Exchange participants are required to take a full-time course load (at least 12 Temple credits) while abroad and will earn transfer credit.
Course Offerings
Students can study on any of the following tracks while at Sciences Po Lyon:
- Attestation d’Etudes Politiques (AEP) / Certificate of Political Studies*
- Diploma of French and European Studies (DFES)
- Choix libre (Free choice)*
*Requires B2 level of French language or higher
Students who do not have proficiency in French should plan to participate in the DFES program, in which all courses (except French language courses) are taught in English. All DFES students also take an intensive French language course to supplement their studies. The DFES program is only available on a semester basis. Students wishing to study for a full year must choose another academic option for their second semester. You can view the most recent catalogue of DFES courses online.
Course Approvals
Prior to departure, students must complete the Course Approval process. Part of this process will require students to speak with the appropriate faculty members to evaluate courses and assign a corresponding Temple requirement. Courses that are taken abroad may have a direct Temple course equivalent, may fulfill an upper level elective or a lower level elective, general education requirement etc. Faculty will approve and assign corresponding Temple courses or requirement, but do not indicate the number of Temple credits that will be received for each course taken abroad. Students are advised to seek pre-approval for about twice as many courses as they can take, in the event that they need to change their schedules upon arrival.
Upon arrival, if students find that they must make a last-minute course change and enroll in a course that has not been pre-approved, students should e-mail the details of any new courses to the appropriate departments for evaluation. However, due to the time it takes to have a course approved from overseas, in some cases final determination on course approval may not be made until students return. It is therefore always advised to include any and all courses that a student might take abroad on their course approval form.
Transfer of Credits and Grading Scale
After Temple receives an official transcript from Sciences Po Lyon, approved courses that have been passed with a grade equivalent to a C or better will be accepted by Temple and appear on students' transcripts as transfer credit. The number of credits received for each course will be evaluated at this time.
Sciences Po Lyon uses the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) to articulate credits on its transcripts. Transcripts are issued within five weeks after the assessment period has finished. More information about Temple's transfer credit policies, including conversions from ECTS to Temple credit, can be found on Temple's Undergraduate Bulletin. Temple GPAs will not be affected by grades earned on an exchange.
Grading Scale
| Sciences Po Lyon Grade | Temple Equivalent |
| 14-20 | A |
| 12-13.9 | B+ |
| 11-11.9 | B |
| 10.5-10.9 | B- |
| 10.1-10.4 | C+ |
| 10 | C |
| 9-9.9 | C- |
| 8-8.9 | D |
| 0-7.9 | F |