Transfer credit from other schools for undergraduate students

New courses

The St. Thomas faculty evaluates courses taken at other accredited colleges and universities to determine whether they can be used to meet UST graduation requirements.   Here is the procedure for making those determinations:

1. The student instructs the other institution to send an official transcript to the St. Thomas office of admissions.
2. A transcript reviewer in the office of the university registrar checks each course on the transcript to determine whether it has been previously approved by the faculty for use toward St. Thomas requirements.  If the course has been approved, the transcript reviewer so indicates on the student's degree audit.
3. If the course has not previously been evaluated by the faculty, the reviewer prepares a recommendation as to whether it should be used to meet St. Thomas requirements.  The reviewer sends this recommendation to the chair of the academic department which administers courses of the same or similar rubrics at UST.
4. The academic department chair evaluates the recommendation, decides whether the course should be used at St. Thomas, and notifies the university registrar's office reviewer.
5. If the academic department chair changes the recommendation of the reviewer, the reviewer notes the change on the student's degree audit.
6. Finally, the reviewer notifies the student of the results of the evaluation.
   

Courses used to meet elective requirements

Credit which does not meet specific core or major/minor curriculum requirements may, in some cases, be used to meet elective requirements.

Appeals

Major/Minor Field:
Students who believe a transfer course should count toward major or minor field requirements should consult with the chair/director of the major or minor field.

Core Requirement:
Students who believe a transfer course should fulfill a core requirement should begin the appeal process by visiting Academic Counseling in OEC 119.  An academic counselor will review the situation and if it looks like there is a sufficient basis to submit an appeal, the student will be given a petition form to be submitted to the director of undergraduate academic affairs in AQU 110.  The counselor will discuss the kind of information (course description, syllabi, text etc.) that should be provided about the course with the petition. 

Pre-approval for transfer work

Institutions within the United States

Students who want pre-approval for future courses to be taken at Minnesota institutions should consult the MN Transfer web site.  This site contains tables showing St. Thomas course equivalencies for a number of other Minnesota institutions.  If the student wishes to take a course at another Minnesota institution that has been determined to be equivalent to a St. Thomas course for which the student wishes to obtain credit, that equivalency will be noted in these tables.  The student may assume that the course will transfer to St. Thomas as indicated.

Students who want pre-approval for Minnesota courses  which do not appear in the St. Thomas equivalency tables, or for other U.S. institutions, should contact the transcript reviewer in the office of the university registrar.  The reviewer will determine whether the courses under consideration have been previously assessed by the UST faculty.  If they have not, the reviewer will direct the student to the faculty member who must grant the pre-approval.

Institutions outside the United States

Policies and procedures for obtaining pre-approval for courses to be taken outside the United States are available from the study abroad office.