Credit Available to Undergraduate Students

Office of the Registrar

The University of Wyoming offers credit towards an undergraduate degree through:

1. University of Wyoming Credit

• Instructed classes - On campus and at distance settings around the state including recognized academic courses under concurrent faculty general supervision such as intern-ships, clerkships, clinical experience, co-op programs, etc.
  
  
• Distance courses - Unlike some institutions, UW delivers courses at a distance through its mainstream academic departments, not through a separate academic unit.  Academic department heads have the authority to assign instructors to distance-delivered courses, including online courses.  They also have a responsibility to ensure that those courses are comparable in rigor and effectiveness to courses delivered face to face.
  
  For this reason, when a department offers a UW course both face to face and at a distance, any UW student may satisfy any relevant university-, college-, and department-level requirements or elective credit by taking the course in either format.
  
  Exceptions may arise when it is necessary to reserve space in a distance-delivered course for off-campus students, who can’t take the face-to-face version.  In these cases, departments may reserve spaces for off-campus students.  But to the extent that spaces remain available after all interested off-campus students have enrolled, these spaces must be available to interested on-campus students.
  
  
• Credit by examination - An examination of an appropriate type and content for the credit sought may be conducted to determine if the applicant’s proficiency is equivalent to that which could be expected upon completion of a college-level course in the subject. An applicant found to have this level of proficiency will be awarded credit for that course and allowed to proceed either with more advanced courses or with courses in other areas. The use of credit by examination, or credit for prior learning, in graduate programs is not allowed. Information concerning credit by examination can be obtained by contacting the Office of the Registrar.
  
  
• Departmental Exams - While there is no maximum placed on the amount of credit earned by examination, credit so earned does not count in fulfilling the residency requirement of 30 hours of upper division University of Wyoming credit.
  
  A student may not be allowed credit by examination in a course in which the student is currently or was previously enrolled either for credit or as a visitor or auditor, except that credit by examination may be used as a means to obtain credit for courses previously taken at institutions from which credit is nontransferable. A student may not challenge equivalent courses.
  
  A student may not earn credit by examination in a course if the student has completed a course in the subject matter area above the level of the course for which the examination is sought. However, at the discretion of the departments involved, during the add/drop period a student may challenge a lower-level course while enrolled in a higher-level course in the same subject matter area, if the course challenged is a prerequisite for the course in which the student is currently enrolled.
  
  If an examination exists, eligible students who pay the testing fee of $80.00 may not be denied an examination in the introductory undergraduate course in any department. “Introductory course” is interpreted as that course which is prerequisite for successive courses in the department. Additional fees for examinations offered by testing agencies other than the University of Wyoming are determined by the agency concerned.
  
  Grades of S or U (satisfactory/unsatisfactory) are given in all examinations. Credit by examination is not included in the student’s grade point average; it is, however, included in the hours earned toward graduation. The grade of S is the equivalent of a C or better. See below for specific subject requirements. Entry on the student’s academic record for credit by examination is made only if a grade of S is obtained and is noted as a grade obtained by examination.
  
  To qualify for undergraduate credit, the student must be currently registered at the University of Wyoming as a degree candidate. The student must also be able to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the chair of the department involved that background experience has prepared him or her to attempt a challenge examination if such an examination is sought. The department chair’s decision will be based upon existing departmental constraints such as accreditation, graduation requirements, and program requirements.

Other Options Include:

• Subject CLEP tests
• AP tests
• International Baccalaureate (IB)
• DSST

Students showing proficiency by passing examinations such as the College Board Advanced Placement Program (AP), for example, or examinations developed by University of Wyoming departments may earn college credit through the level of demonstrated proficiency. Credit may be allowed on the basis of any testing procedure acceptable to any department, which may include tests of the AP program and both the general and subject (specific) examinations of the College Level Examinations Program (CLEP).

*tests are regularly reviewed and class equivalencies are subject to change without notice.

 
Portfolio Evaluations

In recognition of factors in our society that produce great individual differences in backgrounds and preparation of students entering the university, the university has developed various options to assess extra-institutional college-level learning. To qualify for undergraduate credit, the student must be currently registered at the University of Wyoming as a degree candidate.

