• Checklist of Things to Do Before You Return Home
• Readjusting to Your Home Country
• Making Travel Arrangements
• Request to Postpone Deadline for Return Home (for grantees studying outside the United States)
• Request to Postpone Deadline for Return Home (for grantees studying in the United States)
• Shipping Information
• Diplomas, Transcripts, and Additional Course Materials
• Communication with Program Sponsors After Your Return

CHECKLIST OF THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU RETURN HOME

Below you will find a checklist of things you will need to do before you return home. To print the entire list, you will need to print pages 1-2 of this web page. Underneath the checklist, you will find more information and instructions about topics from this list, such as validating diplomas and transcripts and shipping your belongings, as well as helpful articles on readjusting to your home country.

	Send an email to your LASPAU advisor with your program completion date (different from graduation date) and the date that you are traveling to your home country. Your advisor can be sure you have tied all loose ends, as well as find out how to be in contact with you in the future (address, phone number, email). We value your work as a grantee and hope to continue our collaboration with you as an alumnus.
	Complete the Confirmation of Program Completion Survey online.
	Make arrangements for your return travel.
	Be sure to obtain a copy of your diploma and transcript for yourself and get them validated. Since the requirements for this process are subject to change, be sure to check with your country's consulate directly.
	Request that a final cumulative transcript verifying completion of your degree be sent to your LASPAU program advisor upon your graduation. If you cannot complete this process before you leave, ask a friend to handle it for you. LASPAU cannot complete the process on your behalf.
	Make arrangements to transport your belongings home. Be sure to check with your country's consulate or embassy about shipping and customs regulations. It is also a good idea to check with the airline for specific regulations on the weight and size of suitcases, excess baggage, air freight, and cost.
	Settle all of your university and personal accounts before leaving your host country. Your Access Advantage Visa card will be canceled 30 days after your program end date, so please remove all funds from the card by before then.
	Contact the phone company to disconnect your phone. Call the long distance carrier to be sure that all charges are paid before you leave.
	Close your bank account and purchase traveler’s checks if necessary.
	Submit any pending medical claim forms before you go and pay the balance that you owe.
	Let the international office, alumni office, and members of your department at your university know that you are leaving. You have developed new networks of friends and colleagues during your academic program. Many of these individuals are anxious to stay in touch and may serve as important resources to you upon your return home.
	Once you have returned home, you must report to the Office of the General Secretariat of the OAS or Coordinating Office in your country to notify them that you have completed your studies and to give them your address.

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Returning to your home country may be more challenging than you imagine, and you will most likely have some difficulties readapting to your own culture. Your country and your perceptions of it will have changed. You will also have changed through the experiences you have had in your host country. You may experience reverse culture shock upon your return home. Because most people expect the transition home to be an easy and natural one, the unexpected experience of reverse culture shock can be even more difficult to handle than the initial adjustment to your host country.

We strongly urge you to read the articles on reentry listed below. To open and print these documents, you must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader software. If your computer does not have a copy of the program, you may download a free copy by clicking on the "Get Acrobat Reader" icon below:

Since some of the articles describe steps you can take throughout your program to lessen the effect of reverse culture shock, we suggest that you read them at both the start and end of your program.

• "The Top Ten Immediate Reentry Challenges" (PDF)
  
  
• "Preparing to Return Home: Quick Tips" (PDF)
  
  
• "Re-entry shock: Torn between two cultures" (PDF)
  
  
• "Why should I be worried about going home? It is not a foreign country?" (PDF)
  
  
• "Reentry" issue of The Advising Quarterly for Professionals in International Education (PDF)

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Travel may be included in your fellowship. Please review your OAS scholarship contract to see if travel is included. Please note that you now required to submit official confirmation of program completion to your LASPAU advisor before requesting your return ticket. Please make sure to forward this document at least 6 weeks prior to your desired date of departure. Your LASPAU advisor will let you know when you may contact OAS to request your return ticket.

If you are studying in Argentina, please contact Luis Buscaglia, (54 11) 4803-7606/08, oeaarco@oea.com.ar. If you are studying in the United States, Canada, Brazil, Chile, or Colombia, contact the Department of Human Development at the Organization of American States (OAS) Office in Washington, DC. Send an email to Francisco Coves, FCoves@oas.org, copying Yolanda Nuñes, YNunes@oas.org; Eduardo Jimenez , EJimenez@oas.org and your LASPAU program advisor (firstname_lastname@harvard.edu), indicating your name, nationality, LASPAU ID number, date in which you would like to travel and current address and telephone number where you can be reached. If a fax number is accessible, you should also provide that information.

If you are studying in any other country besides the ones listed above, contact the Office of the General Secretariat of the OAS in your country of study to arrange your travel home. Please see the OAS website for a list of Offices of the General Secretariat of the OAS and the appropriate contact information. Please make sure to send a copy of your communication to your LASPAU program advisor.

