Transfer Credit Policies

College Coursework Taken During High School

College coursework taken during high school which meets the criteria above, may be applied toward a Dominican degree, without regard to whether it is used to meet high school graduation requirements.

Off-Campus Coursework Toward a Dominican Degree

Dominican students must obtain prior approval for any coursework they seek to take from another university and apply toward their Dominican degree. With permission from the academic advisor, the student completes an Authorization to Take Courses Off-Campus form and submits it to the Articulation Officer in the Registrar’s Office for approval. The Articulation Officer, in consultation with the Dean of General Studies and the faculty, determines whether each course is transferable and whether it fulfills a specific graduation requirement category. The following conditions apply:

• All earned credit will be converted to semester units, as outlined above
• The unit limits on lower division coursework apply (70 max for Day undergrads and 76 for ADC)
• Dominican students may not take vocational courses to meet degree requirements
• Authorization forms are due at least two weeks prior to the start of the off-campus course
• Approval must be obtained prior to the student’s off-campus enrollment
• Allow 5-7 working days for approval from the Dominican Articulation Officer

Special Conditions

1. There are limits to the total number of courses that may be transferred to Dominican after matriculation.
   • Day undergraduate students: No more than 18 semester units or 6 courses; only 9 of those units may apply to General Education requirements.
   • ADC students: No more than 18 semester units or 6 courses; only 12 of those units may apply to General Education requirements.
2. There are also certain Dominican courses that must be taken at the home campus and are not eligible to be taken elsewhere after matriculation. These are:
   • ENGL 1004 Expository Writing (3 units)
   • ENGL 3200 Advanced Writing and Research (3 units)
   • Colloquium: Two three-unit 3000-level courses taught in conjunction in the same semester; courses are from different disciplines and integrated around a shared theme addressing issues of human accomplishments, concerns, and challenges (6 units)
   • FYE: All First Year Experience courses
   • HCS 3160 Foundations: American Pluralism
   • Courses to meet the Interdisciplinary Studies GE area
3. 30 of the final 36 units earned toward the undergraduate degree must be taken at the home campus. Undergraduate students who are considering taking courses off-campus should do so before their senior year, as they must not exceed six units of transferable academic credit in their final 36 units preceding degree completion.

International Baccalaureate Examinations (IB)

Dominican University of California recognizes the academic challenge and motivation inherent in the International Baccalaureate (IB) program. The University will grant transfer credit of lower division semester units for each Higher Level Subject examination passed with a score or grade of 4 or higher, as indicated in the table below. No credit will be awarded for Standard Level passes. There is no limit to the number of IB or Advanced Placement (AP) exam credits that may apply to General Education requirements; however, no more than a total of 30 semester units of combined IB and/or AP credit may apply towards the bachelor's degree at Dominican.

General Education requirements that may be met by IB examination credit:

• Mathematical Thinking & Quantitative Reasoning (MT)
• Social Science (SS)
• Natural Science (NS), Biological Science (NSB), & Physical Science (NSP)
• Creative & Performing Arts (CA)
• International Language matriculation requirement (IL)

Students wishing to demonstrate content knowledge equivalent to a specific course at Dominican should submit syllabi from their IB courses for assessment by faculty in the specific disciplines. Pre-Nursing and Pre-Occupational Therapy students must submit syllabi from their IB courses both to the discipline in which the course is offered (e.g., Biology of Chemistry) and also the Nursing department.

IB examinations that may meet General Education Requirements

* IB exam credit awarded for Dominican GE science lecture courses also fulfills the required lab components.

IB Higher Level Exams Approved to meet the Matriculation Requirement: International Language Competency

Advanced Level Subject Examinations

Dominican University of California awards advanced standing credit for Advanced (A) level subject examinations passed with a grade of A, B, C, D, or E. No advanced standing is granted for the Ordinary (O) level examination.

Advanced Placement Examinations (AP)

Dominican will grant credit toward an undergraduate degree for successful completion of advanced placement exams taken prior to entry. Students must earn a score of 3 or higher to receive credit. Please refer to the first chart below to determine the policy for required scores and modes of awarding credit toward General Education requirements, major requirements, prerequisites, or electives. The policy for the International Language Competency matriculation requirement is contained in the second chart below.

Advanced placement credit is lower division (LD) and may be applied towards specified areas. Credit will be granted for exams passed at the appropriate level, but no letter grade will be assigned. There is no limit to the number of AP or IB exam credits that may apply to General Education requirements; however, no more than a total of 30 semester units of combined IB and/or AP credit may apply towards the bachelor's degree at Dominican.

* AP exam credit awarded for Dominican GE science lecture courses also fulfills the required lab components.

** A score of 3 in Statistics may qualify to meet the GE Math requirement for certain majors.  Check with the academic department.

AP Exams Approved to meet the Matriculation Requirement: International Language Competency

*** Key to Abbreviations for General Education Areas:

College Level Examination Program (CLEP)

The University accepts selected CLEP Examinations for college credit. Credit is limited as outlined in the Credit for Prior Learning section of the catalog. Students must earn the minimum ACE recommended score ('C' 2.0 level) or higher on CLEP Examinations to receive credit. Examination reports include the ACE Score. No more than a total of 45 semester units of CLEP credit may apply towards the bachelor’s degree at Dominican. Credit is lower division (LD) and may be applied toward electives, specified general education areas, and prerequisites in some majors as noted below.

CLEP Examinations

^ Consult with Department Chair about application of equivalent courses toward lower division requirements in the major.

*A passing score on the Financial Accounting CLEP exam meets the Financial Accounting requirement for the Adult Degree Completion Program Management major. One additional upper division business course must be selected by the student and approved by the Chair to meet the major requirements.

