Students are responsible for understanding the withdrawal, cancellation, and refund policies of their program before applying. These policies apply to all programs offered and administered by UK Education Abroad & Exchanges (UK EA). Financial obligations vary by program type and the timing of withdrawal.
By completing an application to study abroad, students confirm to having read, understood, and agreed to the following terms regarding UK EA’s education abroad programs and that they will also seek out and follow any additional program policies.
A student, not parents/guardians or other parties, may withdraw their UK EA application at any time. Depending on the type of program and timing of the withdrawal, students may still be liable for some or all costs associated with the program. Students should contact their UK EA Advisor for more information before withdrawing.
Withdrawal processes differ based on the student's application status, which can be found int he top left corner of the student's existing application in the UK EA application portal.
Note: Only withdrawals via the below method(s) are considered valid. Verbal withdrawal requests, withdrawals sent to your academic advisor or program faculty, or any withdrawal requests made through other methods are not accepted and may cause additional penalties to accrue.
Students should log in to their UK EA application (ea.uky.edu) and select the 'Withdraw' button next to the program name on the Applicant Home Page.
To officially withdraw, students must complete the Withdrawal Form.
Students participating on a partner, exchange, or direct program may also need to withdraw from the organization or university facilitating the program. Students are responsible for communicating with the program facilitator about their withdrawal, any related costs, and adhering to the facilitator's withdrawal policies.
UK EA Leadership and program coordinators may administratively withdraw a student from participation if the student:
For Faculty-Directed Embedded programs, students who are academically removed from the on-campus course are also considered administratively withdrawn.
Students who are administratively withdrawn are officially removed from the program, subject to all financial obligations, and are not eligible for a refund appeal.
Because most Faculty-Directed program costs are paid in advance to secure program logistics, refunds may not be available. Once a student has been accepted and the confirmation date has passed, the student is financially responsible for all program costs listed on the cost page.
The timing of a withdrawal request determines whether any refund is provided. UK EA will work to recover any costs that can be returned without jeopardizing the program, which will be removed from the student's balance or refunded to their UK student account. Due to the nature of program payments and reservations, not all funds paid can be recovered nor can an itemized bill be provided.
The application fee and first payment are non-refundable once billed.
Embedded Faculty-Directed programs are subject to all financial obligations outlined in the Faculty-Directed Programs section above.
Additionally, tuition for the on-campus course follows the UK Course Deadlines and Refund Schedules.
Dropping the on-campus course does not constitute an official withdrawal from the program. To officially withdraw, a student must both submit a withdrawal request to UK EA and drop the academic course.
Students participating in partner, direct, exchange, or other non-Faculty-Directed programs should contact their specific program for information on withdrawal processes and refund policies. The UK EA application fee is non-refundable once billed, and EAP 599 tuition is refunded in accordance with UK Course Deadlines and Refund Schedules.
UK EA may cancel a program for a variety of reasons. Students will be notified by their EA Advisor as soon as a cancellation decision is made, and will be assisted in finding an alternative program if one is available.
Unforeseen faculty limitations or scheduling conflicts may result in the cancellation of a Faculty-Directed program. Affected students will be notified via email and advised on alternative options.
Each Faculty-Directed program requires a minimum number of enrolled students to operate. Programs that do not meet the minimum enrollment threshold will be canceled. Affected students will be notified via email and advised on alternative options.
Students placed on a waitlist may have their application canceled if a spot does not become available. A UK EA Advisor will communicate available options throughout the process.
Force majeure refers to unforeseen events outside of anyone's control. UK EA defines qualifying events to include, but not limited to, political unrest, natural disasters, pandemics, or sudden elevated travel warnings that make it unsafe to travel to a given location. Cancellation decisions based on force majeure are made in conjunction with UK EA Leadership, on-site partners, program directors, and other UK health and safety administrators.
If UK EA cancels a Faculty-Directed program and students are unable to find a reasonable replacement, they will be refunded the UK EA application fee.
If a student's partner, direct, exchange, or other program has been cancelled by the program facilitator, students must contact the program facilitator to learn more about the program's cancellation and refund policy.
Last Updated: March 10, 2026