Transfer Students
TRANSFER CREDIT POLICY REFERENCE GUIDE
Accreditation: Eligible credit must be earned from a college or university accredited by an accrediting commission which is recognized by the Council on Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). International universities must be recognized according to their country’s regulations. The posting of transfer credit for approved courses will be completed by the Registrar’s Office upon the receipt of an official transcript. An official transcript is one that corresponds with the credit granting institution’s definition of “official” and is received directly from that institution by the Admissions Office. When a course description is not sufficient, a syllabus may be requested. The threshold of majority match in course outcomes will be used to determine course equivalence (1:1) otherwise an elective will be assigned.
AP/CLEP/IB/DANTES/DSST: A maximum of 36 credits can be awarded from a combination of these exams (maximum of 30 credits from CLEP or International Baccalaureate).
Core Curriculum: In general, any introductory course in each area of the core curriculum can satisfy the core requirement for that area of study, even if it is not an exact match for our Core options (e.g., Intro to Literature can satisfy the Literature Core, Art Appreciation can satisfy the Fine Arts Core).
Credit Hours: To meet a Franciscan University requirement, a class must be worth at least 2/3 of the credit required for the FUS equivalent. For example, a 2-credit class could transfer to satisfy a 3-credit equivalent, but a 1-credit class could not satisfy a 3-credit equivalent. When students transfer in courses that are worth less credit than the FUS equivalent, they will still be required to meet the total credit requirements for their degree. Credits are converted from quarter to semester hours using the following formula: (Quarter Credits for course) x (2/3) where converted credits are rounded down to two decimal places.
Developmental/Remedial Courses: These courses cannot be applied to degree requirements and therefore will not transfer.
Final Credit Requirement: Students must meet a minimum number of final credits overall and within their major at Franciscan to earn a degree: The requirements are:
Bachelor of Arts/Science: Students must complete their final 30 consecutive credits at FUS. They must also complete at least 12 upper-level credits in their major at Franciscan.
Associate of Arts: Students must complete their final 15 consecutive credits at FUS. They must also complete at least 6 upper-level credits in their major at Franciscan.
Minor: Students must complete at least 6 of the 18 required semester credit hours in upper-level classes at Franciscan.
Grades: Transfer grades are not calculated into Franciscan University’s grade point average. The minimum earned grade required for undergraduate transfer coursework is a “C” or above.
International Students: Credits that students hope to transfer into Franciscan from an International college must be evaluated by WES or SpanTran, which are agencies that provide a comparison of international academic accomplishments to standards in the US or Canada.
Internships: Internship credits do not transfer to Franciscan.
Military Training and Experience: Credit may be awarded for some military training and experience. ACE transcripts are required for review. The 15 general electives rule does not apply in this instance, for there is no cap on the number of military general electives one can transfer into FUS.
Non-Equivalent Courses: A maximum of 15 credits for general electives may be awarded for courses with no FUS equivalent (e.g., Emergency Medical Technician coursework).
Pass/Fail Grades: Pass/fail grades do not transfer unless the credit-granting institution can officially verify a pass grade is equivalent to a C grade or higher.
Repeat Courses: Students may not earn credit at Franciscan for an equivalent course that has previously been transferred unless the transfer credit is first removed from the Franciscan transcript.
Petition to Take Course at Another Institution: Current Franciscan University students seeking to take coursework elsewhere must receive prior approval to ensure the other school is accredited and the course is an equivalent course. Students can find the form on the Port.