Student Exchange Program UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO TRANSFER CREDIT HANDBOOK

UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO
Centre for International Experience
Student Exchange Program
TRANSFER CREDIT HANDBOOK
for
Faculty of Arts & Science
Exchange Students
At ________________________________ ,
(my host institution)
I need to take ____________ credits/courses in
order to get a full 5.0 U of T transfer credits.
table of contents
general information ………………………..………….3
a full course load…………………………………….…5
rules and regulations……………………………….…6
before you go ……………………………….……….…9
how to calculate credit weights……………...10
where to take it………………………………….11
types of credits possible………………..…….13
while you’re away………………………….……….…14
requesting transfer credit…...………….……….…..15
host institution transcript.……….……….…………15
the transfer credit process.……….……….………..16
the assessment itself.……….…………………...…..17
frequently made “math” mistakes…………...…....18
appealing the assessment…………...……………..19
frequently asked questions……………………..…..20
notes (blank)……………………………………....…..22
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We advise all students to begin this process as
early as possible.
Please note that, unless otherwise directed, you
should only be in contact with the Student
Exchange Program (SEP) when dealing with credit
transfer issues.
Important: Studying at another institution does bring a
degree of academic risk.
We will do our best to see that you receive a fair
assessment, but we cannot guarantee that the
courses you choose will receive full credit. If you are
not willing to accept this, then it may be best if you do
not participate in an exchange or study elsewhere
program.
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general information
The transfer credit process is the procedure for
assessing courses taken elsewhere as University of
Toronto equivalents.
The role of the SEP is to facilitate the credit transfer
process, which we do by advising and representing
students, maintaining all records, and interacting with
departments on the students’ behalf.
The SEP is also responsible for ensuring that all
requests for credit transfer are assessed fairly and in
accordance with the policies and regulations of the
University of Toronto Mississauga.
Decisions regarding the specific U of T Mississauga
credits that you will receive are made by
representatives of the appropriate academic
department at U of T Mississauga, never by the SEP.
However, the SEP (not any academic department) is
responsible for determining credit weight, based on
the weightings of the courses taken at the host
institution.
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a full course load
Unless otherwise specified, you will be paying for 2.5
U of T tuition fees per term (Fall/Winter), or 1.0 credits
for the summer (plus incidental fees).
In order to receive the corresponding number of
transfer credit, you must complete the equivalent “full
course load” at the host institution. This does not refer
to the minimum full course load at an institution.
A full course load is calculated by dividing the total
number of credits/courses required for a degree by the
number of years normally required to complete the
degree. A 4-year BA at U of T requires 20 credits, and
so a full course load for one year is 5.0 credits (even
though 3.0 is officially a full-time load).
For example, at the University of Nottingham, a 3-year
Bachelor’s degree requires 360 credits. Therefore a
full course load for one year, for transfer credit
purposes, is 120 credits (even though 100 or 110
credits is still considered by Nottingham to be a fulltime load).
A list of full course loads for our exchange partners is
available at:
https://sites.studentlife.utoronto.ca/opportu
nity/Studenthome/login
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rules and regulations
1. You are allowed to transfer up to a maximum of
2.5 full-course equivalents (FCE) per term for
the Fall and Winter terms, and 1.5 FCE for the
summer term. Exchange students can accumulate
an overall total of 7.5 transfer credits towards their
U of T degree. However, if you have received
transfer credits in the past (for example, upon
admission to UTM or on Letters of Permission),
restrictions may apply. U of T Mississauga
students are eligible for a maximum of 10.0
transfer credit throughout their entire university
career. Please consult with an Academic Advisor
within the UTM Office of the Registrar for more
information.
2. If you take less than a full course load, then you
will receive the corresponding percentage of a full
load at U of T (rounded down to the closest 0.5
FCE).
3. Transfer credits are not automatically assessed.
You must notify the UTM Transfer Credit Office via
email ([email protected]) that you have
completed your exchange studies and submit all
supporting documents (e.g., official transcript,
detailed course outlines, any pre-departure course
authorizations forms UTM academic departments
had completed for you) for the process to begin.
4. Only courses in which you achieve a passing
grade will be eligible for transfer credit (note:
numerical or letter grades must be listed on the
transcript; UTM does not award credit for courses
graded on a pass/fail system). Failed courses will
not be displayed on your U of T transcript, but will
be displayed on the host institution’s transcript.
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5. Courses that are assessed only on the basis of
attendance are not transferable.
6. Final grades for transfer credit do not appear on
your academic record, and are not included in your
Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA).
7. Transfer credits count towards the completion of
degree requirements, but not necessarily
completion of program requirements. You are
responsible for confirming program requirements
with the relevant program office, department, or
college.
