Transfer Courses

Transferring Abroad Courses to your Muhlenberg Transcript:

Courses taken abroad will not transfer unless you had them pre-approved on the Transfer Course Authorization for Study Abroad form before you arrived at your host institution. (see instructions/policies below)

The Dean of Global Education must sign and approve your form with all its attachments. Our office will forward all the documentation to the Registrar after your transcript arrives.

Transfer Course Authorization Instructions:

First, after reviewing the list of courses available for the specific study abroad program and semester, students email the Muhlenberg College department chair or program director for approval of the specific courses the student wishes to count toward their major(s) or minor(s). Note: This should be a short list of 1-4 courses maximum that the student sends to the department chair/program director of the major/minor program; students should not send entire course listings to the chair or director of the major/minor program and ask them to review every course offered.  If a student has difficulty in selecting proposed courses to count toward a major/minor, the student should meet with the Office of Global Education for help in creating the short list of courses, which will then be reviewed by the department chair or program director of the major/minor. Students should ultimately send the email approval of the few selected courses, if approved by the department chair or program director of the major/minor program, to [email protected] to be placed in the students Transcript Credit Authorization (TCA) file.

Second, students meet with the dean of global education to complete their transcript credit authorization (TCA) form. During this meeting, the dean approves potential study abroad courses, including back-up options, for general academic requirements and free electives counting toward the Muhlenberg College degree, and adds the courses approved by the department chair/program director. Additional important documents and materials are completed during this meeting with the dean in preparation for the study abroad program, including review of accommodations for disabilities and other crucial preparation

Third, students register for the courses with the study abroad host institution or provider. If there are any discrepancies between courses for which students are able to register and courses approved in the TCA meeting, students must receive follow-up confirmation from the dean to ensure that any alternate courses will count for their Muhlenberg College degree. This can involve some dropping and adding of courses.

Fourth, this process is repeated until all courses are aligned and approved for 1) major or minor, 2) any general academic requirements, 3) free electives counting toward the Muhlenberg College degree.

Finally, after students return from their study abroad program, within a few months but sometimes up to six months later, the dean of global education receives the transcript from the host institution or provider or school of record. The dean and the registrar finalize the transcript credit authorization for the Muhlenberg College degree.

Transfer Course Authorization Policies:

Only courses for which a student has earned a "C-" or better will be considered for transfer to Muhlenberg. Courses in which a traditional letter grade (A-F) was not earned will be considered for transfer only if additional documentation - detailing successful completion - is provided.

• Grades earned in transferred courses will not be included in a student’s general Muhlenberg grade point average or for graduation honors.

• Remember to find out from someone in the administrative staff at your host institution how to request and pay for an official transcript of your study abroad semester.

• It is much easier to find out and pay for it while you are at the host institution. Before you come home, we recommend you purchase several copies to have in your possession for your future.

• You will need to provide them to any graduate school you apply to and for some of your future employment opportunities.

• They are very difficult to obtain on a timely basis once you are home.

Information about transferring courses to Muhlenberg:

• Students transfer their study abroad courses according to the policies stated in the Muhlenberg College Catalog.

• Courses abroad cannot be taken as Pass/Fail.

• Courses taken abroad will not transfer unless you had them pre-approved on the Transfer Course Authorization for Study Abroad form before you arrived at your host institution.

• Institutions abroad use different grading scales. All your grades will be converted to A through F for purposes of determin­ing if the course will count as credit toward graduation units earned.

• All other courses taken elsewhere must be transferred to Muhlenberg.

• Once courses have been transferred, they become part of the permanent record and cannot be removed.

• Many institutions may not use a course unit system similar to Muhlenberg's. For the purpose of all transfer transactions, the Muhlenberg course unit should be considered equivalent to 4 semester credit hours.

• No more than 16 transferred course units may contribute to the 34 course units required to earn a bachelor's degree at Muhlenberg.

• The College will accept no more than 5 course units for transfer during a traditional academic term (fall or spring), while 4 course units is the limit for any type of summer term.

• The College will accept no more than 10 course units for transfer during an entire traditional academic year.

• In all cases, Muhlenberg College can accept transfer courses only with an official academic transcript from a regionally accredited higher education institution where courses have been successfully completed.

• Additional information may be obtained in the Office of the Registrar.

• Your grades from abroad matter. Graduate schools, some employers, and Phi Beta Kappa will calculate your GPA including courses taken abroad.