Policy Rationale
Vermont State University (VTSU) recognizes that students have diverse credit-bearing academic experiences that are applicable to their successful VTSU plan of study and degree completion.
Students should have seamless transfer from Community College of Vermont (CCV).
Students studying at an accredited institution should not need to retake VTSU-equivalent courses if the student has met the policy distinctions. Current students may, at times, choose to take a course or two at another accredited institution, such as at a college closer to home during the summer. As long as the credits are in accordance with the policy, these credits will be considered for transfer credit .
Policy
Transfer of Prior Credit for Incoming Students
VTSU requires transfer students to request that their official transcript(s) from regionally-accredited higher education institution(s) be sent to the VTSU Registrar’s Office for transfer evaluation.
VTSU will accept credit from other colleges and universities under the following conditions:
- An official transcript is provided from the institution that granted the credit.
- Credit from regionally accredited higher education institutions will be accepted if grades are C- or better; in a sequence of inter-related courses, if the first course is passed with a grade below C- but the second grade is C- or higher, both courses will be accepted. Some VTSU academic programs have higher minimum grade requirements which may impact the transferability of courses.
- Grades of “P” will not be accepted unless the institution’s transcript key clearly indicates the corresponding letter grade range. Some academic programs have higher minimum grade requirements which may impact the transferability of courses.
- Up to 90 transfer credits will be accepted for baccalaureate level programs and up to 45 credits for associate degree programs.
- Credits applied to a previously earned degree will be accepted as transfer credit.
- Consortium agreements, contractual agreements, and specific program requirements may specify transfer arrangements which supersede the criteria listed above.
- Students will need to submit an evaluation completed by an approved international credit evaluation service when the courses were completed at an institution outside the United States.
The grades associated with approved transfer credits (except those grades from CCV) are not included when calculating students’ VTSU Grade Point Averages (GPAs). CCV grades are included when calculating students’ GPAs at VTSU.
There is no guarantee that transfers credits will meet specific major or program requirements at VTSU. Transfer credits may be applied toward overall credit earnings even if they do not fulfill degree or general education requirements.
Courses for which transfer credit has been granted cannot be repeated for duplicated credit, per the Repeating Courses policy.
If a transfer student has been awarded a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited higher education institution, their VTSU general education requirements will be noted as complete in their program evaluation.
CCV transfer students who have been awarded a CCV associate degree will have met the VTSU general education requirements.
Vermont State University awards advanced standing and/or academic credit to qualified students who have successfully completed certain nationally recognized examinations. These other forms of external credit include the College Board’s Advanced Placement (AP) and College Level Examination Programs (CLEP), the U.S. military’s DANTES Subject Standardized Tests (DSST) Program, and other examinations. Students who achieve a score of 3 or better on Advanced Placement (AP) exams, a score of 50 or better on College Level Examination Programs (CLEP) exams, or a score of 400 or better on Dantes Subject Standardized Tests (DSST) will be eligible for college credit utilizing the recommended semester hours outlined by the American Council on Education (ACE) as the minimum. For International Baccalaureate (IB) exams, credit will be awarded by the Registrar on a course-by-course basis for higher-level exams completed with a score of 5 or higher with a maximum award of 24 credits. Program Coordinators and/or Department Chairs may determine, on a case-by-case basis, whether and how credits earned through CLEP, DSST, AP, and IB exams may fulfill core program requirements. VTSU will accept transfer credits for other forms of external credit at the same value as CCV for CCV-VTSU Pathways transfer students.
Currently matriculated VTSU students are required to obtain pre-approval prior to taking courses for which they are seeking transfer credit unless they are taking courses at CCV. Courses taken at CCV are not considered transfer credit.
Procedures
Transfer Credit Pre-Approval for Matriculated Students
- Identify whether there is or is not a direct course equivalency for a course:
- Check the VTSU transfer equivalency list website. If a direct equivalency for a specific course at VTSU already exists, pre-approval for transfer credit is considered granted.
- If the course is not listed on the VTSU transfer equivalency website, students should email the VTSU Registrar’s Office (transfercredits@vermontstate.edu) with information from the potential transfer school’s Catalog including the course number, course title, and course description. The Registrar’s Office will determine whether or not a direct equivalency exists for a VTSU course.
- If a course does not have a direct transfer equivalency (Step 1), students must receive approval for a substitution from their faculty advisor, who will fill out the Request for Exemption/Substitution of Program Requirements Form on behalf of the student.
Responsibilities
Incoming Students:
- Request transcripts be sent to VTSU if not already submitted through the admissions process. Transcripts from CCV do not need to be separately sent.
- International students who plan to transfer international credits must submit their official transcript(s) from international higher education institution(s) to one of the NACES foreign credential evaluation services and then submit those to the VTSU Registrar’s Office for official transfer request.
Current Students:
- Receive prior approval before taking a course or courses outside of VTSU or CCV to be sure the credits will transfer and meet the desired program requirements.
Related Documents and Forms
International Students: Evaluated, translated transcripts
Request for Exemption/Substitution of Program Requirements Form
VTSU Transfer Equivalency List
Related Policies
Course Substitution, Course Waiver, Portfolio Courses for Prior Learning & Course Challenge
Repeating Courses
Semester & Cumulative Grade Point Averages
Vermont State Colleges Policy 108 Transfer of Credit
Vermont State Colleges Policy 111 Academic Data Management Policy
Vermont State Colleges Policy 106 General Education
Date of Last Approved Revision: May 2025
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