Admission

I have completed one or more years of college

How does Admissions evaluate my transfer credits?

Guidelines for awarding transfer credit are explained on this page. What most students want to know is how their transfer credits will apply toward their degree requirements, and that is more complicated. How your credits will apply to a degree – which, after all, determines how useful your transfer credits really are – depends largely on the major you choose, the college or school from which you will graduate, and the set of general education requirements you will need to follow. In some cases, the year you first began college will also affect which sets of requirements apply to you. The answer to the question "How will my credits transfer?" will fully emerge only when you have enrolled at the UW, chosen a major, and have seen an adviser who can assign your transfer credits to appropriate requirements.

To learn more, contact Advising at 206-543-6160 or advisers@extn.washington.edu. Although advisers can't tell you about the transferability of specific courses, they can give you an overview of how your courses will transfer. After you're admitted, Admissions will determine which courses transfer and, when possible, indicate their UW equivalents. The Admissions evaluation is prepared in time for you to meet with an adviser prior to your first registration.

• General Policy on Transfer Credit
  • State Policy on Inter-College Transfer and Articulation
  • Class Standing
  • Quarter vs. Semester Credits
• Transfer Credit Evaluation
  • Appeal Procedure
• Applying Transfer Credit to Degree Requirements
  • Alternative Credit Options
• The Transfer Associate Degree Agreement
• Restrictions on Transfer Credit
  • Lower Division Transfer Credit Limit
  • College in the High School
  • Extension Credit from Other Schools
  • Foreign Language Courses
  • Military Credit
  • Native Language
  • Out of Sequence Courses
  • Overlapping Content
  • Physical Education
  • Restricted Tranfer Credit
  • ROTC Credits
  • Senior Residency Requirement
• Courses Receiving No Credit
• Information of Particular Interest to Participants in:
  • Advanced Placement (AP) Program
  • International Baccalaureate (IB) Program

General Policy on Transfer Credit

To students pursuing a first bachelor's degree, the Office of Admissions awards transfer credit according to the guidelines discussed below. It reserves the right to accept or reject credits earned at other institutions of higher education.

In general, it is University policy to accept credits earned at institutions fully accredited by their regional accrediting association, provided that such credits have been earned through university-level courses (see exceptions below) appropriate to the student's degree program at the University.

State Policy on Inter-College Transfer and Articulation

The UW subscribes to the statewide Policy on Inter-College Transfer and Articulation Among Washington Public Colleges and Universities, endorsed by the public colleges and universities of Washington as well as the State Board for Community and Technical College Education, and adopted by the Higher Education Coordinating Board. The policy deals with the rights and responsibilities of students and the review and appeal process in transfer credit disputes. Copies of the policy are available from the Office of Admissions.

Class Standing

A student's class standing is determined by the total number of transfer credits awarded by the UW, not by the number of years of college study or the completion of an associate degree.

• Freshman: 0-44 credits
• Sophomore: 45-89 credits
• Junior: 90-134 credits
• Senior: 135+ credits

Satisfying UW graduation requirements depends not only on the number of credits completed - a minimum of 180 for most programs - but also on completing all college and major requirements.

Quarter vs. Semester Credits

Colleges and universities that operate on a semester system award semester credit. The UW awards quarter credit. To convert quarter credits to semester credits, multiply by .67. To convert semester to quarter credits, multiply by 1.5. For example, a student who earns 30 credits at an institution on a semester calendar would have earned 45 quarter credits at the UW.

Transfer Credit Evaluation

The Office of Admissions completes a course-by-course evaluation of transfer credit once a student is admitted.

The information recorded on the transfer credit evaluation - including the transfer of credits and the Transfer GPA - becomes part of the student's permanent record at the UW. If a student applies to an academic program with additional admission requirements, transfer coursework and the transfer GPA will be considered.

The evaluation is not an official transcript. The official UW transcript - which is sent to other institutions, employers, etc. - does not include the transfer GPA or a detailed listing of the transfer credit the UW awarded; it merely lists the other colleges the student has attended and the total number of transfer credits awarded. Transfer grades are not included in the UW GPA.

