Procedures for Transfer of Academic Credit

Official Transcripts:

Applicants must arrange for official college transcripts to be forwarded from previously attended colleges and universities to Application Processing, University of Maine System, P.O. Box 412, Bangor, ME 04402-0412. Veterans must submit a Joint Services transcript or Form DD295.

Current degree-seeking University of Maine students who have taken a course or courses at another institution should have that institution send an official transcript to the Office of Student Records, 5781 Wingate Hall, Orono, ME 04469.

Current degree-seeking students who have taken courses at other UMS institutions will be identified 35 days after the last day of finals and the courses will be automatically applied as transfer credit to their academic record at the University of Maine. It will be the responsibility of the student to notify the Office of Student Records if subsequent grade changes require the original credit to be reevaluated. Students who are not receiving federal financial aid or VA benefits may opt out of this automated transfer credit processing by completing the Internal Transfer Credit Opt Out form and filing it with the Office of Student Records before the last day of classes.

Transfer Credits:

Academic work must be completed with grades of “C-” or better at regionally accredited institutions of higher education to be accepted towards meeting the requirements of a University of Maine baccalaureate degree. Some courses may not transfer because a particular course is not applicable to any UMaine program of study (with the exception of courses within the University of Maine System) or is not normally associated with a bachelor’s degree. Credit will not be awarded for other institutionally based exams. The Office of Student Records maintains a transfer equivalency database of courses that are offered at some institutions that are transferable to the UMaine.

Grades and GPA: Grades earned in courses from other institutions, including any other University of Maine System institution, will appear on the student’s transcript; however they will NOT be calculated into the student’s GPA.

Repeated Courses: Courses taken at another institution may transfer to meet a requirement but will not replace the low grade of a course taken at the University of Maine. To replace a grade for such a course, the course must be repeated at UMaine. More information on the Repeat Policy can be under the Grades and Grading section of the catalog.

Domestic Study Away: Current students should complete a Domestic Study Away form to insure that the transfer credit will apply toward completion of their degree. Students who are applying for financial aid must complete a Domestic Study Away form available on the Office of Student Records website: http://studentrecords.umaine.edu/forms/

Pass/Fail Courses: Pass-fail courses taken outside the University Maine System (UMS) must have “pass” defined as a C- or higher in order to transfer. Pass/fail courses can only be used as a general elective.

*A Special Exception was approved by the UMS Board of Trustees to accept grades under the Pass/Fail grading category for general education requirements for the Spring 2020 term and Academic Years 2020/2021 and 2021/2022. This includes Pass and Low Pass Grades which may or may not be defined.

Residency Requirement: Refer to the Degree/Graduation Requirements section of the catalog.

Time Limitations of Course Work: Some subject areas have changes dramatically over time. Courses over ten years old will be subject to additional review to determine if they are in fields where there have been significant changes making the material outdated. Those courses that are determined to be missing important new material will be excluded from transfer.

General Education Courses: All students are also required to pass English 101 or an approved equivalent with a grade of C or better, and to complete the University of Maine’s general education requirements. Note: Students who have previously earned a bachelor’s degree from an regionally accredited institution are exempt from the general education requirements except specific courses required by the major (i.e. writing in the major and capstone). Transferred courses that have direct UMaine equivalents fulfill the same general education categories as their UMaine counterparts, except for “writing intensive” courses. Students who wish to may request approval of transferred courses for meeting the writing intensive requirement by contacting the English Department. Transferred courses that do not have exact UMaine equivalents, but are accepted for elective credit, may meet general education requirements. The determination will be made by the Office of Student Records. If the course title and description are insufficient to make the determination, the Office of Student Records will request further materials from the student.

Substitutions/Waivers: Exceptions to equivalencies (different equivalents, waivers of curricular requirements based on transfer credit, or assessment of student learning outcomes, or limitations on transfer credit applied to degree requirements) may be allowed and recorded at the college or department level, but will not appear on the official evaluation or University of Maine transcript.