8. Students studying through a CIE program are not
bound by the rule restricting them to a maximum of
one 300/400-level transfer credit. It is possible to
have all of your credits transferred at the 300/400level and count as upper-year courses towards
your degree.
9. When selecting courses at the host institution,
please keep in mind that no more than 6.0 100level credits may be used towards the completion
of your U of T degree, as stated in the “Degree
Requirements” section of the U of T Mississauga
Calendar.
10. For students attending a European institution at
which the ECTS system is used, 60 ECTS credits
is always equal to 5.0 U of T credits, regardless of
any additional credit system the school may use.
11. You should not take courses at the host institution
for which you would not normally be eligible at U of
T. For example, only students registered in a U of
T Commerce or Management program may
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receive credit for business courses (MGT or
MGM).
12. You cannot receive credit for courses that would
have no equivalent department or faculty at U of T.
e.g. journalism
13. You must ensure that official transcripts are sent to
the SEP at the CIE directly from the host
institution. In the case of German scheine, please
bring originals to our office.
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before you go
Before departing, students often want a guarantee of
what transfer credits they will receive upon their
return. A full guarantee is not possible - studying at
another institution brings a degree of academic risk.
However, much of this risk can be reduced through
the use of the Pre-Departure Course Authorization
process.
You can use either a template email or the PreDeparture Course Authorization form to have your
courses pre-approved. These are available on the
UTM International Centre’s website:
https://www.utm.utoronto.ca/international/outboundopportunities/outbound-exchange
This links directly to the current form:
https://www.utm.utoronto.ca/international/sites/files/int
ernational/public/shared/PreDeparture%20Course%20Authorisation%20Form_Feb
2014_2.pdf
This represents the first step in the process of
obtaining transfer credit for the courses you will take
elsewhere. To complete this, you need to know:
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how to calculate course credit weights…
To determine the approximate equivalent weight of a
particular course, you first need to know how many
credits at the host university equal a full load at U of T.
This information is available on your nomination letter,
as well as from the SEP website:
http://www.cie.utoronto.ca/Exchange-Programs/ExchangeInstitutions/Partner-Institutions.htm
Note that in most cases the weight of the other
school’s courses will not be identical to either a halfcredit or a full-credit at U of T, so you must select the
closest value, rounding up or down.

Individual credits can be rounded up when they
are worth more than ½ of an H-credit (e.g. 0.26)
 Individual credits MUST be rounded down when
they are worth exactly ½ or less of an H-credit
(e.g. 0.25)
The calculation is as follows:
host course weight
x 5.0 (full U of T load) = equivalent U of T
full load at host school
credit weight
Examples:
1• A full course load for one year at the University of
Nottingham is 120 credits.
-A 20-credit course would be equivalent to 0.833 U of
T credits (20/120*5).
-On your form you would indicate 1.0 as the U of T
credit value (not 0.5).
2• A full course load at the University of Auckland for
one year is 14 points.
-A 2-point course would be equivalent to 0.71 U of T
credits (2/14*5).
-On your form you would indicate 0.5 as the U of T
credit value (not 1.0).
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where to take it…
You need to send this to department that would teach
the course if it were offered at U of T. You can find the
full listing of the Transfer credit contacts for each
department on the PORTAL.
Take the Pre-Departure Course Authorization Form
or send the completed template email along with
copies of your host institution’s course descriptions
(from their website or calendar), to the appropriate
academic department(s). You need to do this
separately for each department. Not all programs
teach or grant credit themselves, so it is important to
think of the 3-letter departmental indicator that you
would like at the beginning of your transfer credit.
For example: Int’l Relations is a program, but the
POSt is made up of HIS, POL & ECO.
When signed or replied to by the appropriate
departmental representative, the form or email
provides the security of what transfer credit you will
likely receive. The only reasons why you might NOT
received the credit from the Pre-Departure Course
Authorization is:
 You did not pass the course (see rule #4)
 The rounding/calculation of a course’s credit
weight is incorrect (the SEP determines credit
weight)
 There is a discrepancy between the course
code/title assessed by the department and the
course code/title that appears on the transcript
 The course material is significantly different
from what had been assessed
 You appeal the decision
Make sure that the UTM International Education
Centre has copies of all of these pre-departure
approvals, and that you keep copies for your records.
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You can also check Transfer Explorer to see if the
course has previously been previously assessed. The
exchange office can grant the same transfer credit for
the same course as far back 5 years.
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types of credits possible…
A department may assign a variety of credit-types to a
course taken abroad. Each type of assigned credit
may be used to fulfill Degree or Subject POSt
requirements:
Exact equivalents:
e.g. ANT200Y: material, level, weight must be the
same as U of T
You may NOT take this course in the future, nor
should you have already completed this course, any
other course that has this exclusion, nor have received
a transfer credit for it.
