Undergraduate Transfer Credit

Stanford University may grant transfer credit for work completed at regionally accredited institutions or internationally recognized colleges and universities. No more than 45 (90 for transfer students) quarter units of credit for external work may be counted toward a Stanford bachelor's degree.

Policy Statement

In conjunction with appropriate review bodies, the Office of the University Registrar evaluates and records the amount of transfer credit and external test credit an undergraduate can apply toward graduation requirements. Stanford awards credit based on coursework completed at U.S. colleges or universities accredited by a regional accrediting association; or coursework completed at international degree-granting colleges or universities of recognized standing, or exams taken during secondary education where the curriculum is evaluated to be college-level equivalency, such as AP exams, International Baccalaureate, and GCE among others.

No more than 45 (90 for transfer students) quarter units of credit for work done elsewhere (including external test credit) may be counted toward a bachelor's degree at Stanford.

Credit is officially allowed only after the student has been unconditionally admitted to Stanford. In order for transfer credit to be awarded, students must submit an official transcript that clearly indicates all of the below information for each course:

• Course codes/numbers
• Course titles or descriptions
• Final grades earned
• Course credits earned

Once credit has been posted it cannot be removed from the student record.

Eligibility of Credit for Transfer

• Credit from another institution may be transferred for courses that are substantially equivalent to those offered at Stanford University at the undergraduate level, subject to the approval of the credit evaluator. A maximum of 20 quarter units may represent courses that do not parallel specific undergraduate courses at Stanford, subject to the credit evaluator's approval as to quality and suitability.
• Coursework cannot duplicate, overlap, or regress previous work.
• Transfer coursework cannot count towards secondary school diploma and/or graduation requirements.
• Credit is allowed at Stanford for work graded 'C-' (or better) or 'Pass' (where 'Pass' is equivalent to a letter grade of 'C-' or above), but not for work graded 'D' or below.
• Credit earned in extension, correspondence, and online courses is transferable only if the university offering the courses allows that credit toward its own bachelor's degree. Online and independent study courses are not eligible for Ways credit.
• Credit may be granted for work completed at institutions in the U.S. only if accredited by a U.S. Department of Education recognized accreditor.
  • Credit is allowed for work completed at institutions in the U.S. only based on an official transcript received by the Registrar at Stanford directly from the institution where the credit was earned.
  • Credit earned in military training and service is eligible for transfer credit to Stanford if completed at an accredited college or university in the U.S. or must appear on an official ACE-evaluated Joint Services Transcript (JST).

  Applying Transfer Credit to the Baccalaureate Degree

  • For students interested in fulfilling a Ways of Thinking/Ways of Doing (Ways) breadth requirement through transfer work, a transfer course evaluation must be submitted to confirm if the course will meet the Ways criteria. Requests for fulfilling Ways requirements through transfer require pre-approval before course enrollment, and the pre-approval requests must be submitted before the term in which students intend to enroll in the transfer course and as defined on the Ways transfer page. Courses must be taken for a minimum of 3 quarter units (except Creative Expression) and must be taken for a letter grade.
  • For incoming transfer students, a proportion of their Ways requirement must be fulfilled at Stanford based on the number of qualified transfer units awarded at matriculation. Students must complete a number of Ways courses to fulfill the Ways requirement as outlined on the Ways Incoming Transfer page.
  • Transfer work can be used to satisfy a department major or minor requirement. Students should consult with their degree program about transfer credit policies/procedures.
  • The credit allowed at Stanford for one quarter's work may not exceed the number of units that would have been permissible for one quarter if the work had been done at Stanford; for work done under a system other than the quarter system, the permissible maximum units are calculated at an appropriate ratio of equivalence (i.e. is converted into quarter units).