Credit from International Institutions: The University of Maine accepts credit from international institutions, both for international students and for domestic students participating in study abroad programs. Academic transcripts submitted to the Office of International Programs for evaluation must be certified original documents. Documents in a language other than English must be accompanied by an certified English translation. The Office of International Programs may request that a student completes an external credential evaluation through an accredited agency in order for UMaine to accept the transfer credits. UMaine awards credit to students who have earned the International Baccalaureate diploma, Cambridge Advanced and other international tests. Contact the Office of International Programs in 300 Stodder Hall, (207) 581-3437, international@maine.edu for information or visit https://umaine.edu/international/transfer_credit/

Prior Learning Credit/Internal Credit by Examination: Matriculated students may be awarded credit for prior learning for subjects comparable or equivalent to University of Maine courses. Departments conduct reviews of prior learning at their discretion. Students seeking a review should contact their dean’s office. Prior learning is evaluated and credit is awarded through a portfolio review or an exam. The department will assess a $50 review fee that will be charged to the student’s account through the Bursar’s Office. No more than fifteen (15) credit hours may be earned through portfolio review.

Select departments, including the Dept. of Modern Languages & Classics and the Dept. of English, evaluate prior learning through exams. Interested students should contact the appropriate department for information about available exams and any applicable fees.

The University of Maine awards credit for successful certification of a Foreign Language when a student achieves the Seal of Biliteracy. The Seal of Biliteracy Credit Table outlines the course equivalents for the certification.

External Credit by Examination: CLEP (see College Level Examination Program Table chart) and AP exams (see Advanced Placement Credit Table chart) are accepted for credit as national examinations (for University policy regarding these exams, see the Admission section of this catalog). CLEP exams are administered through College Success Programs (East Annex Building). In addition to a fee paid directly to CLEP, College Success Programs assesses a $30 fee that will be charged to the student’s account through the Bursar’s Office. No more than fifteen (15) credit hours may be earned through CLEP/DSST exams.

For students seeking English credit: The Dept. of English assesses a $50 review fee for its evaluation of CLEP essays.

Students who have already taken an exam must request an official score report to be sent directly from The College Board to the Office of Student Records. External credit exams may not be substituted for certain courses in the academic major. The number of credits students may earn through these exams varies.

Military Credit: Students should submit a copy of their Joint Services transcript to be evaluated. Credit for military work will be evaluated based on recommendations of the American Council on Education (ACE) and will correspond to subject areas offered at the University of Maine. Only courses recommended at the upper or lower baccalaureate level will be considered for transfer credit. A maximum of 15 credits will be allowed as military transfer credit (not including prior experiential learning and credit for standardized tests) and the courses will count as elective credit only unless an exception is made. The process for an exception is as follows: the student should contact his or her college or school Associate Dean who will forward the material to the appropriate department chair, unit director, or faculty member who will make the appropriate decision.

Credit for military experience: credit for learning due to duties or a position in the military is considered prior learning and will be considered in the same way as other prior experiential learning. See subsection “Prior Learning Credit” in this section.

Physical Education and Emergency Medical Technician Courses and First Year Seminars: Physical Education skills classes will be limited to a total of eight credit hours. Participation in varsity athletics will not transfer. Emergency Medical Technician courses will be limited to nine total transfer credit hours. First year seminar type courses will be limited to three credit hours. Although credit hours transfer to the university, it is up to the discretion of your Academic Unit to determine how many course hours are utilized in your degree program.

Evaluation: An official evaluation of transfer credit will be completed after admission to the University and will be available in the Student Center. This evaluation will show course equivalencies, free electives and if a course meets a general education requirement. How this information fits into the student’s degree program is up to the discretion of the department that houses the major. Students that do not agree with an evaluation of their courses may submit a syllabus used for the course to the Office of Student Records. The syllabus should be attached to a statement in writing defining which course or courses they feel were evaluated inaccurately. The Office of Student Records will review the appeal with a representative from the appropriate college and can be sent to um.transfer@maine.edu.

Non-Degree Students: Transfer credit evaluations are not performed for non-degree students.