Transfer coursework

Augustana has transfer initiatives for current students seeking to take courses over the summer, as well as resources for new students seeking to transfer to Augustana.

Transfer credit policy highlights

To be transferable, courses taken at another institution need not be exactly comparable to courses offered at Augustana, but should be in an academic program and at a level that is normally applicable to an Augustana liberal arts degree. Augustana transcripts include only a summary of credits accepted from other institutions in which the student earned a grade of C or higher. Transfer grades are not included in this summary, nor do they influence a student’s Augustana GPA. Please also see these helpful resources about transfer credits:

• Transfer Student Policies - policies for students who begin their studies as transfer students 
• Advanced Standing - transfer credits processes and procedures
• Pre-Enrollment Credit policies - how credit is applied for credit earned before Augustana
• Testing Credits policies - AP, IB and A-Level credit exams
• Credit Hour Policy - policies and procedures for how credits are earned
• Admissions for Transfer Students

A stricter criterion of comparability may be applied for a course to fulfill a general graduation requirement or a requirement for a major. Augustana does not accept coursework that is considered remedial in nature. 

Students may not transfer coursework if they have previously taken the courses at Augustana. See Course Repeat and Replacement and Advanced Standing for the policies and how to request a repeat of an Augustana course. 

For complete policies on transfer work visit the College Catalog.

Begin this process weeks, if not months, before the term you want to take a transfer course.

1. Talk with your advisor, to be sure transfer courses are necessary. Your Augustana tuition covers 34 credits per year, which is more credits than you need to complete a degree in four years. Your advisor can also help determine whether you need elective credit or a transfer course that satisfies a particular requirement.

2. Identify possible transfer courses using one of these online databases of courses Augustana has already reviewed:

   • Use the Transfer Evaluation System (TES) if you have a specific transfer college in mind and want to see all of its courses that Augustana has reviewed.
   • Use Transferology if you’re looking for a specific course and want to see all colleges that have a course Augustana considers equivalent.
   • Acadeum consortial and transfer courses are explained in more detail below. Most Augustana-approved Acadeum courses are also listed in TES and Transferology.

   Check the transfer college’s website for course dates and enrollment procedures. Augustana policy prohibits concurrent enrollment, meaning that Augustana students are not allowed to take transfer courses at the same time they’re taking Augustana courses.

3. Before enrolling in a transfer course, and to request evaluation of a course that isn’t yet listed in TES or Transferology, students must submit a Petition to Transfer Credit. An approved Petition ensures that the course will transfer as the student intends and is required before transfer work is applied to the student’s Augustana record.
   PLAN AHEAD! The Petition to Transfer Credit requires approval by the student’s advisor (or major department chair, when the college is closed) and the Registrar’s Office, as well as review by the Augustana department associated with the course content, if the course is not pre-approved. This process takes time, and students should submit the Petition to Transfer Credit weeks before the transfer course begins.
4. After completing the approved transfer course, the student must arrange to have an official transcript sent directly to Augustana from the other institution. Transcripts must be sent by mail or by official e-delivery. Augustana does not accept hand-delivered transcripts, including those sealed in an envelope. Please see the transcripts page for more information.  Students must send a transcript for every transfer course in which they enroll. Students may not pick and choose which courses are applied to their Augustana record.

Augustana is no longer a part of the Acadeum consortial program. Students may take courses taught by institutions who are part of Acadeum, but you will need to contact the institution directly about enrolling and transferring the course back to Augustana. 

• As with other transfer courses, students need to complete the petition to transfer credit form before enrolling, and ideally weeks before the start of the course, to allow sufficient processing time. 
• Students who wish to transfer coursework that falls in their final 12 credits toward the degree must also receive permission via a Petition to the Committee on Advanced Standing and Degrees. 
• Once a transfer course is completed, the student must arrange to have the official transcript sent directly to Augustana from the other institution according to the Office of the Registrar’s instructions for sending transcripts.
• Summer graduates: Any transfer courses must end in time for your transcript to be received by Augustana and processed by the summer graduation date posted to the Summer or Academic Calendar. 

As a receiving institution within the Illinois Articulation Initiative (IAI), Augustana will consider the six Learning Perspective (LP) requirements, the Quantitative (Q) requirement, and the first year sequence requirement (FYI 101 or FYH-101) fulfilled when a student transfers to Augustana having successfully completed the IAI’s General Education Package prior to initial enrollment at Augustana. 

Graduation requirements not automatically fulfilled by the IAI General Education Package include:

• Diversity Suffixes (D, G);
• LSC-300;
• Reasoned Examination of Faith (REF);  
• Health and Physical Education (PEA) activity requirement; and
• Second Language

However, individual credits and courses for all transfer students are evaluated on a case by case basis, so qualifying transfer courses may also be applied to the college-wide graduation requirements listed above as well as major requirements as Augustana policy allows.

While qualifying IAI students will have the above list of requirements noted as complete within their degree audit, courses that have earned a grade of “D” will not be placed on the student record as credit. Therefore, students should verify their classification (i.e. year in school as defined by credits) as they first enroll and determine how many credits they will need to earn while at Augustana to complete their intended program and the degree. Students should also consult the college’s additional transfer credit policies.

Other transfer agreements 

Augustana has several partnership agreements with community colleges. This option is only available to students who begin their studies at Augustana as a transfer student. Please visit our Transfer Student and Policies webpage for more information. 

New transfer students who have questions should see Transferring to Augustana. Students seeking information about transfer coursework should work directly with Rachel Gustafson, associate director of admissions and transfer enrollment.