Generic credit with exclusion:
e.g. ANT3**H (exclusion: ANT200Y): material should
be similar or overlapping a U of T course
If an exclusion is listed you may NOT take this course
in the future, nor should you have already completed
this course, any other course that has this exclusion,
nor have received a transfer credit for it.
Generic credit, no exclusion:
e.g. ANT3**H: doesn’t overlap with any U of T course
No credit OR N/A – you should find out what this
means!
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while you’re away
It is very likely that after you have arrived in your new
host country you will want to enroll in courses that, for
whatever reason, you did not include on a predeparture authorization form.
You should still attempt to get approval from the
relevant department(s). If possible, you may email a
copy of the authorization form to each department
representative, or you may simply correspond with the
representative by email.
You can find the full listing of Transfer Credit contacts
for each department, as well as the Pre-Departure
Course Authorization Form on the PORTAL.
You can find contact information for UTM department
contacts in the U of T directory:
http://directory.utoronto.ca/phonebook/pages/admin/m
ain.xhtml
If you do get departmental approval for these courses,
make sure that the UTM International Education
Centre receives a copy. Without this approval, you
may discover on your return that the course is not
eligible for transfer credit.
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requesting transfer credit
You may initiate your transfer credit assessment
during the final academic term of your exchange. To
do so, notify the UTM Transfer Credit Office via email
([email protected]) that you are completing
your exchange studies and submit all supporting
documents (e.g., official transcript, detailed course
outlines, any pre-departure course authorizations
forms UTM academic departments had completed for
you) for the process to begin.
Note that you must retain all of your notes and graded
work for each course, in case these are requested by
the department(s) doing your assessment. A
department also has the right to request an interview
with you as part of this process.
host institution transcript
Be sure to arrange to have an official copy of the
transcript from your studies elsewhere sent directly
by the host institution to the SEP at the CIE. We
cannot accept photocopies or transcripts sent to us by
students. We cannot complete the transfer credit
assessment until we receive an official transcript.
The mailing address is:
Student Exchange Program Office
Centre for International Experience
University of Toronto
33 St. George St., Room 209
Toronto, ON, M5S 2E3
CANADA
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the transfer credit process
The assessment process may take up to 8 weeks to
complete once we receive ALL your documents.
This includes your emailed request to initiate your
assessment. In general this means that if you are
studying elsewhere during the winter term you will
NOT receive your assessment before it is time to
choose your U of T courses for the following year. You
will have to make these choices based entirely on the
advice of the relevant departments or program offices.
Also be aware that if you are studying elsewhere
during the winter term you will NOT be able to
graduate in June of that year. The earliest that you
may graduate is November, provided that you email
your request to initiate your assessment and all
course materials as soon as possible, and that we
receive your transcript on time.
In all cases it is best for you to request your transfer
credit assessment as soon as possible. Because
many students will be making the same request, the
later you wait the longer the process will likely take,
because all requests are handled in the order that we
receive them.
The outcome of your transfer credit assessment will
be sent directly to you via email. You are advised to
keep a copy of this assessment for future reference.
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the assessment itself
Your transfer credit assessment will come in the form
of a PDF letter and any transfer credits awarded to
you will appear on ROSI (with no grades associated
with the equivalencies; simply credit weights).
Transfer credits are listed at the very beginning of your
U of T Academic Record or Transcript, NOT in the
semester or year that you were abroad.
 Exact equivalent credits will be displayed with
the U of T course title.
 Generic equivalent credits will be displayed with
the appropriate distribution. See UTM’s
Academic Calendar for information about
distribution requirements:
http://student.utm.utoronto.ca/calendar/calendar
_detail2.pl?Topic=Distribution%20Requirements
 Exclusions are not visible to you on your ROSI
record, but are visible to you in Degree Explorer.
They are also visible to your College & Faculty
(as shaded below).
Crs Code Title
ITA100Y1 Introduction to Italian I
Transfer Credit - Equivalent
SEP - Univ of Ulm (Germany) (2006S)
Wgt
1.00
HIS243H1
0.00
Transfer Credit - Exclusion
HIS251Y1
0.00
Transfer Credit - Exclusion
Transfer Credit – Equivalent
0.50
From Reformation to Enlightenment
SEP - Univ College, London (England)(2007-8)
Credits Earned: 1.50
HIS3***
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frequently made “math” mistakes
In an earlier section, it was explained how
corresponding credit values between your host
institution and U of T are calculated. So, you know that
you must complete a “full course load” at your host
institution in order to receive a full 2.5 U of T transfer
credits per semester.