** Must be taken prior to matriculation unless a student scores 8 on the English Placement Exam (Day students) or a 7 or 8 on the English Placement Exam (Adult Degree Completion Program students only).

For 6 unit examinations, which fulfill three or four units of GE, the remaining units are applied as elective units.

***Key to Abbreviations for General Education Areas:

Regional Centers for CLEP Testing

Information about CLEP testing centers is available at clep.collegeboard.org/search/test-centers.

Students petitioning for credit must submit an official CLEP transcript to the Registrar. The CLEP code number for Dominican University of California is 4284. To receive information about CLEP examinations or to order a CLEP transcript, contact www.collegeboard.com/clep.

Excelsior College Examination Program (formerly ACT PEP or Regents)

The University accepts selected examinations in humanities, business and technology, and nursing with the required score 'C' (2.0) level or above. A student should contact a Dominican advisor prior to taking an Excelsior College exam to determine the usefulness of the examination within the student's degree plan. A student must provide an official transcript to have credit counted toward a degree. Students must earn the minimum American Council on Education (ACE) recommended score or higher in order to earn credit. Examination reports include the ACE score. No more than a total of 30 semester units of Excelsior credit may apply towards the bachelor’s degree at Dominican. Credit is lower or upper division and may be applied toward electives, specified general education areas, and some majors as noted below.

Excelsior examination titles and categories may change more frequently than this catalog is published.  For information about examinations not listed here, or about titles that differ from those listed here, please consult the Registrar's Office. 

Excelsior College Examinations

^ Consult with Department Chair about application of equivalent courses toward lower division requirements in the major.

# May be used as a challenge exam to meet recent requirements for Nursing and Health Science.

** Must be taken prior to matriculation unless a student scores 8 on the English Placement Exam (Day students), or a 7 or 8 on the English Placement Exam (Adult Degree Completion Program students).

***Key to Abbreviations for General Education Areas:

Excelsior College Examinations Information and Transcripts

Excelsior College

7 Columbia Circle

Albany, NY 12203-5159

Telephone: (888) 647-2388

www.excelsior.edu

The Excelsior Examinations code for Dominican University of California is 0256A. Individual computerized testing is available at selected local Prometric Testing Centers.

DSST (DANTES Subject Standardized Tests) Examinations

The University accepts selected DSSTs for college credit. No more than a total of 30 semester units of DSST credit may apply towards the bachelor’s degree at Dominican. Students must earn the minimum ACE recommended score ('C' level, 2.0) or higher to receive credit. Credit may be applied to electives.

# Electives for non-business majors only

DSST Examinations Information and Transcripts

http://getcollegecredit.com

Toll Free: 1-877-471-9860

Email: getcollegecredit@prometric.com

Transcript Inquiries: 1-877-471-9860

American Council on Education (ACE)/National Program on Non-Collegiate Sponsored Instruction (PONSI)

Some courses offered by corporate, industry, and military institutions may be awarded transfer credit. The eligible courses are those which have ACE or PONSI recommendations for upper or lower division college credit. Course transferability is outlined in the National Guide to Educational Credit for Training Programs (ACE) and in College Credit Recommendations: The Directory of the National Program on Non-Collegiate Sponsored Instruction (PONSI). Military schools and courses are evaluated according to the ACE recommendations in A Guide to Evaluation of Educational Experiences in the Armed Forces. No more than a total of 30 semester units may apply towards the bachelor’s degree at Dominican.

For ACE Credit: Students must submit an official transcript from the American Council on Education (ACE). To obtain an ACE transcript, contact:

Registry of College Recommendations

American Council on Education

One Dupont Circle, NW, Washington, DC 20036-1193

Telephone: (202) 939-9300

Email: CREDIT@acenet.edu

www.acenet.edu

For PONSI Credit: Students must submit official verification from the sponsoring organization.

Military Credit

Eight semester units of physical education will be awarded for at least one year in active duty in the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, or Coast Guard. A maximum of 8 activity units, which include physical education activity courses, will be applied toward graduation. Students must submit a DD214 (for retired military personnel) or a DD295 (for active duty personnel).

Beyond credit for basic training, students may be able to receive additional credit for military coursework or training, if the American Council on Education (ACE) recommends it for credit.

To have training evaluated, students must submit documentation as follows:

• DD214 Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active duty. For a copy visit www.archives.gov/
• Joint Services Transcript (JST): The JST replaces the Coast Guard Institute Transcript, the Army/American Council on Education Registry Transcript System (AARTS) and the Sailor/Marine American Council on Education Registry Transcript (SMART). For a transcript visit https://jst.doded.mil/
• Community College of the Air Force (CCAF). For a transcript visit https://military.com/education

Credit/No Credit: Proficiency Units

Dominican University of California honors units that are completed through assessment of prior learning. These courses receive proficiency units and are graded as 'P' for 'Pass'. Semester units are applied toward degree completion but do not earn quality points and are not factored into the cumulative grade point average. Some proficiency units may be used to fulfill requirements for the major or General Education and others will satisfy elective requirements only. Proficiency unit sources are listed below. Degree requirements to which proficiency units may be applied and unit limits vary by academic major. See Credit for Prior Learning section for details regarding these unit limits:

• Experiential Learning Portfolio
• College Level Examination Program (CLEP)
• Excelsior College Examination Program (Excelsior College, formerly ACT PEP or Regents)
• DANTES Subject Standardized Tests (DSST)
• Basic military service more than one year
• Units recommended by ACE/PONSI
• Advanced Placement credit (AP)
• International Baccalaureate Examinations (IB)
• Dominican University of California course challenge

Students must submit official required documentation to the Registrar's Office to receive credit for proficiency units.