Undergraduate Transfer Admissions

A student who has been attending another institution of higher education and wishes to transfer to IUP must submit an application, official transcripts of all postsecondary educational work, and an official high school transcript. All admissions decisions are made on a rolling basis by the Admissions Committee. Under a rolling admissions policy, applications are reviewed as they become complete. Decisions can range from automatic acceptance, to requests for additional information, to other alternatives.

Transfer applications are reviewed on the basis of academic college course work attempted or completed. Transfers are required to have at least a cumulative 2.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale (C average) from all schools previously attended and to have met the minimum requirements established by the academic department to which the student is applying. Some majors require increased standards for admission and additional information. Contact the Office of Admissions for specifics. A final high school transcript is required for all transfer applicants. If a student has at least 12 college level (non-developmental and non-technical) credits, the decision will be based solely on their transfer GPA. If the student has less than 12 college credits, the admissions decision considers other evidence of students’ performance and ability to be a successful college student.

The evaluation of credits from other institutions of higher education is the responsibility of the Office of Admissions and the application of the credits is at the discretion of the academic dean who has jurisdiction over the student’s desired major. Normally, courses considered for transfer are only those taken from institutions that are accredited by the seven regional accrediting agencies. Credit from institutions whose accreditation is recognized by CHEA (Council for Higher Education Accreditation) is also eligible for transfer. In accordance with PASSHE’s Student Transfer Policy (Policy 1999-01-A), IUP evaluates learning from non-regionally accredited institutions on a student-by-student basis. IUP uses the American Council on Education’s guidelines for learning evaluation to ensure consistency and equity in the application of credit from non-regionally accredited institutions as well as from military service, workplace training, digital credentials, and other alternative educational experiences.

Each course is evaluated separately. The evaluation includes a review of the description, credits, and grade of each course along with the applicability of the course to the student’s major at IUP. However, only credits transfer, not grade point average.

Students may transfer credits in courses from regionally accredited institutions where the grade of “D” is earned. Some academic programs at IUP may require the student to repeat certain courses in which a “D” grade was earned. Review of learning from non-regionally accredited institutions will be evaluated on a student-by-student basis.

No matter how many credits are transferable, the student must satisfy all of the degree requirements falling into the categories of (1) university requirements, (2) college requirements, and (3) department requirements.

For Second Bachelor Degree students, a block of 90 credits is awarded if the first degree was earned from another university. Liberal Studies requirements, other than ones specifically required by the major, are considered met. All second degree students, whether they completed the first degree at IUP or another university, are required to complete a minimum of 30 credits to earn the second degree. The academic department determines which courses must be completed to earn the second degree.

University Requirements: All students are obligated to fulfill a basic program in Liberal Studies. The transfer evaluator will look at this area first for applicable credits for transfer. A vast majority of introductory courses are generally equivalent.

Statewide transfer degrees: Also known as “TAOC” degrees these are specific AA or AS transfer programs at Pennsylvania community colleges. Students with these degrees are guaranteed to transfer at junior standing in a parallel program at IUP. Please discuss with the Transfer Services office or reference the following IUP website https://www.iup.edu/admissions/transfer/college-guides-articulations-collaboratives/index.html

Undergraduate Credit Transfer Specifications

In the acceptance and application of undergraduate transfer college-level credits, IUP will first apply as many college-level credits as possible toward the satisfaction of liberal studies requirements, then to requirements in the major, and finally to elective credits.
IUP recognizes the integrity, design, and validity of liberal studies programs at other institutions with CHEA-recognized accreditation and will accept liberal studies coursework when comparable. Liberal studies credits aligned with the PA Statewide Transfer Credit Framework will transfer toward the liberal studies requirements at IUP.
Students who transfer to IUP from a postsecondary institution with CHEA-recognized accreditation with an Associate of Science or an Associate of Arts degree, or having completed liberal studies requirements for a bachelor’s degree, an Associate of Science or an Associate of Arts degree, shall have satisfied the liberal studies requirements at IUP. Exceptions may be made for the following, provided that these exceptions do not extend the student’s time to the degree: (a) One signature liberal studies course (up to 3 credits), if applicable; (b) Any prescribed liberal studies course required for the major, if not satisfactorily completed; (c) Specific liberal studies overlays satisfied in advanced courses in the major. Students who have met their liberal studies requirements at a prior four-year institution will need to notify and provide verification to the Undergraduate
Admissions office.
Undergraduate students who transfer into IUP with an Associate of Arts or an Associate of Science degree from a postsecondary institution as part of the Program to Program (P2P) articulation agreements will be awarded full junior standing and shall not be required to satisfactorily complete more than 60 credits to earn a 120-credit baccalaureate degree in a P2P or other parallel program, regardless of the courses they took to earn the Associate degree; they will have the same requirements for admission to a particular academic program and for retention as students who began their education at a IUP. Students transferring into a program with accreditation or licensing/certification standards may be required to take limited additional credits to meet those standards.
Students transferring with an AA or AS degree from a postsecondary institution with CHEA recognized accreditation will have their general education courses waived as part of the State Transfer Policy 1991-01-A. Courses that are specifically required by the major will still need to be taken if they are not transferred to IUP.