Program Financial Management

• Virginia Tech mandates international emergency medical and security assistance insurance for all university-supported travelers (faculty, staff, students, volunteers, dependents, and guests). 
  •  Note: CISI does NOT include trip cancellation or interruption insurance nor personal property protection. Program leaders should encourage students to purchase trip protection insurance at the time of making their deposit payment.
• Telecommunications for the program leadership to be able to reach Virginia Tech, emergency services, providers and travel agents, and program participants in-country.
• An overall 10 percent contingency for unplanned or unexpected costs.

Study abroad travel is different from business travel in that it is financed through student funds. As such, responsible stewardship is necessary. Certain program expenses are reimbursable/allowable with restrictions, while others are not reimbursable/allowable under any circumstances. See the list below for common examples.

Allowable with restrictions:

• Per diem: The GEAC best practice recommendation is that the faculty leader's per diem rate does not exceed 50 percent of the per diem rate set by the U.S. Department of State for the location of travel. As a stewardship practice, faculty expenses should align with student costs for the program. Programs presenting more than 50 percent of the location's per diem rate should provide a justification in the GEAC proposal.
• Airfare: Only economy round trip tickets are allowable. Any flight status upgrades must be paid for personally and are non-reimbursable beyond the economy amount.
  • Medical accommodations: If travel upgrades or other expenditures are made on the basis of a medical reason, you may work with CISI to seek reimbursement via a claim form. (Note: In order to be eligible for reimbursement from CISI, you will need to log a case file in advance with security provider, On Call International, and notify CISI of any changes to the travel arrangements or any medical expenses.)
• Group meals: Itemized receipts are required for group meals. 
  • If an itemized receipt is not available, obtain a menu either online or from the restaurant, mark what each person ate, and submit with proof of payment along with a document detailing the following: date of the meal, location, attendees, description, and signature/affidavit that no alcohol was purchased and claimed with state funds.

Unallowable:

• Expenses related to spouses/dependents.
• Alcohol (per university procedure on state funds).
• Expenses associated with personal convenience (such as personal products, laundry, personal travel, etc.).
• GPS, upfront fuel purchase options, and refueling options on rental cars.
• First class airfare and first class rail travel.
• Memorabilia/souvenirs.

When building your budget, it is a good idea to estimate slightly higher in case prices rise. A 10 percent contingency must be included in the program budget to cover unanticipated costs. If you encounter unexpected costs while abroad beyond what the contingency can cover, funds must come from the sponsoring department or college.

Students should be encouraged to purchase their own “cancel for any reason”  trip protection coverage to support financial losses resulting from trip interruption or cancellation. 

Program Leaders

Each college maintains a different study abroad compensation procedure. Faculty program leaders should discuss this with their department head early in the planning process. Faculty compensation is funded through tuition revenue and not student program fees.

Winter Session

The University policy for winter session study abroad compensation states that instructional faculty (T&R or A/P) can receive up to the equivalent of 3.75% of the academic-year salary per credit hour of instruction (with a limit of 11.25% of the academic-year salary per 3 credit-hour course). This applies to 9 month and 12 month faculty. Tuition revenue generated from winter session study abroad programs are split 70% with the home college of the course offering and 30% with the University. Revenue return to the college is immediate.

Summer Session

The University policy for summer session study abroad compensation states that instructional faculty (T&R or A/P) can receive up to the equivalent of 3.75% of the academic-year salary per credit hour of instruction (with a limit of 11.25% of the academic-year salary per 3 credit-hour course). This applies to 9 month faculty. Tuition revenue generated from summer session study abroad programs are split 70% with the home college of the course offering and 30% with the University.

Program Volunteers

To support study abroad programs and align with Global Travel Policy 1070, programs can propose and approve volunteers to assist in study abroad program leadership through the Volunteer Appointment & Approval Form. Volunteers serve in an unpaid capacity but can have their travel expenses covered through student program fees. Ensure that all costs align with student costs (e.g. economy class travel) and follow best practice (e.g. do not exceed 50% of the State Department allotted per diem rates for lodging, meals and incidentals). 

Volunteer expenses must be built into the GEAC approved budget and included within the Volunteer Appointment & Approval Form, which is approved by the department head, Controller’s Office, and Global Education Office. 

If intending to cover volunteer expenses from student program fees, volunteer expenses must be built into the GEAC approved budget. Volunteer expenses may be supported from other funding sources (e.g. grants, departmental funding, etc.). The volunteer’s expenses (type and amount) and the source of funding must be included within the Volunteer Appointment & Approval Form, which is approved by the department head, Controller’s Office, and Global Education Office. 

Note: Using volunteers is an exception to policy/procedures. A background/conviction check will be required for a non-Virginia Tech employee volunteer. Using a faculty member as a volunteer constitutes an exception to Virginia state policy and Virginia Tech procedures, based on the duties assumed.

The Global Education Approval Committee (GEAC) evaluates stewardship and equity as part of the program proposal and budget review process, which includes evaluation of the proposed faculty per diem rates, alignment of faculty and student expenses, business vs. economy class travel, and the faculty-to-student ratio.

Virginia Tech Policy 1070: Global Travel Policy sets the minimum faculty to student ratio at 1:15. There are various ways to fulfill the policy’s second responsible individual requirement, including leveraging on-site support staff, local faculty, and approved volunteers. The more faculty members involved, the higher the student costs.

The travel costs for program leader(s) are built into the program’s budget to be covered by students’ program fees (unless these costs are sponsored by another funding source).

Stipend and teaching compensation for program leaders should not be included in the program’s budget. Students pay for instructional costs through their University tuition and fees. Consult with leadership in the academic department/college for more information on faculty compensation for study abroad teaching and leadership. 

Program expenses can be defined as either fixed or variable. 

• Fixed costs do not change based on the number of participants – for example, classroom rental costs. 
• Variable costs are dependent on the number of participants – for example, the cost of train tickets per person. 

It is important to be aware of which operational costs are fixed and which are variable. Correctly categorizing costs will result in a more accurate budget.

You should clearly define and communicate which expenses are included in the program fee and which are excluded and become the onus of the student. 

The program fee is the amount that students are billed for program-related expenses; this amount should include costs for any function for which student attendance is required. Typical program expenses may include, but are not limited to:

• Honoraria to lecturers, guides
• Classroom rental
• Ground transportation costs
• Guides at museums and sites
• Admission costs at museums and sites
• Tips to drivers, guides and for meals
• Student housing
• Student meals
• Airfare
• Faculty housing
• Faculty meals
• Faculty participation in program activities
• Local cell phone and telecommunication costs for faculty
• CISI international emergency medical and security assistance insurance

Items such as airfare, visas, certain meals, personal expenses, textbooks, etc. may be excluded from the program fee. Estimates for these costs should be indicated in the proposal and provided to students.

The minimum number of participants needed for the program to run may depend on budget factors, including the anticipated fixed and faculty costs and feasibility of the program fee with fewer students. It may also depend on the department's projected tuition revenue/faculty compensation. Lower enrollment places a higher financial burden on fewer students and should be taken into account when setting the enrollment minimum. 

The program may cap the number of participants depending on factors such as the planned activities and number of faculty leaders.

Continue to monitor exchange rate fluctuations and update your budget as new information becomes available. An online currency converter can be helpful.