For international agreements to take effect, they must be signed by the applicable academic college dean, the dean of ISP, and the provost.

Please allow a minimum of 12 business days for approval of new MOUs.

1. International Studies and Programs Review

All proposed international institutional linkage agreements must be reviewed in the International Studies and Programs' (ISP) Office of the Dean. We review:

• Rationale for having a signed agreement and consultation with Area Studies Centers as needed.
• Inclusion of necessary provisions (see the MOU/MOA Drafting Guidance).
• Appropriate signatories, including the provost.
• Export Control Screening
• If the agreement involves an exchange of students, faculty members, or international scholars: review by the Office for International Students and Scholars (OISS), the Office of Education Abroad (OEA) and the Registrar's Office.

2. Office of the General Counsel Review

The Office of the General Counsel (OGC) reviews all agreements, including all contracts and agreements with legal ramifications or potential liabilities. Agreements which could pose potential liability issues for MSU are reviewed by the OGC and other relevant offices (such as MSU Information Technology).

3. Office of Contracts and Grants Review

The Office of Contracts and Grants must review any agreement that involves financial transactions and obligations on behalf of MSU.

4. Obtaining Necessary Signatures

• Following approval by ISP and Office of General Counsel, the proposing MSU unit should prepare original paper copies of the agreement for all signatories.
• The proposing MSU unit should obtain all MSU department and college signatures on each of the original documents of the agreement before forwarding them to the dean of ISP for signatures. After the ISP dean signs the agreement, it’s sent to the provost and then returned to the proposing MSU unit to forward to the international partner institution for appropriate signatures.

5. Return of Signed Agreements

After the documents have been reviewed, approved, and signed by the relevant parties at MSU and the international partner institution, the sponsoring MSU unit should return one completed original document to the ISP Dean's Office, keep an original copy for the department/college files, and forward one original copy to the international partner.

Once returned to ISP, details of the agreement will be entered into the International Agreement Database, including a scanned version of the signed agreement.