedicated to helping students find accommodation.

On-campus housing for Fall-only exchange students will not be available

UArizona provides further information about on-campus and off-campus housing options for students.

Visas

International exchange students studying in the U.S. must obtain the J-1 Exchange Visitor’s visa before leaving their home country. The application process requires a personal interview at the Consulate.

For more information on visas, please refer to the the U.S. Embassy & Consulates in Australia here, and the U.S. Visa Information Service for Australia here.

UArizona offers some advice on applying for a student visa under the Request Your DS-2019 and Before Orientation headings.

Health and insurance

Exchange students must have health insurance during their entire stay in the U.S as a J-1 student visa holder. Not carrying insurance that meets the minimum requirements for students on a J-1 visa is a violation of your status and can result in termination of your visa.

All international students registered for at least 1 unit must purchase the Student Health Insurance Plan. You will be automatically enrolled in the health insurance plan after you register for classes.

All University of Arizona students are required to have proof of 2 Measles, Mumps and Rubella (MMR) vaccines. If you do not submit your immunisation records, there will be a hold on your account that prevents you from registering for classes during orientation.

Orientation and extra-curricular 

All new international students are required to attend a two day orientation program before registering for classes. UArizona have created an orientation app for new students to download.

Students can also join the Global Wildcat Welcome WhatsApp group, an initiative provided by UArizona for new exchange students to ask questions about Tucson, the UArizona, or orientation to staff from International Student Services.

UArizona has provided some pre-arrival tutorials that exchange students are expected to watch before orientation. It includes information on applying for a visa, planning for arrival, packing for Arizona, and on-campus services.

UArizona has a vibrant student life, with great recreation facilities, student clubs and organisations, fraternities and sororities, and getting involved in school spirit.

Cost of living

UArizona provides an estimated cost of attendance for exchange students. You will be required to provide evidence of sufficient financial support to cover this as part of your application.

Funding

For information about funding available to support study on exchange overseas, see the Financial Information page on the Monash Abroad website.

Important notes

Business:

• Undergraduate exchange students cannot take classes in any business department (including Accounting, Administration, Economics, Entrepreneurship, Finance, Management, Management Information Systems, or Marketing). The only exceptions to the business class policy are:
  • Students may register for Global Business courses, BNAD 449 (offered in Fall), BNAD 450 (offered in Spring), and BNAD 201 (offered in Fall)
  • Students can take BNAD 301, 302, and 303, however, these courses are almost always at capacity and priority goes to graduating seniors.

Computer Science:

• Computer Science will allow enrolment in a maximum of three (3) CS classes; students should plan to take at least one class outside of the department to meet the required 12-credit minimum for exchange.

Film and Television:

• Upper-division (300- and 400-level major classes) courses are no longer available to exchange students. A brief list of Film & Television general education classes will remain open on a space available basis.

Students are not permitted to take courses in Retail & Consumer Science or visual communications (graphic design/illustration/typography). Likewise, the professional programs in Nursing and Pharmacy do not permit exchange students to take any of their courses.

To begin your application and study plan, click the button below.

Apply here

Have you been to the University of Arizona and want to share your experience? 
Let us know about your exchange via this survey form and your testimonial could be shown here!

Kieren Pascoe
Bachelor of Arts/Law
Semester 2, 2016
Studied: Arts units

Study Experience

I found that units generally contained many more assessments than at Monash. I studied Jazz history; Introduction to music composition; Nature of Murder; White-collar Crime; and the Politics of Happiness. While units may look overwhelming due to higher quantities of assessment, the loads were really quite manageable. I would highly recommend students take Politics of Happiness, I found the lecturer genuinely inspirational.

Culture

The Tucson environment was extremely sociable and it was incredibly easy to meet new people. The smaller-city vibe of Tucson - compared to the big city vibe of Melbourne - enabled this, as it was very simple to meet up with friends. Culturally, the students were extremely active, and all seemed to make time to engage in social and physical activities alongside their studies every week.

Benefits of going on exchange

I improved in my time management, as there was a continuous flow of work to do every week. Consequently, my capacity to complete assessments efficiently improved dramatically. Furthermore, I noticed improvements in my music composition, which I attribute to the weekly assessment and feedback within the subject.

Career Benefits

I have become a more autonomous individual, capable of actively seeking answers rather than being a bystander. I have also become a much better planner, and am generally a more confident person. I believe these skills have added value to my career development.

Money and Budgeting

The University of Arizona has a textbook rental program through the library, which is incredibly cheap. Also, use the University's 'Ride Safe' lift service - it's literally a free uber service for students (subject to time constraints). Leading up to the exchange, I would recommend calculating a fairly detailed budget, and making sure you reach the goals within the budget by the time of the exchange.

Top tips

• Be active in campus life.
• Create backup options for debit cards.
• Live on campus or in an apartment block if you wish to become friendly with US students