Transfer Credit

The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences accepts course work and grades from two-year and four-year institutions and lets you use such credit in earning a degree from the College. There are some restrictions, discussed below.

Guidelines and Restrictions

A maximum of 60 semester hours of degree credit from two-year colleges is accepted in transfer toward meeting the minimum 120 semester hours required for graduation. If a student earns more than 60 semester hours of degree credit from a two-year college, the credit and grades are used in computing grade-point averages and course work may be used to satisfy requirements, but the credit hours beyond the first 60 do not count toward the total hours needed for graduation.

There is no limit on the number of credit hours that may be transferred from four-year institutions. However, a student must satisfy the College's residence requirement regardless of the amount of transfer work that is accepted.

Once enrolled in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, students should seek prior certification of the transferability of courses to be taken at either two-year or four-year institutions (whether the courses will transfer for General Education, major, or elective credit) from the Office of Admissions, 108 Calvin Hall. If approval is not secured before taking courses at another institution, the transfer credit may not be accepted. Unofficial information is available from the ISIS transfer search page.

Students must report all work done at other institutions, whether before first admission to Iowa or after first admission. Failure to have an official transcript sent from other institutions to the Office of Admissions may result in disciplinary action and in the loss of registration privileges. (see additional information from the Office of Admissions).

Restrictions on Transfer Credit

1. Ordinarily, a maximum of 16 semester hours of vocational technical credit is accepted in transfer toward the 120 semester hours required for graduation. The number of hours transferable by students with A.S. and A.A.S. degrees from institutions that have established special articulation agreements with The University of Iowa may vary.
2. Departments may restrict the use of transfer credit that may be applied toward the requirements for a major, minor, or certificate; students should consult the department to determine the acceptability of transfer course work.