Appeal Procedure

If some courses do not transfer and the student questions a decision, the student should consult the admission specialist who completed the transfer evaluation. Further appeal can be directed to the UW Transfer Officer in the Office of Admissions.

Applying Transfer Credit to Degree Requirements

Before a student first registers for classes at the University, s/he should meet with an academic adviser to plan a program of study. The adviser determines how the transfer credits shown on the evaluation may be used to meet UW degree requirements. For example, Admissions awards a student 120 transfer credits, but only 100 of those credits can be applied toward graduation requirements for a student's degree program. Credits that do not apply to specific requirements may still be used as electives - if any electives are needed - toward meeting the minimum UW credit total required for graduation.

Alternative Credit Options

The UW does not award general credit for work or life experience. However, two avenues exist for obtaining credit under select circumstances.

• Once enrolled at the UW, students may explore the possibility of obtaining departmental approval for transfer of credit earned through coursework taken at an unaccredited institution.
• Students may arrange to challenge specific UW courses via credit by examination if the same knowledge has been gained through independent study outside a formal educational setting.

Both situations require a formal approval process and a $25 fee per course. For coursework taken at an unaccredited institution, contact the Office of Admissions. For credit by examination for independent study completed outside a formal educational setting, contact the Graduation and Academic Records Office, 206-543-1803 or ugradoff@u.washington.edu.

The Transfer Associate Degree Agreement

Students transferring into the University's College of Arts and Sciences with an approved academic associate degree from a Washington community college enjoy benefits under an articulation plan known as the Transfer Associate Degree Agreement. One of the primary advantages to associate degree holders is that community college courses may be applied toward the UW's Areas of Knowledge (AoK) requirements comparable to the distribution pattern that the community college used to apply them toward the associate degree, even if those courses would not otherwise be allowed toward AoK requirements.

At the same time, all Arts and Sciences students must complete a minimum of 20 credits in each of the three Areas of Knowledge. Therefore, students with a 15-15-15 associate degree distribution pattern will be required to take up to an additional 5 credits in each area, along with an additional 15 credits drawn from their choice of one or more of the three areas, resulting in a total of 75 AoK credits. Moreover, due to additional UW graduation requirements pertaining to foreign language, further writing, and applicability of credits toward a major, there are further provisos governing general education requirements.

(For more information, see www.washington.edu/students/ugrad/advising/ged/gedaok.html#aa.)

Restrictions on Transfer Credit

Lower Division Transfer Credit Limit

The University allows a maximum of 90 credits of lower division transfer course work to be applied toward a UW degree. If your lower division credit exceeds 90, there will be a difference between the "total credits earned" and the "total credits allowed" columns in the detail of transfer credit recorded in your transfer record. Of the 180 credits required for graduation from the University (some majors require more than 180), a maximum of 90 lower-division transfer credits are routinely allowed. Additionally, a maximum of 135 total transfer credits are allowed toward the 180 credit total. The University-wide residence requirement states that 45 of the last 60 credits must be taken in residence at the UW while enrolled as a matriculated student. Therefore, a student transferring 135 or more credits must complete a minimum of 45 more credits in residence. Despite these restrictions, all of your transferable credit will be recorded in your transfer record. With your adviser's approval, it may be used to satisfy individual requirements for graduation. It may be helpful to think of your transfer credits as a "bank account" of credits from which you may draw. All of your transferable credits remain in the bank, but no more than 90 lower division credits and 135 total transfer credits may be "withdrawn" in order to be applied toward the 180 (or more) credits required for your degree. You should discuss UW degree requirements with a UW academic adviser.

College in the High School

Additional credit restrictions may apply when students enrolled in high school have been awarded college-level credit by another college or university, and the course work was completed on the high school campus rather than on the college campus. Contact the Office of Admissions for more information.

Extension Credit from Other Schools

Extension credit, including correspondence courses, earned at other schools may not exceed 45 credits. Military credit, discussed below, is included in the 45 extension credit limit.

