Transfer of Credit

Students may obtain credit toward Wesleyan’s BA degree for courses completed outside Wesleyan under the following conditions:

• Eligible Institutions:

  • Academic-year courses at another accredited U.S. institution. 

  • Intersession courses at another accredited U.S. or international institution.

• Pre-Approval: Courses must be approved in advance by the relevant Wesleyan department, program, or college (unless completed prior to matriculation at Wesleyan).

• Minimum Grade: C- or better. 

• Additional Departmental Requirements: Departments, programs, or colleges may impose other conditions such as:

  • A higher minimum grade.

  • Review of coursework.

  • Passing a departmentally administered exam.

• Transcript Notation: Only credit is transferred; grades from other institutions do not appear on a student’s academic record.

• Credit Conversion: One Wesleyan unit is equivalent to 4 semester hours or 6 quarter hours. The final amount of credit transferred to the Wesleyan transcript will be determined in accordance with Wesleyan's policy on transfer credit.

• Summer Limit: A maximum of two non-Wesleyan credits (2.5 credits with a course that offers a lab) may be transferred in any given summer 

• Study-abroad credits are not accepted from students who are withdrawn or required to resign.

• Credit from Unaccredited Institutions: To receive Wesleyan credit for work done at an unaccredited institution, the following steps must be completed:

  • Secure sponsorship from a Wesleyan faculty member.

  • Obtain approval from the relevant department chair. 

  • Submit a written proposal to the class dean describing the work, expected credit amount, and endorsement by the faculty sponsor and department chair. 

  • The faculty sponsor will evaluate the completed work and report the credit to the class dean.

Twelve-College Exchange Program

Wesleyan participates in a residential exchange with: Amherst, Bowdoin, Connecticut, Dartmouth, Mount Holyoke, Smith, Trinity, Vassar, Wellesley, and Wheaton. Two special affiliated programs are the Williams-Mystic Seaport Program in American Maritime Studies in Mystic, Connecticut, sponsored by Williams College, and the National Theater Institute, in Waterford, Connecticut, sponsored by Connecticut College. Students can apply via the Office of Study Abroad.

Eligibility: Wesleyan sophomores, juniors, and seniors in good standing.

Program Length: One semester or one full year. 

Credit, General Education, and GPA: All courses are recorded on the Wesleyan transcript with grades and count toward the GPA, and may count toward the general education expectations.

Residency: One semester of participation may count toward the residency requirement.

Financial Information:

• Tuition and fees are paid to the host colleges; no fees are paid to Wesleyan.

• Wesleyan financial aid applies (except work-study).

• Students must complete any loan negotiations before leaving the Wesleyan campus.

While participating, students must abide by the rules and regulations of the host institution.

Other Approved Nonresident Programs

These specialized programs allow students to remain enrolled at Wesleyan (paying regular tuition) while studying elsewhere. Participation does not count as a semester in residence. Students should consult their faculty advisor and class dean to ensure progress toward degree requirements. 

• Woods Hole SEA Semester - 12-week program with 6 weeks of oceanographic study at Woods Hole and 6 weeks at sea conducting research and navigation aboard a 135-foot vessel. See the chair of the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences for information.

• Semester in Environmental Science (SES) - At the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, focused on ecosystem science through interdisciplinary, team-based research. See the chair of the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences for information.

• Wesleyan–Trinity–Connecticut College Consortium – Take one course per semester at Trinity or Connecticut College without additional cost, provided the course is not offered at Wesleyan. Arrangements for enrollment may be made through the Office of the Registrar.

• Dual-Degree Engineering Programs – Options with Columbia, Dartmouth, and Caltech combining a Wesleyan BA in 3 years with an engineering degree in 2 years. Typically a 3-2 sequence, though Dartmouth also makes a 2-1-1-1 track available in which students spend the first two years and their senior year at Wesleyan and Columbia University offers the so-called “4-2 option” in which students complete four years at Wesleyan before pursuing the BS engineering degree at Columbia.

• Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) at Yale – Wesleyan students may join Yale’s AFROTC program. Credit transfers must meet the same pre-approval and minimum-grade requirements as other external coursework.