Studying Abroad

Studying Abroad as an Information Science or Information Science, Systems, and Technology Major

Information Science (IS) and Information Science, Systems, and Technology (ISST) majors may study abroad during their time at Cornell. Coordinating a study abroad experience requires careful planning and communication with the Office of Global Learning, the student’s admitting college (A&S, CALS, or COE), and their IS/ISST major advisor.

Find information about timing, eligibility, and contacts within your college below:

Where can I study abroad?

IS and ISST majors study around the globe, but these are some of the more popular recent destinations:

DIS Semester in Copenhagen, Denmark
King’s College London, United Kingdom
CIEE Amsterdam, Social Sciences and Humanities, Netherlands
IE University Madrid, Spain
Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
National University of Singapore
University of Sydney, Australia

When can I study abroad?

Most students study abroad during their junior spring semester, but other semesters may work as well. Regardless of the semester in which you plan to study abroad, be sure to check that being away will not interfere with completing core information science courses. Core classes cannot be taken abroad and many core classes are only offered during the fall. Failure to complete core classes prior to the final semester of study may result in an inability to meet major requirements and/or delayed graduation.

What types of courses can I take abroad that will count towards my IS or ISST major?

IS/ISST majors are allowed to take two courses abroad and apply them towards their major requirements in one of the following ways:

Two major electives
One major elective and one concentration course

To be counted towards the major, all courses must be approved in advance by the Director of Undergraduate Studies. To have courses reviewed, please submit a syllabus, course link (if available), and the intended purpose (i.e., elective or concentration course with category) to ISAdvising@cornell.edu. Please share potential courses at least two weeks before any relevant deadlines.

Courses must be directly related to Information Science, but do not need to be identical to courses offered at Cornell. If it is determined that there is significant overlap in content between a proposed course and a course offered at Cornell, then the student will not be permitted to take both courses for credit.

Note on Finding Electives: Students tend to have a higher chance of a course being approved if the content has an “information science and ____” perspective. For example, courses that explore the ethics of artificial intelligence beyond an introductory level have been approved as IS/ISST major electives. However, courses that simply cover the programming foundations of artificial intelligence have not been approved. Courses that are missing an information science perspective will be automatically denied (e.g., solely computer science, communication, or business courses).

Note on Concentration Courses: Students seeking a concentration course abroad should use their concentration and category requirements as a guide. When proposing a concentration course for review, be sure to share the concentration category in which the course best fits (e.g., User Experience Category B: Design in Context).

How do I transfer study abroad credit back to Cornell?

This process varies by college; please refer to your college’s study abroad policies linked above. Once your transcript has been received by Cornell and posted to Student Center, then the IS Advising Office can verify your grade(s) and post the course(s) to your major checklist.

Questions? Email ISAdvising@cornell.edu or set up an appointment with an IS Advisor via Chatter (choose the Bowers CIS tab).

Study Abroad Courses NOT Approved for the IS/ISST Major

The list below includes all courses that have been proposed to the IS Department, but have been denied for major and/or concentration credit from abroad. The courses on this list will not count towards the IS or ISST major.

Updated February 2025

CASA Barcelona - Web Oriented Computing
CASA Santiago - De Homero a Facebook: Filosofía de la Tecnología (From Homer to Facebook: Philosophy of Technology)
CASA Sevilla - Technology, Informatics, and Society
CIEE Madrid - Operating Systems
CIEE Paris - Media, Gender and Identity
CIEE Paris - Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems
CIEE Paris - Social Psychology
CIEE University of Amsterdam - Communication in the Digital Society
CIEE University of Amsterdam - Computational Communication Science
CIEE University of Amsterdam - Ethics of Privacy
CIEE University of Amsterdam - Information and Data Management
CIEE University of Amsterdam - Intercultural Communication and Leadership
CIEE University of Amsterdam - Intro to Video Game Studies
CIEE University of Amsterdam - Media Methods
CIEE University of Amsterdam - Politics and AI
CIEE University of Amsterdam - Say Hi to AI
City University of Hong Kong - IS2023 Mobile Applications for Business
City University of Hong Kong - IS3501 Cybersecurity for Business
City University of Hong Kong - IS4340 - Search Engine Optimization
City University of Hong Kong - IS4834 - Business Intelligence and Analytics
City University of Hong Kong - MS4224 - Enterprise Data Mining
DIS Copenhagen - Artificial Neural Networks and Deep Learning
DIS Copenhagen - Business Potential of Generative AI
DIS Copenhagen - Data-Informed Business Strategies
DIS Copenhagen - Game Development: Programming and Practice
DIS Copenhagen - Graphic Design Foundations Studio
DIS Copenhagen - Strategic Communication
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology - CIVL 5220 Building Information Modeling and Digital Construction
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology - COMP 1001 - Exploring Multimedia and Internet Computing
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology - COMP 3311: Database Management Systems
Hong Kong University of Science and Technology - COMP 4021 Internet Computing
IE Madrid - AI Reasoning and Problem Solving
IE Madrid - Algorithms and Data Structures
IE Madrid - Data Governance
IE Madrid - Designing Databases
IE Madrid - Emerging Topics in Data Analysis & Management
IE Madrid - IE Challenge
IE Madrid - Web Analytics
IE Madrid - From Data to Decision-Making in Marketing
IE Madrid - Recommendation Engines
King's College London - 4CCS1DBS - Database Systems
King's College London - 5AAVC303 - Digital Campaigning
King's College London - Digital Economy
King's College London - Health Discourse and Communication
King's College London - History and Memory II
King's College London - Introduction To Software Engineering
King's College London - Leading and Managing Teams
King's College London - Marketing Communication
King's College London - Markets, Organisation, and Society
King's College London - Media Cultures
King's College London - Mediating Memory
King's College London - Object Oriented Programming
King's College London - Science, Technology, and Society
King's College London - Strategic Management of Technological Innovation
King's College London - Working Creatively with Digital Texts
National Taiwan University - PHL 1917
National University of Singapore - BT 1101 Introduction to Business Analytics
National University of Singapore - BT 3107 Engineering for Machine Learning
National University of Singapore - BT3103: Application Systems Development for Business Analytics
National University of Singapore - CE5209 Transportation Data Analytics and Modeling
National University of Singapore - Computational Methods for Business Analytics
National University of Singapore - DSA3101 Data Science in Practice
National University of Singapore - DSA4212 Optimization for Large-Scale Data-Driven Inference
National University of Singapore - IE5005 Data Analytics for Industrial Engineers
National University of Singapore - IS3103 Information Systems Leadership and Communication
National University of Singapore - IS1128 IT, Management and Organisation
National University of Singapore - IS4100 IT Project Management
National University of Singapore - IS4228: Information Technologies in Financial Services
National University of Singapore - LL4283C Artificial Intelligence, Information Science & Law
National University of Singapore - LSM2234 Intro to Quantitative Biology
National University of Singapore - LSM2241 Intro Bioinformatics
National University of Singapore - NM2207 Computational Media Literacy
National University of Singapore - ST2137 Statistical Computing and Programming
Parsons Paris - Transversal Design
Parsons Paris - Design Development & Production
University College London - BASC0048 Computers and Humans
University College London - BASC0080 Computer Simulations...
University of Edinburgh - Algorithmic Foundations of Data Science
University of Edinburgh - Computer Communication and Networks
University of Edinburgh - Software Design and Modeling
Yonsei University - Artificial Intelligence, Technology, And Education
Yonsei University - International Business Communication