Credit based on faculty evaluation of the kinds and extent of college-level learning which an applicant has acquired in prior extra-institutional settings, evidenced in a portfolio of documentation, may count toward university undergraduate graduation requirements. In such event, the student's degree program can be enriched by freeing time needed to take additional courses, or accelerated to earn the baccalaureate degree earlier and commence postgraduate studies sooner.

The number of credit hours able to be earned by means of a portfolio evaluation is normally limited to 12. Such credit, when awarded, shall be for specific University of Wyoming content-oriented courses (rather than given as X number of hours of credit in a general discipline area), following the college course model of assessment as defined by the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning. Portfolio assessment, when used, will be conducted by a committee of appropriate tenured faculty including at least one member with the academic rank of professor. All credit assigned for experiential learning based upon portfolio evaluations is excluded from the minimum credit hour requirements as set forth in the university requirements.

2. Transfer Credit

Transfer credit includes college courses accepted from other regionally-accredited colleges or universities. Such course work must be considered equivalent or comparable to course work required by the University of Wyoming. The university accepts only academic courses in the study of religion similar to those offered by the Religious Studies Program in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Students transferring to UW must have the registrar or records office of the previous school(s) send an official transcript to the University of Wyoming Admissions Office. Once all final transcripts have been received by the Admissions Office, the degree analysts in the Office of the Registrar will create an electronic record of all courses that transfer to UW.

Evaluations are not accomplished for students working toward a Second Bachelor's Degree or those admitted as non-degree seeking. Second Bachelor's students should consult with their adviser concerning the applicability of transfer work to their UW degree program.

The recording of credit does not automatically imply acceptance toward a degree since degree requirements vary from major to major. Acceptance of credit toward a major is dependent upon final approval by the student's academic adviser. Questions concerning the transferability of course work from other institutions should be directed to the Office of the Registrar.

Nontraditional credits awarded by another institution will not normally be accepted by the University of Wyoming. They may be validated by departmental exam within the faculty regulations allowing for such examinations.

Transfer Credit from Regionally-Accredited U.S. Colleges and Universities

The Wyoming Transfer Catalog allows students to look up courses that the University of Wyoming has previously accepted from regionally-accredited U.S. institutions. When a direct match to a Wyoming course cannot be determined, general elective and/or University Studies credit is awarded. Transfer courses which return values of “NA” in the UW Subject field are not transferable to UW. If a particular course is not found, that may simply mean that no one has previously attempted to transfer it in. All new classes will be evaluated on an individual basis. All new upper-division courses will initially be given upper-division general elective credit. The university faculty will then determine whether or not an upper-division course has a direct UW equivalency.

Credit is awarded credit hour for credit hour. Quarter hours are recognized as two-thirds (2/3) of a semester hour.

Should a course be transferred as an elective, it may be substituted for a major requirement with adviser approval. Elective courses may also be considered for University Studies requirements via the University Studies Petition process.

The fact that a course appears in the list is no guarantee that the course will transfer in each individual case. Students intending to transfer to UW are encouraged to meet with their advisors and review both the Wyoming Transfer Catalog and the UW Catalog when planning their program of study to ensure courses taken elsewhere will transfer to UW in their desired major. Final determination of transfer credit acceptance is made by the University Registrar and faculty. Students must submit official transcripts of all completed coursework before a final determination can be made on credit transfer.

These equivalencies are subject to change without notice.

3. Military Service Courses

Students who have served in the Armed Forces may be allowed transfer credit for courses taken in some military schools. Students who desire to apply for credit on the basis of their military schooling should submit a copy of their DD-214 form or AARTS/SMART/CCAF transcript (or equivalent) to the UW Admissions Office. The degree analysts in the Office of the Registrar determine whether the course work is transferable to UW. Evaluations for the granting of credit for military-based training are based on recommendations in the American Council of Education (ACE) guidelines. Individual colleges will determine whether such course work is applicable to their degree programs.