Transfer Credit Evaluations

The Registrar's Office evaluates prior coursework to determine equivalent courses at Colorado Mesa University. Coursework of comparable content and scope to the CMU curriculum will generally be transferred. A Transfer Equivalency Report (TER) showing transferred coursework is produced by the Registrar's Office within 30 days of admission to CMU and sent to the student.  

• Process: Each course is evaluated using the abbreviation, level, title and description. On occasion, a course syllabus is necessary to complete the evaluation. With this information, the course is compared to the classes offered at Colorado Mesa University. Courses with an exact match are given the Colorado Mesa course equivalent while those without an exact equivalent are coded with the department prefix and level (i.e. MANG 1XX) or as an elective (i.e. ELEC 2XX). Once an equivalent course decision is made, it is entered into the permanent database.
• Grades: A grade of "C-" or higher must be earned in each transferable course. Courses with a "Pass", "Satisfactory" or other non-letter grade will only be considered if the transcript key confirms that it is equivalent to a "C-" or higher on the grade scale.  If a grade of “Pass” or “Satisfactory” is received and is equivalent to a “C-” or higher, but there are no credit hours attached, Colorado Mesa University will not accept the course.  Transfer GPA is not calculated into CMU GPA.
• Restrictions: Preparatory classes taken in preparation for college level English Composition or College Mathematics will transfer as zero credits. Other "pre-college" classes do not transfer. Religious classes are generally not accepted. No more than eight physical activity courses are accepted for a baccalaureate degree; no more than four for an associate's. Technical trades classes generally do not transfer unless they are applicable to your Colorado Mesa University/CMU Tech program. Classes over 15 years old are looked at on a course-by-course basis. Some Colorado Mesa University majors have "age" restrictions on the use of certain courses in those majors. The final approval of how classes are used toward major area requirements is done by the department chair.
• Conversion: Quarter to semester hour conversion: Classes taken at an institution using a quarter hour system are converted to semester hours by multiplying by two-thirds (i.e., 3 quarter hours = 2 semester hours).
• Equivalency Guide:
  • Exact Equivalent:
    • CMU Department Prefix with the course number
    • i.e. MANG 201-Principles of Management
    • i.e. SOCO 300-Political Sociology      
  • Departmental Elective: This indicates that CMU teaches the subject, but does not offer the exact same course.  Generally will apply to unrestricted electives. Check with your advisor to see if the class will count in any major-related categories.
    • i.e. CISB 1XX      100-level lower division course in Computer Information Systems (freshman level)
    • i.e. PSYC 2XX      200-level lower division course in Psychology (sophomore level)
    • i.e. KINE 3XX      300-level upper division course in Kinesiology (junior level)
    • i.e. MANG 4XX     400-level upper division division course in Management (senior level)
  • General Elective:This indicates CMU does not teach the subject.  Generally, these classes will apply to unrestricted  electives.
    • ELEC 1XX     100-level lower division elective (freshman level)
    • ELEC 2XX     200-level lower division elective (sophomore level)
    • ELEC 3XX     300-level upper division elective (junior level)
    • ELEC 4XX     400-level upper division elective (senior level)
  • Essential Learning:If you completed an Essential Learning (General Education) option at your prior school, but it is not on the list of CMU Essential Learning courses. The course will shows the subject code (ENGL, BIOL, HIST, etc.) followed by a description of the Essential Learning requirement which the course fulfills. The subject code ELTR (Essential Learning Transfer) is for course subjects that are not taught at CMU but will fulfill an Essential Learning requirement.
    • ELEN              Essl Lrng English 111
    • ELEN               Essl Lrng English 112
    • ELFA               Essl Lrng Fine Arts
    • ELHI               Essl Lrng History
    • ELHU              Essl Lrng Humanities
    • ELM10+          Essl Lrng Math 110 or higher
    • ELM13+          Essl Lrng Math 113 or higher
    • ELNL               Essl Lrng Natural Science w/lab (Natural Science with Lab)
    • ELNS               Essl Lrng Natural Science
    • ELSB               Essl Lrng Social Behavioral (Social Behavioral Sciences)
    • ELTR               Essential Learning Transfer course- see the course description to see which requirement the course fulfills.

The total combination of non-traditional credit is limited by academic residency requirements for the degree. Additional guidelines may supersede department requirements if the degree is governed by accreditation standards. In the case of transfer, academic departments at CMU shall determine if the non-traditional credit awarded by the sending institution can apply to the student's major requirements.  

• Non-traditional credit and the Colorado State Guaranteed Transfer Pathways  Colorado Statewide Guaranteed Transfer (GT-Pathways) is a program that focuses on the Essential Learning/General Education categories and how the classes transfer between colleges and universities in the state. The following charts show how the non-traditional credit above will count toward the GT-Pathways designations:  
  • Advanced Placement (AP) transfer credit
  • International Baccalaureate (IB) transfer credit
  • CLEP GT-Pathways Credit 
  • DSST/DANTES GT-Pathways Credit 
  • JST/DLPT GT-Pathways Credit

• Advanced Placement (AP): may be obtained by students who have successfully completed AP courses and tests while in high school. To receive credit, an official copy of the AP transcripts must be sent directly from the testing agency to the CMU Registrar's Office. AP Placement Exams and Scores Accepted by CMU

• International Baccalaureate (IB): may be obtained by students who have successfully completed IB courses and tests while in high school. The subject exams and scores shown on each student's transcript will determine the number of semester credit hours allowed. To receive credit, an official copy of the IB transcripts must be sent directly from the testing agency to the CMU Registrar's Office. IB Exams and scores Accepted by CMU

• College Level Examination Program (CLEP) Exam 
• Military: to receive credit for military service, the student must request an official copy of the Joint Services Transcript (JST) or Community College of the Air Force (CCAF) transcript to be sent to CMU. Documents are evaluated based on recommendations from the American Council on Education (ACE) Military Guidelines with input from academic departments. 

• DSST Exam 
• Prior Learning Credit

State guaranteed courses under the State Guarantee General Education (GT Pathways) policy will transfer to any four-year institution in Colorado to satisfy general education requirements. Other non-guaranteed courses are evaluated individually and within 30 days of the date of admission or transcript receipt.

Students have the right to appeal transfer credit decisions.  Students can request a review of their transfer work by completing the Transfer Credit Appeal e-form.  CMU’s transfer staff will respond to the appeals within 30 business days of submission. Responses will be sent to the student’s CMU email.

 If the dispute cannot be resolved between the student and CMU personnel through the local appeal process, the student may appeal in writing to the Colorado Department of Higher Education (CDHE) at the CDHE website. The student has 15 days from receipt of the written CMU notification to file an appeal.

Transfer Credit Appeal e-form