Guest Student FAQs

A guest student is defined as someone who is visiting from another institution wishing to study abroad with one of Kent State's study abroad programs. When applying for admission to Kent State University, they would select the “Guest student” application route.

Currently enrolled Kent State degree-seeking students are not considered guest students.

Yes, we are happy to welcome non-KSU students to participate in many of our KSU Education Abroad Programs. In order to apply to a program, students must first apply to Kent State as a Guest Student. Please follow the steps to apply as a Guest from the program page itself.

For questions about which Education Abroad programs are available to Guest Students, or additional support with the process, please reach out to edabroad@kent.edu. Please let us know if you are an undergraduate or graduate student and the name of your home institution. 

Step 1) Apply online as a Kent State Guest Student (there is no fee to apply!)

When completing the Guest Student Application, please be sure to make the following selections:

• Select Student Type: Guest

• Select Campus: Kent Campus

Applicants must have a minimum of a 2.5 GPA and be in good standing at their home institution. An admission decision will be made as soon as your application file is complete. Applications will not be considered for admission until all items have been submitted. Some programs may have additional prerequisites. Application deadlines vary depending on your Education Abroad Program.

Within 72 hours of submitting your application, students who are accepted as Guest Students will receive an acceptance email from Kent State Admissions.

Step 2) Log in to the Kent State student portal, FlashLine

Within 72 hours of receiving your acceptance email, you will receive a second email with your Kent State credentials. You must log into your FlashLine account for the first time and establish a password.

• To log in for the first time, go to welcome.kent.edu and click on "Start here" after "New user?"
• Enter your username. This is the first part of your email address (ex. "janedoe@kent.edu" is "janedoe"). Refer to your admission letter for your Kent State email address and your username.
• New students are given a temporary password when their account is created. Enter your temporary password.
• The format of the password is: mmmyyxxxxx where:
  • mmm = first three letters of the birth month.
  • yy = last two digits of the birth year.
  • xxxxx = last five digits of the Kent State Identification Number (see admission letter).
• Once you have successfully logged in with this temporary password, you will be prompted to select a new password. You are also asked to provide an alternate email address and to answer challenge questions that you can use to reset your password in case it is forgotten.

If you need login assistance, contact the Help Desk at 330-672-4357 or go to support.kent.edu.

Step 3) Apply for your Kent State Program of Interest

After you have been admitted as a Guest Student, you must apply for the Kent State study abroad program using the online application system. Please return to the program page you are interested in and click on the ‘Apply Now’ button. You will be prompted to enter your Kent State credentials to login and apply. 

Guest Students are not eligible for any financial aid through Kent State University. Financial aid can only be taken at the institution granting your degree. You can contact your home institution's financial aid office to see if you would be eligible for financial aid to be used at Kent State.

Typically, this will require an Ad Hoc Consortium Agreement that must be filled out by both Kent State and your home institution. Agreement forms can be submitted using the Contact Us button found on the Financial, Billing and Enrollment Center website, via email to finaidconsortium@kent.edu or mail to:

Financial, Billing and Enrollment Center

PO BOX 5190

Kent, OH 44242-0001

If you are a Guest Student participating in a Kent State education abroad program, then you are required to follow Kent State's payment due date.

The completion of the Ad Hoc Consortium Agreement with your home school and Kent State does not work as a financial guarantee, and often does not contain information on how much financial aid you will be receiving at your home school.

Please note: It is your responsibility to make a payment(s) to your Kent State account, or contact the Financial, Billing and Enrollment Center with proof of financial aid by Kent State's payment due date.

If your home school will not release your financial aid in time to pay Kent State by our payment due date, your classes will be subject to cancellation and you may be charged a late fee. Therefore, it is important to check with your financial aid office on their disbursement date.

If your school's disbursement date is after Kent State's payment due date, then you will need to request a financial aid statement or guarantee from your financial aid office stating the total amount of financial aid you will receive for the semester, and when the money will disburse to you or to Kent State University. This statement can be submitted to the Financial, Billing and Enrollment Center as proof of payment to prevent course cancellation and penalties. This should be done in a timely manner, before the payment due date.

If you are not using financial aid to pay your Kent State bill, online payments can be made.