Transfer Credit

Baylor University has established a number of policies that are designed to ensure the quality of courses transferred to Baylor for credit, assist students as they decide which courses to take, and clarify for advisors which courses students should select at Baylor and elsewhere.  The policies below are divided into two sections:

  1. general policies on transfer credit,
  2. policies specific to course work transferred to Baylor post matriculation (meaning after a student has enrolled at Baylor).

If students intend to take courses at another institution after matriculating at Baylor, they should select courses as similar as possible to what they would experience at Baylor.  Students also should not defer basic required courses in the expectation of taking courses elsewhere.  Students can best ensure that they will be prepared for subsequent courses at Baylor by completing foundational courses at Baylor as well.  However, the University recognizes that there are times when Baylor students need to complete some courses elsewhere.  To increase the likelihood that students will succeed in subsequent courses at Baylor and to ensure the quality of Baylor degrees, the University has established the stipulations below.

Transfer credit will only be granted for coursework taken at an appropriately accredited institution.  A transfer institution must maintain institutional accreditation through one of the seven regionally associated institutional accreditors.  All coursework that a student completes at another college or university is evaluated for equivalent transfer credits, not necessarily for degree requirements.  The student is responsible for working in conjunction with his or her advisor to determine if the equivalent course applies to a specific degree requirement.  In addition to working with an advisor, the student should refer to the Baylor University Undergraduate Catalog and/or the academic dean within the appropriate college or school for additional information on degree requirements.

Equivalent courses are determined based upon a review of the following course characteristics: course description, textbook, course objectives/learning outcomes, assignments, number of credit hours, course prerequisites, and program quality (determined based on a process designed by Institutional Research and Testing in consultation with the relevant department chair and the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and Institutional Effectiveness).  For more information, visit “Undergraduate Transfer Credit” which can be found on the Office of the Registrar home page at www.baylor.edu/registrar.

Students are responsible for adhering to the policies listed below. If a student fails to abide by these policies, he or she risks losing the proposed transfer credit.

General Policies on Transfer Credit

  1. A grade of “C”1 or better must be earned in all courses transferred to Baylor; this coursework does not alter the Baylor grade point average.  A grade of "C-" is not sufficient to meet this requirement and cannot be transferred to Baylor.
  2. A maximum of seventy (70) semester hours may be transferred from a community/junior college (with a maximum of 15 hours post-matriculation; see below).
  3. A minimum of sixty (60) semester hours must be earned in residence.  After a student* reaches senior classification (90 earned semester hours), all upper-division courses (3000- or 4000-level) must be taken in residence (or in a Baylor approved study abroad program).  *For a student enrolled in a program of study within the Hankamer School of Business, a senior may transfer 3000-level courses which fulfull requirements of the Professional Business Core.  
  4. No course at or above the “3000” level may be taken at a community/junior college, and no community/junior college course will be evaluated as an advanced course.
  5. In fall and spring semesters, course credit will not be given for courses taken at other colleges or universities if a student is concurrently enrolled at Baylor University.  During summer sessions, course credits can be earned at Baylor and other institutions as long as the total course load does not exceed 19 semester credit hours for the entire summer.  (The University strongly recommends against students being enrolled in greater than 8 hours simultaneously for a term(s) that is fewer than 8 weeks in duration.)
  6. Courses taken pass/fail1 will not be eligible for transfer.
  7. Baylor highly values oral and written communication.  The University believes that our required English courses provide students with the essential preparation they need to strengthen their writing abilities.
1

Given the unprecedented circumstances during the Spring 2020 semester as a result of the outbreak of COVID-19 and the resulting provisions implemented by many institutions to convert grading of coursework to Pass/Fail (or a similar grading basis), Baylor University will provide reasonable flexibility with its expectation that incoming transfer credit noted as “Pass,” “Satisfactory,” or a similar notation from Spring 2020 meet the normal criteria of an earned grade of C or better.

Policies Specific to Coursework Transferred to Baylor Post-matriculation

  1. After matriculation (meaning after a student has enrolled at Baylor), a student may transfer a maximum of fifteen (15) semester hours to Baylor for degree credit.
  2. After matriculation, a student may transfer a maximum of two (2) courses from any single course prefix (e.g., ENG, HIS, or SPA).
  3. Some departments may require students who transfer courses at the post-matriculation level from another institution to complete a Readiness Exam prior to beginning a subsequent course for which the transferred course is a prerequisite.  A Readiness Exam is only administered to students who have transferred in a prerequisite course and who have enrolled in a subsequent course within that discipline at Baylor.  The purpose of the exam is not to determine credit for a course taken at another college or university, but rather to provide students with information regarding their preparedness for the course they intend to take.
  4. Courses taken in residence may not be repeated at another school for degree credit.