Transferring Credits

Credits from Other Colleges and Universities

National Hispanic University encourages transfer of credit from other institutions. Transfer of credit requests should be submitted during the application process, but no later than 60 days from the start of program. This can be done with unofficial transcripts.

Transfer-of-credit documentation, when requested, should be submitted to the Office of Admissions.

Normally, students are officially notified when credits are accepted for transfer to a program at the same time that they are given an offer of admission or during their first term of enrollment.

Official evaluation of credits for transfer to a program requires the following:

• Official transcript that reflects the course being evaluated
• Syllabi for courses being evaluated for transfer, upon request

If students are transferring from an institution that is part of the California Community College System, those courses, which have been designated as “University of California Transferable” or “California State University Transferable”, will be accepted as transferable to NHU.

Transferability of other courses will be considered on a case-by-case basis.  Normally, Computer Science courses that are more than 3 years old are not transferable.

Credit for undergraduate work completed at other institutions may be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for degrees at NHU.  However, the work must be of acceptable quality (i.e., courses with a letter grade of C- or better).

Coursework that is reviewed for transfer of credit must meet the following eligibility criteria:

• Earned and recorded on an official transcript from a school that was accredited by a regional, professional/specialized, or national accrediting organization recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) or the U.S. Department of Education at the time the course was completed, or from an appropriately accredited non-U.S. institution;
• Coursework is considered to satisfy requirements within one of the following academic components which comprise NHU’s undergraduate plan of study: general education; program-related (core or elective); general electives;
• Lower-division coursework may come in for lower-division credit and upper-division credit. Courses may satisfy either lower or upper division coursework depending on best fit to the NHU curriculum.

Credit for post baccalaureate work

Credit for post baccalaureate completed at other institutions may be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for teaching credential at NHU. However, the work must be of acceptable quality (i.e., courses with a letter grade of B or better and must meet the following eligibility criteria:

• Earned and recorded on an official transcript from a school that was accredited by a regional, professional/specialized, or national accrediting organization recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) or the U.S. Department of Education at the time the course was completed, or from an appropriately accredited non-U.S. institution;
• Coursework is considered to satisfy requirements within the academic components which comprise NHU’s baccalaureate plan of study;

Credit for post baccalaureate completed at other institutions may be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for teaching credential at NHU if:

• Technology courses are not older than three years,
• Reading courses are not older than 5 years, and
• Teacher Education courses are not older than 7 years.

A maximum of 70 transferable semester units earned in a community college or a two-year college and 90 transferable semester units earned from a university or a 4-year college are accepted as transferable units. All quarter credits transferred in from a regionally accredited and/or AACRAO listed post-secondary institutions will be converted to semester credits using the ratio of 1.5 credits equals to 1 semester credit.  

Courses taken in a community college or a two-year college will count only as lower division transferable courses.  Only those courses that are equivalent or are in the desired program offered at NHU will be counted toward the degree.  The University generally requires that at least the last 30 units of a baccalaureate degree be completed in residence at NHU.  Open University credits are not applicable toward 30-unit residency requirement.

All international students must have their transcripts evaluated by a recognized and certified agency, which evaluates foreign educational credentials. Inquiries about approved agencies may be obtained from Office of Admissions.

The University accepts credits from other institutions under the guidelines published by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO).

Courses taken elsewhere and approved for transfer to NHU as part of the degree program are not considered in computing the student’s NHU grade point average.

Evaluation of Transfer Credit

The Office of Admissions evaluates previous college courses taken at other institutions of higher education. Students seeking a degree/credential will be issued an Advanced Credit Evaluation Form to determine the remaining requirements for the student's specific degree objective.

Advanced Credit Evaluation Form is completed after students are admitted.  Transfer students should review their previous college work in terms of the degree and credential requirements stated in the catalog to make a tentative selection of courses.  Students should consult a faculty advisor in their major department.

Students and NHU are bound by the catalog academic requirements for the initial year in which the student registered.  Students have the option to fulfill the catalog requirements of the year they graduate.  This option must be declared by the end of their Junior year.  Nevertheless, students will be responsible for complying with changes in other non-academic regulations, policies and procedures that may appear in subsequent catalogs.

Importing Credits for Non-Traditional Education

The University will follow The American Council on Education guidelines and procedures when awarding credit for non-traditional education. (e.g. Advanced Placement Program (APP), College-Level Examination Program (CLEP), Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Educational Support (DANTES).

Advanced Placement

The NHU grants credit toward its undergraduate programs to students who have successfully completed the examinations of the Advanced Placement Program of the College Board.

A student who presents a score of three or better on AP exams taken before college, will be granted 3 to 6 semester unit of lower division baccalaureate credit.  The number of unit granted, course equivalence and satisfaction of requirements vary depending on the test.

College Level Examination Program

The NHU grants credit to those students who pass the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) with a score of 500 or above.  A student may receive a maximum of 18 semester units in the following areas: Natural Sciences (no lab credit), Humanities and the Social Sciences (including History), GE courses (including Math).

Credit for Military Training and United States Armed Forces Institutes (USAFI)

The NHU grants credits for military training in accordance with the recommendation of the American Council on Education.  Courses, for which credits earned while in the military, must be listed on official military documents (i.e. DD214, DD295, Army/American Council on Education Registry Transcript). Other official military documents may be used as the basis for evaluation at the discretion of the Office of Admissions given that they contain the elements necessary for evaluation.  Those courses that are eligible for evaluation will be awarded University transfer credit consistent with the American Council on Education’s Guide to the Evaluation of Educational Experiences in the Armed Services and directives issued by Academic Departments.

Credit by Examination

Any student may challenge the following courses by passing the required examinations developed by the department:

• SPA 100

• SPA 110

• CS 100

• CS 103

• EDU 531

Students must meet the following criteria:

• Obtain the approval of the Coordinator of the Department;

• Register for the course by completing a Registration Worksheet or Add/Drop form (whichever is applicable).

• Designate on appropriate form that course is a Challenge Exam and pay the corresponding course fee;

• Pass the test with "C" or higher (70% or higher) on the examination. 

The equivalent of “C” or higher will be recorded as “P” (Pass), with units earned.  Furthermore, the following regulations apply:

• A given course can be challenged only once;

• Failure to pass the examination will result in the student having to take the course if credit for the course is needed;

• Challenges are limited to two per semester.