Transfer Credit

Students wishing to transfer credit must submit to the Office of Admissions and Records a Student Adjustments Form along with an official transcript reflecting the credit to be transferred.  After verifying that the credit meets University standards, the Office of Admissions and Records sends the request to the student’s advisor. 

The student's advisor determines the suitability of the transferred course into the student’s program of study.  After the advisor gives approval, the request is forwarded to the Dean’s Office for approval.

Once all of the necessary approval signatures have been obtained, the Office of Admissions and Records posts the transfer credit to the student’s official transcript.

Before any transfer credit can be accepted, the following minimum conditions must be met:

• Students in the National College of Education must be admitted before submitting a request for transfer credit.
• The credit must be bona fide (actual) credit from a graduate-level course taken at an accredited institution that would accept the credit for a graduate-level degree. (Accredited institutions are those approved by one of the regional accreditation associations, e.g. The North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, or by some of the agencies recognized by the Council on Postsecondary Education, e.g. the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers.)
• The course must not have been towards another degree.
• The student must have received a grade of “B” or better in the course. If the student has received any type of grade other than a traditional letter grade, a letter is required from the Registrar of the institution where the course was taken verifying that the grade is equivalent to at least a “B.”
• An official transcript from the institution where the course was taken must be submitted.
• Quarter hours are converted to semester hours.
• Transfer credit from institutions outside the United States must be submitted to an approved outside agency for evaluation.  These agencies translate and interpret the transcript according to American university standards.  The interpretation of the outside agency, along with the original transcript, is then submitted to the Registrar for processing.  A list of these approved agencies is available here.

In addition to the above requirements, each of the colleges have their own transfer credit restrictions. 

NATIONAL COLLEGE OF EDUCATION

• Transferred credit may not be substituted for core courses.
• Courses can be transferred at any time after admission until finalization of the degree.
• Transferred credits are included in the number of maximum credits allowed for off-campus work.
• The institution where the credit to be transferred originates must be approved by a regional accreditation association.
• For graduate degrees, there is a six-year limit between the first course and the last course used for the degree, including any transfer credit. 
• Transfer credit is limited to six semester hours of graduate credit.
• Doctoral students (Ed.D.) can bring up to twelve hours of post-Master’s degree courses taken before admission into the program. However, this includes courses taken at National-Louis University.
• Doctoral candidates have eight years to complete their degree.
• Students can petition the Admissions and Retention Council to request exceptions to these policies.