Transfer of Credit Policy

I. Purpose

To outline the University’s requirements for and acceptance of academic credits from

other postsecondary institutions.

II. Policy

Transfer Admissions

Transfer students are accepted for the fall, spring, and summer semesters.

Students who wish to transfer to Northwest are strongly encouraged to schedule a

campus visit by calling the Northwest Office of Admissions at (800) 633-1175, in order

to discuss transfer of credits with the Office of Admissions and with the departmental

major advisor. Upon presentation of an official transcript, a degree audit will be

prepared which indicates what courses remain for a student to take to complete their

degree at Northwest.

Transfer Requirements

To be considered for admission on transfer criteria rather than high school criteria, a

student must have completed at least 24 hours of transferable, college-level coursework.

(These hours must have been earned after high school graduation.) Students who have

less than 24 hours completed will be considered for admission on the basis of the

freshman admission requirements in addition to college work that has been completed.

Policy Name: Transfer of Credit Policy

Effective Date: Unknown

Last Revision Date: December 16, 2021

Last Review Date: February 15, 2023

Approving Authority: Northwest Leadership Team

Responsible Office: Provost

Category: Enrollment and Academics

(Students transferring from non-regionally accredited institutions will also be considered

as first-time freshmen. Credits cannot be transferred to Northwest from a non-regionally

accredited institution.)

Transfer students must submit an application for admission along with official transcripts from

all accredited colleges or universities attended. Students currently enrolled at a college or

university should send an official partial transcript when making application for admission.

Students must have a 2.00 (on a 4.00 scale) cumulative college grade point average in transfer

in order to be accepted to Northwest. For students with a cumulative college grade point

average in transfer below 2.00, consideration will be given based on professional judgment

and acceptance may be granted on a probationary basis. In all cases, a student must be eligible

to return to the last institution attended in order to be accepted to Northwest. If admitted, a

transfer student who has less than 30 credit hours in transfer and a college cumulative GPA

between 1.75 and 1.99 will be regularly admitted to the University, rather than on probation.

Application Fee

An application fee may be required for new students applying to Northwest. A complete listing

of application fees is available at (800) 633-1175.

Transfer of Credits

Students transferring to Northwest from another regionally-accredited institution may be

given transfer credit as their transcripts are evaluated by the Northwest Office of Admissions.

Non-college parallel courses or technical credit can be transferred only for the Bachelor of

Technology degree unless the Office of Admissions and the academic department concerned

determine that the courses are academic in nature.

Continuing students at Northwest who wish to take courses at another institution as a visiting

student should contact the Office of Admissions prior to enrolling to ensure the viability of

transferring those courses into Northwest.

Transfer students have the option of meeting degree requirements as governed by the

academic catalog in force at the time of the student’s initial enrollment in higher education

(provided that the student has maintained continuous enrollment and has remained in the

same major program) or by the academic catalog in force at the time of the student’s initial

enrollment at Northwest.

Aside from possible waiver of General Education requirements as detailed below, transfer

credit will be evaluated on the same criteria established for native students as set forth in the

academic policies section of the undergraduate academic catalog. Students may challenge the

interpretation of such criteria made by the Office of Admissions by petitioning the Committee

on Admissions and Advanced Standing.

Transfer credits do not always have equivalents at Northwest but may satisfy general

education, institutional, or departmental requirements. The following 900-series course

numbers are used to show if transfer courses meet general requirements, even though the

courses are not directly equivalent, or transfer as electives only:

900 ACT English Credit 911 Science

901 English 111 912 Math

902 English 112 915 Computer Competency

903 Speech Communication 916

Multiculturalism

904 American Government (with MO) 918 Science Lab

924 American Government (without MO) 920 Lower Division

Elective 905 American History 922 Math Pre-requisite

906 Social Science 950 American Sign Language

907 Psychology 990 Upper Division Elective

908 Literature 988 B.T. credit only

909 Humanities/Philosophy 999 Elective, before summer 1990

910 Fine Arts

A student has the right to appeal a denial of credit made by the Office of Admissions to the

academic department concerned. If the student is not satisfied with the decision of the

academic department, further appeal may be made to the Committee on Admissions and

Advanced Standing.

Articulation Agreements

Northwest Missouri State University has a number of articulation agreements with community

colleges in Missouri and nearby states. These agreements express a shared commitment to

increasing the opportunity for students to gain access to and success in higher education. By

clarifying transfer policies and procedures which assure articulation between programs, the

institutions involved seek to assist students in making a seamless transfer. A current listing of

schools and agreements, may be found at

http://www.nwmissouri.edu/admissions/transfer/agreements/index.htm.

Supersede Policy for Transfer Courses

When a student completes the same course two or more times before transferring to

Northwest, credit will be awarded for only the highest grade when calculating the transfer

grade point average. If a student completes the same course, once at Northwest and once

at another institution, the procedures listed in Superseding Grades/Repeating Courses will

be followed like so:

• If the student receives a grade of “D” or “F” in transfer, that grade will be

superseded when the class is completed with the same or higher grade at

Northwest. A petition for superseding must be completed at the time of

registration in the course and can be obtained from the Registrar’s Office. The

transfer grade will be averaged with the Northwest grade if a lower grade is

received at Northwest.

• If the student receives a grade of “A”, “B”, or “C” in transfer, that grade will always

be averaged with the Northwest grade that is earned. The grade in the transfer

course will never supersede the grade earned when the course is taken at

Northwest, regardless of the grade received during the time it was taken at

Northwest.

To Transfer:

• Carefully and promptly complete the Application for Admission and submit it to

the Northwest Office of Admissions.

• Students must also submit current official transcripts from each regionally accredited

college or university previously attended (a composite transcript will not be

accepted). Students currently enrolled should submit an official partial transcript at

the time of application.

• Students who are transferring into Northwest’s School of Education should see the

School for additional requirements.