Foreign Language Courses

Students who completed two or more years of a high school foreign language receive no college credit for an entry-level course (e.g., FREN 101) in the same language when that course is completed after matriculation at the University. Transfer students who complete such a course before matriculation at the UW are eligible to receive transfer credit.

Military Credit

Credits earned in Armed Forces Training Schools (AFTS) and through USAFI and DANTES may not exceed 30 credits and are included in the 45 extension credit limit. Official transcripts or DD-214 or DD-295 forms must be submitted, and credit will not be awarded until after the student has enrolled. Scores received in such coursework are not included in the transfer GPA. No credit is awarded for MOS.

Native Language

First-year (elementary) or second-year (intermediate) foreign-language credit is not granted either by examination or by course completion in a student's native language. "Native language" is defined as the language spoken in the student's home during the first six years of his or her life and in which he or she received instruction through the seventh grade.

Out of Sequence Courses

Credit is not awarded for prerequisite courses in mathematics or foreign languages completed after a more advanced-level course has been completed. For example, students will not be awarded credit for Spanish 102 if it was taken after Spanish 103.

Overlapping Content

If a department considers two of its courses to have overlapping content, credit will be awarded for only one. Example: credit is granted for either PHYS 114 or PHYS 121. Other departments in which such overlapping courses occur include Astronomy, Computer Science, Economics, Genetics, Geological Sciences, Linguistics, Psychology, and Statistics. Restrictions of this kind are noted in the UW General Catalog, generally as part of the course description.

Physical Education

No more than three quarter credits will be allowed for physical education activity courses.

Restricted Transfer Credit

Transfer credit will not generally be awarded for vocational or technical courses. However, a maximum of 15 quarter credits will be awarded in transfer for college-level vocational-technical courses when they have been allowed as electives within the 90 credits comprising an academic associate degree from a Washington community college. Courses in this category are those which would ordinarily provide specialized training for an occupation (e.g., allied health, bookkeeping, electronics, or physical therapy assistant). When allowed, these credits will apply only toward the elective credit component of a baccalaureate degree at the UW. Such courses are not included in the Transfer GPA.

ROTC Credits

Credits earned in first- and second-year military training courses may not be counted in the basic 180 credits that are required for graduation. Some third- and fourth-year courses may count, depending on the institution the student attended previously.

Senior Residency Requirement

The University generally requires that at least 45 of the last 60 credits of a baccalaureate degree be completed in residence at the UW.

Courses Receiving No Credit

The University reserves the right to deny credit for courses that are not compatible with those offered in its baccalaureate degree programs. Some general categories of courses never receive transfer credit. Examples include:

• courses below college level (usually numbered below 100)
• repeated courses or courses with duplicate subject content
• coursework earned at an institution that did not hold at least candidacy status with its regional accrediting association when the coursework was taken
• courses that provide instruction in a particular religious doctrine
• mathematics courses considered below college level, including basic math and beginning and intermediate algebra
• courses offered for noncredit continuing education units
• remedial English (e.g., reading, vocabulary development, grammar, speed reading, or any courses that are preparatory to an institution's first freshman composition course)*
• courses providing instruction in English as a second language (100-level or above)*
• examinations offered by the College-Level Examination Program (CLEP)
• remedial courses in any academic discipline (100-level and above)*
• lower division military science courses*
• non-academic or vocational-technical courses*

* Up to 15 credits may be awarded for courses numbered 100 and above if included as electives within an academic associate degree from a Washington community college. Also see Restricted Transfer Credit above.

Information of Particular Interest to Participants in:

Advanced Placement (AP) Program

Students who engaged in college-level study in high school through the College Board's Advanced Placement (AP) Program can obtain credit toward a UW degree, or placement in advanced courses, or both, on the basis of their performance on the AP exam. Applicants should ask the testing agency to send scores directly to the Office of Admissions. For more information, see the main UW Web site.

International Baccalaureate (IB) Program

Students who engaged in college-level study in high school through the International Baccalaureate (IB) Program can obtain credit toward a UW degree, or placement in advanced courses, or both, on the basis of their performance on the IB exam. Applicants should ask the testing agency to send scores directly to the Office of Admissions. For more information, see the main UW Web site.