Special Section For Students: Academic Credit Option
Unite For Sight programs are a unique opportunity for students to connect their academic studies with intellectually stimulating and high-impact volunteering abroad. Participating as a Global Impact Fellow provides a unique service-learning opportunity about global health and international development through hands-on service and cultural exchange. We encourage students to arrange with their university to receive academic credit for their participation in the Unite For Sight program.
Who can pursue the Unite For Sight program for academic credit?
Many undergraduate, public health, optometry, and medical students pursue the Unite For Sight program for academic credit and/or medical electives at their home institution.
What are examples of universities that offer credit for the Unite For Sight program?
Most recently, volunteers from the following institutions have coordinated academic credit for their Unite For Sight program.
Undergraduate Schools That Have Recently Granted Academic Credit For The Unite For Sight Program:
- Arizona State University
- California State University, San Bernardino
- Concordia University-Nebraska
- Duke University
- George Mason University
- Gettysburg College
- Illinois State University
- Indiana University at Bloomington
- Laurentian University (Canada)
- Loyola University
- Michigan State University
- Monmouth University
- Mount Holyoke College
- Ohio State University
- St. Louis University
- Stanford University
- St. Francis Xavier University (Canada)
- St. Louis University
- Temple University
- The College of St. Catherine
- University of Denver
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- University of Kentucky
- University of Memphis
- University of New Mexico
- University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
- University of Northern Iowa
- University of San Diego
- University of Utah
- Vassar College
- Washington University at St. Louis
- Wellesley College
- Western Kentucky University
Medical Schools That Have Recently Granted Academic Credit For The Unite For Sight Program:
- Birmingham University School of Medicine (England)
- Boston University School of Medicine
- Duke University School of Medicine
- George Washington University School of Medicine
- Mayo Graduate School of Medicine
- Medical University of South Carolina
- New York Medical College
- Ohio State College of Medicine
- Penn State College of Medicine
- Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
- Stanford University School of Medicine
- Temple University School of Medicine
- Tufts University School of Medicine
- University of Alabama School of Medicine
- University of Bristol School of Medicine (England)
- University of California at Davis School of Medicine
- University of Calgary Medical School (Canada)
- University of Massachusetts Medical School
- University of Melbourne School of Medicine (Australia)
- University of Nebraska Medical Center
- University of South Florida College of Medicine
- University of Tennessee College of Medicine
- University of Virginia School of Medicine
- Wake Forest University School of Medicine
- Western University College of Osteopathic Medicine
- Yale University School of Medicine
Public Health Schools That Have Recently Granted Academic Credit For The Unite For Sight Program:
- Boston University School of Public Health
- Dartmouth Institute For Health Policy and Clinical Practice
- New York Medical College School of Public Health
- University of Alabama School of Public Health
- University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service
Business Schools That Have Recently Granted Academic Credit For The Unite For Sight Program:
- The Citadel School of Business
How can I arrange academic credit?
You should consult your academic institution regarding how you can arrange course credit. After you are accepted to the Unite For Sight program, we can provide a letter for your university that confirms your planned participation in the Unite For Sight program, as well as details regarding your pre-departure online global health coursework and global health field participation. While many universities offer academic credit for volunteering with Unite For Sight, other universities do not offer this option. You should therefore consult your university to determine whether academic credit can be arranged.
The ophthalmic staff at each Unite For Sight program site will complete any on-site evaluation forms needed for a student's university.
Additionally, receiving academic credit for volunteering often makes a volunteer eligible for university funding to cover travel and lodging expenses abroad.
Does Unite For Sight provide letters of recommendation?
Unite For Sight is very delighted to provide letters of recommendations for its Global Impact Fellows. The letter may be provided after a Global Impact Fellow completes their program, and the letter is written based on the evaluation submitted by the eye clinic to Unite For Sight about each volunteer. Using the details provided in the eye clinic's evaluation, Unite For Sight prepares a comprehensive letter that also discusses the role and involvement of the volunteer in the Unite For Sight programs. The letter may also include details about any special entrepreneurial project that a fellow develops while participating in the Unite For Sight program.
Can I pursue research as a Unite For Sight Global Impact Fellow?
Unite For Sight Global Impact Fellows who are undergraduate or graduate students oftentimes develop their own research studies that they pursue while volunteering. They participate in the Global Impact Lab, an optional program for fellows interested in global health research. The idea, plan, and methods for the study are developed by the student in collaboration with Unite For Sight as well as with a faculty mentor at their home university institution, and they also are required to receive Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval from their university prior to implementing their study. Many students have presented and published the results of their research studies, thereby contributing to ideas and knowledge about eye care in the developing world.