You’ll want to be very careful in the way that you think
about what is considered a “full year” course. In some
cases, courses offered at our partner institutions that
last for a full academic year are not considered to be
equivalent to a U of T “Y” (1.0) credit. It all depends on
the weighting of each course.
For example, a full course load at Nottingham is 60
credits for one semester. Because many of their
courses are valued at 20 credits each, you might think
to yourself: “I’ll take three semester-long courses” (3 x
20 = 60). The mistake occurs when you assume that
this will translate into 3.0 U of T credits. That’s wrong.
You are taking 60 Nottingham credits, which is exactly
half of a “full course load” (120) and so the equivalent
is actually 2.5 U of T credits, not 3.0.
Now add to this the complexity of a situation where
you have taken a mix of 3 courses from three different
academic disciplines. How are the individual courses
valued, since they are all 20 Nottingham credits each?
How do you go from three Nottingham courses to 2.5
U of T credits? Keep in mind that you are not entitled
to three 1.0 credits, because if you look at the “math”
carefully you’ll realize that each Nottingham course is
equivalent to less than 1.0 U of T credits – 0.83
actually.
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Situations like this, where the “math” is complicated,
need to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. An
advantage to studying abroad through the SEP is that
you can discuss the breakdown of the 2.5 credits with
us, and we will try our best to suit the outcome to your
academic needs.
appealing the assessment
What can I do if I am not satisfied with the transfer
credit assessment that I receive?
If you are not satisfied with the nature of an assessed
credit, there is an appeal process.
You should provide the UTM Transfer Credit Office
with a formal letter outlining the academic reasons that
you believe the course(s) should have been assessed
in a different way as well as any relevant supporting
documentation you choose to submit. The Transfer
Credit Office will then discuss the matter with the
relevant departmental assessor, who may choose to
alter their original assessment.
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frequently asked questions
Qu.1 – Can the process of transferring credits be
started while I am away on exchange? For
example, in the second term, for the work I
completed in the first term…
Answer: After the last date to drop courses at the host
university has passed in your 2nd semester, you can
send us your detailed course outlines and initiate your
transfer credit assessment. We can begin the credit
assessment process, however we will not be able to
finalize the process until we receive an official
transcript from your host institution.
Qu.2 – What information do I need to provide for
the credit assessment?
Answer: Please see the section titled “requesting
transfer credit” in this pamphlet.
Qu.3 – What if I didn’t receive course syllabi from
my professors at the host institution?
Answer: You should attempt to get an official syllabus
from the university before you return to U of T. IF this
proves impossible, you can create your own detailed
summary of the course content signed by the
professor of the course. As usual, we need to know:
 summary of the topics covered
 text(s) used
 method of assessment
 hours and type of instruction
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Qu.4 – Do I need to request a transcript from my
host institution?
Answer: Yes, you should ask the host institution to
send an official copy of your transcript directly to the
SEP at the CIE. In the case of Germany, you should
bring us your original scheine.
Qu.5 – Do the marks from the courses I took while
on exchange appear on ROSI and my U of T
transcript?
Answer: No, the marks from your exchange courses
do not appear on your transcript and are not factored
into your U of T GPA.
Qu.6 – I already have transfer credits from high
school or another university, is that a problem?
Answer: Be sure to carefully read the section titled
“rules and regulations” in this pamphlet. Exchange
students can accumulate an overall total of 7.5
transfer credits towards their U of T degree. However,
if you have received transfer credits in the past (for
example, upon admission to UTM or on Letters of
Permission), restrictions may apply. U of T
Mississauga students are eligible for a maximum of
10.0 transfer credit throughout their entire university
career. Please consult with an Academic Advisor
within the UTM Office of the Registrar for more
information.
Qu.7 – What is a generic transfer credit? Is that
bad for fulfilling my program requirements?
Answer: Generic transfer credits come in two forms:
Departmental (e.g. HIS2**H) and “General Area” (e.g.
HUM2**H). Both types may be used to fulfill program
requirements, but as with all transfer credits, you
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should consult with an academic advisor in the UTM
Office of the Registrar or departmental program
Advisor for more individual counseling.
Qu.8 – How does this affect graduate school
applications? Won’t they need an official copy of
my transcript from the host institution?
Answer: As long as the SEP at the CIE has an official
copy of your host school transcript in our files, you can
request that we make certified photocopies that can
be used to apply for graduate school. Please note that
it may take a week or two to process this request.
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notes
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More Questions?
Contact Us:
Student Exchange Program at the
Centre for International Experience
University of Toronto
33 St. George Street, Room 209
Toronto, ON, M5S 2J7
CANADA
tel: +1 416-978-1800
Office hours: Monday-Friday 9am - 5:00pm
Have questions? Please visit our website:
www.cie.utoronto.ca
[email protected]
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