Bryn Mawr College

Transferring Credit

The following procedures and policies apply to all transfer credits. See below for more information regarding policies for entering freshmen, matriculated students, transfer students, and McBrides.

1. To have a course considered for transfer credit, you must submit an official transcript to the Bryn Mawr Registrar’s office.

2. Credits transfer; grades do not. Grades from transfer courses or courses taken in study abroad programs are not factored into your Bryn Mawr GPA.

3. To receive transfer credit for a course, you must receive a grade of at least 2.0 or its equivalent.

4. Transfer credit is only given for courses in the liberal arts.

5. No transfer credit is given for online courses.

6. Individual transfer courses are not listed on your Bryn Mawr transcript. The transcript states only the institution you attended, the dates you attended, and the units awarded.

7. Credit is only awarded for courses taken at accredited colleges and universities. After a student has matriculated at Bryn Mawr, credit is awarded only for courses taken at accredited four-year colleges that confer a bachelor’s degree (see below, Transfer credit for Matriculated Students).

8. Courses taken during the fall and spring academic terms as part of the exchange program with Haverford, Swarthmore, and the University of Pennsylvania are not considered transfer courses. Summer courses taken at Penn are considered transfer courses. (For more information regarding summer courses, click here.)

9. One unit of credit at Bryn Mawr is equivalent to four credits (or four “semester hours”) at most schools on the semester system. One unit of credit at Bryn Mawr is also equivalent to six credits (or six “quarter hours”) at most schools on the quarter system.

10. Bryn Mawr's residency requirement stipulates that students must complete 24 units during semesters registered at Bryn Mawr, either during the regular academic year or during the College's summer sessions.

Transfer Credit for Entering Freshmen: Students entering Bryn Mawr may transfer up to 4 units of credit from college work done during high school, including courses taken at community colleges or two-year colleges. However, no credit is given if that college work counted towards a student's high school graduation requirements. Credit will be given only for those community college courses taken before the student enrolled at Bryn Mawr.

Transfer credit for Matriculated Students: Once a student has matriculated at Bryn Mawr, credit is given only for courses taken at four-year colleges or universities that confer a bachelor’s degree.

A student who wishes to complete a college requirement with a transfer course should consult with her dean and the registrar before enrolling in any courses at another institution. Students may wish to fill out a transfer credit approval form and should talk with the registrar to ascertain if this form is necessary in a particular case. Likewise, a student who wishes to use a transfer course towards her major must consult her major adviser in advance. Departments very seldom permit students to count transfer credits as 300-level courses in their majors.

Students taking a semester or year of course work away from Bryn Mawr must take the normal full-time course load at the institution they are attending in order to receive a semester (4 units) or a year (8 units) of transfer credit. Usually 15 or 16 semester hours, or between 22 and 24 quarter hours, is the equivalent of four units at Bryn Mawr. Students who complete less than a normal full-time load receive proportionally less transfer credit.

For Transfer Students: Credit for work completed before matriculating at Bryn Mawr will be calculated as described above. Ordinarily, the residency requirement means that transfer students will be required to earn all their remaining credits in residence. For transfers admitted with junior class standing, the residency requirement is correspondingly adjusted from 24 to 16. Transfers admitted as sophomores will require the permission of the Special Cases Committee to undertake study abroad. The student will be expected to demonstrate a compelling educational rationale for including study abroad in her major work plan.

Admissions deadlines and application information may be found at: http://www.brynmawr.edu/admissions/BMC_TRANSFER_101207.pdf

For McBride Scholars: McBrides entering Bryn Mawr may transfer up to 16 units of credit for college work taken at community colleges, two-year colleges, or four-year colleges. However, no credit is given if that college work counted towards a student's high school graduation requirements. Credit will be given only for those community college or two-year college courses taken before the student enrolled at Bryn Mawr. The residency requirement for McBrides is 16 units.