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REQUEST TO POSTPONE DEADLINE FOR RETURN HOME (for grantees studying outside the United States)

It is your obligation to return to your home country within three (3) months after the completion of the OAS-funded portion of your academic program. If you need to postpone the deadline for return to your home country due to the continuation of studies or research, you should request permission from the National Liaison Office (ONE) in your home country and from the Department of Human Development of the OAS. The request to postpone the deadline for return to your home country is also known as extension of stay and does not authorize extension of funding beyond the termination of OAS funding.

Please send a letter to the ONE in your home country including the following: complete name and contact information, contact information for your LASPAU program advisor, and details of your academic program. Your letter should indicate the end date of your OAS scholarship and the projected date for the completion of your academic program. Along with your letter, please send an official academic transcript and a letter of recommendation from your academic advisor explaining the reasons you are requesting the extension of stay.

Upon receipt of the ONE’s letter of authorization, please send it to your LASPAU program advisor along with your official academic transcript and the letter of recommendation from your academic advisor. After receipt of these requirements, your LASPAU program advisor will present your case to the Department of Human Development and will inform you of its decision.

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If your program of study is carried out in the US, you must be in J-1 immigration status. The J-1 program carries with it a requirement that legally binds you to return to your home country after finishing your program and to reside there for at least two years. If you need to postpone the deadline for return to your home country due to the continuation of studies, you should comply with the requirements for transfer of sponsorship (which can be found in the Academic Program section of this guide). If you want to participate in a post-completion academic training you should comply with the academic training requirements (which can be found in the Employment section). Please note that in both cases you must request permission from the National Liaison Office (ONE) in your home country. Once LASPAU has received permission from the ONE, we will forward the request to the Department of Human Development of the OAS.

Please see the Frequently Requested Information section for useful contacts for shipping belongings or fowarding your mail.

Please note that expenses related to shipping items home are not covered by your grant.

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Final Transcripts

1. Please request that a final cumulative transcript, including verification of the degree you have been awarded, be sent to LASPAU upon your graduation.
   
   
2. If your degree will not be posted on your transcript until after your scheduled departure, request that your department send an official letter to LASPAU, verifying that you have completed all requirements for graduation.
   
   
3. You will also want to make sure that you obtain an official copy of your final cumulative transcript for yourself.

Validating Diplomas and Transcripts

Some Latin American and Caribbean countries will not accept a foreign diploma unless it is validated by that country's consulate in the host country. Check with both your home institution (if applicable) and your consulate to find out whether or not you need consular validation. Start checking early because, if you are unable to validate your diploma or transcript before leaving your host country, you must make logistical and financial arrangements for someone else to obtain this validation for you. LASPAU is unable to assist with this process.

When validating diplomas and transcripts:

• Make sure all relevant names are legible.
  
  
• If you need a translation of your transcript, validate the translation as well.
  
  
• Keep extra copies of all documents for your records.
  
  
• Include a self-addressed, prepaid (stamped) envelope in your mailing to the consulate.
  
  
• Send a check or money order for the exact amount of all fees.
  
  
• Always use registered or certified mail.
  
  
• If you have any questions, contact the consulate directly.
  
  
• If you have to leave your host country before you have finished the process:
  
  
  • Leave someone in charge of carrying out the steps for you. LASPAU does not carry out the certification process.
    
    
  • Be ready to make the appropriate payment for the validation expenses. Many places will not accept a personal check, so it is your responsibility to find out this information and leave other forms of payment if necessary.
    
    
  • Provide the registrar at your university with the address of the person you have placed in charge. (Otherwise, the documents might be mailed directly to you without validation.)

Additional Course Materials

It is important to be able to clarify any doubts your institution, a ministry, or a review board may have about the courses you took during your exchange program. Your verbal statement about a course's contents will almost never suffice. The basic rule for facilitating credit and degree transfer from one country to another is: You can never take too much information with you.

In addition to your validated degree and certified transcript, you may find it useful to bring home a complete and updated copy of your university's catalog, including:

• Course numbers and an explanation of your university's course number system
  
  
• Credits awarded for each course and an explanation of your university's course credit system
  
  
• Descriptions of your major and minor programs, including all required courses

You should also keep the syllabus for each course you have taken. This should include subjects covered, number of papers, and exams.

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COMMUNICATION WITH PROGRAM SPONSORS AFTER YOUR RETURN

It is important to maintain contact with the OAS office in your home country; they will be very interested in your progress. As agreed to in your OAS scholarship contract, after you complete your program of study or training, you must cooperate with LASPAU and the OAS in assessing the impact of the program. You must report on your relevant work or activities in your home country for a period of two years after the conclusion of the program. In addition, providing the OAS with your current home and work addresses will enable them to contact you for any alumni/ae activities or communications.

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