Transfer Credit

Students who have completed or plan to complete college-level courses at another institution may request transfer of these credits onto their Washington College academic record. Such credit is helpful for students interested in finishing their degree early or who have already begun their studies at another college or university.

The College’s transfer credit policy applies to both new incoming transfer students and currently matriculated students at the College. This page outlines the policies and procedures for requesting transfer of credits in all situations. Visit the Advanced Standing page for information about earning credit for Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), College Level Examination Program (CLEP) or Cambridge “A” and “AS” tests.

Transfer Credit Policy

The College grants transfer credit for courses from regionally accredited institutions if they are standard liberal arts courses or are otherwise comparable to the offerings of the College. Transfer credit is only given for courses taken on a letter grade basis in which a final grade of “C-” or higher is earned. Courses taken on a Pass/Fail basis or those that are older than seven years may be ineligible for transfer.

Grades from transfer courses do not factor into the calculation of the student’s cumulative Washington College grade point average, nor may students use a transferred course to replace a grade already earned at Washington College.

Once coursework has been accepted and processed as transfer credit, the student’s official WC transcript will include only the name of the transferring college/university and the number of credit hours awarded in transfer. The transcript will not list the individual courses themselves. However, for advising purposes, faculty advisors will have access to view these individual transfer courses and the grades earned.

Policy for Incoming Freshmen with Potential Transfer Credit

Students entering Washington College from high school who seek credit for courses taken at a college while still attending high school, or who were “dual-enrolled” at their high school and a college simultaneously, should have an official copy of their transcript sent to the Admissions Office as part of their admissions process. The Admissions Office will supply this transcript to the Registrar’s Office for an evaluation of potential transfer credits. Once the student matriculates, the Registrar’s Office will automatically post these credits and any equivalency granted toward distribution or major/minor requirements.

Academic credits earned abroad before matriculation at Washington College are evaluated on a case-by-case basis and may require the services of a course credit evaluation agency at the student’s expense.

Policy for Incoming Transfer Students

Transfers with an A.A. degree from community colleges with whom Washington College has a “Direct Transfer” agreement will be granted junior standing, but they must meet all Distribution (general education) and Major requirements at the College; the Registrar determines which requirements remain to be completed prior to the student’s matriculation at the College. A maximum of 72 credit hours can be accepted in transfer. Therefore, a minimum of 56 hours of credit must be taken at Washington College. Additionally, the last eight courses (or the equivalent of 32 credit hours) must be taken at Washington College or in a Washington College-administered program in order to meet minimum graduation standards. Exceptions to these rules can be granted on appeal to the Committee on Academic Standing and Advising.

Transfers from colleges with whom Washington College does not a have a “Direct Transfer” agreement, even though the students may hold an associate degree, will have their course work evaluated and will be granted appropriate standing according to total number of credit hours accepted.

Washington College maintains the following “Direct Transfer” agreements:

Anne Arundel Community College – A.A. in Liberal Arts or General Studies
Carroll Community College – A.A. from Honors Program
Chesapeake College – A.A. in Liberal Arts or General Studies
Howard Community College – A.A. from Rouse Scholars Honors Program
Prince Georges Community College – A.A. from Honors Academy
Montgomery College – A.A. in General Studies or Transfer Studies

Transfer students must meet the graduation requirements according to the Washington College Catalog that is current at the time they matriculate. All transfer students will be expected to adhere to all graduation requirements listed in the Catalog unless noted otherwise. Students applying to transfer to Washington College should request that an official transcript be sent to the Admissions Office for review as part of the admissions process. The Admissions Office will supply this transcript to the Registrar’s Office for an evaluation of potential transfer credits. Once the student matriculates, the Registrar’s Office will automatically post these credits and any equivalency granted toward distribution or major/minor requirements.

Procedures for Currently Matriculated Students

Students attempting to accelerate their education to graduate in less than four years must take care to accumulate the proper number of courses and credits required for graduation, which is generally 128 credit hours. For students planning to supplement their Washington College coursework with classes at another institution, where possible, they should take courses worth four credit hours, i.e. the equivalent of one Washington College course, so as not to deviate from the four-course system. However, if a student receives transfer credit for either one or two courses worth three credit hours, the student will be permitted to graduate after accumulating a minimum of either 127 or 126 credit hours (respectively).

Note: This policy is only in effect for students who began prior to the 2013 Catalog. All students entering on the 2013 Catalog or later must accumulate a minimum of 128 credit hours regardless of transfer credit applied to their WC transcript.

The procedure for obtaining transfer credit is as follows:

Download the Transfer Credit Request form (found on the Student Forms page of the Registrar’s site) or obtain a blank form in the Registrar’s Office.
Consult with the faculty advisor and secure pre-approval for the proposed course(s) from the relevant department chair(s). It may be necessary to provide a course description or syllabus for the course(s). Each department sets its own policies about whether to approve transfer credit for courses taught online or in other non-traditional formats.
Return the completed form to the Registrar prior to enrolling in the course(s).
Students may need to apply for admission to the other college or university where they want to take the transfer course(s). If needed, the Registrar’s Office at Washington College will write a “letter of good standing” to the other institution stating that the student has permission to take outside courses. To request this letter, complete an Enrollment Verification Request form (found on the Student Forms page of the Registrar’s site).
Upon completion of the course, the student should request an official transcript from the other college or university and have it sent directly to the Registrar’s Office at Washington College. The transfer credit and the course grade will not be posted on the student’s Washington College transcript until the Registrar’s Office has received both the signed Transfer Credit Request form and the official transcript from the other college or university.