Transfer Credit Policy - Northern Michigan University (2024)

Transfers from Regionally Accredited Colleges and Universities

Students who have attended regionally accredited community colleges may transfer up to 90 semester hours of credit. There is no limit on the number of creditstransferred from regionally accredited baccalaureate-granting colleges anduniversities. For admission purposes, NMU calculates the grade point average oftransfer students on college-level courses only, using credits attempted and honor points earned. All acceptable courses completed with a grade of C- or better areentered on the student’s permanent record and may be applied toward graduationrequirements. Transfer courses where a grade lower than a C- is earned will not beentered on the student’s NMU transcript, but will still fall under thecourse repeat policyand may result in loss of NMU credit. An academic department may require aspecific grade for a particular course or a specific grade point average for a group ofcourses, which may include grades earned in transfer courses. These requirementssupersede university requirements for transfer grades.

If a transfer course is equivalent to a Northern Michigan University course, a direct course equivalency will be granted even if the number of credits is different. If atransfer course has no direct equivalent, but could be taught by an NMUdepartment, the course will be assigned departmental credit. The course may, at thedepartment’s discretion, be used as a program elective. Transfer courses must be atleast one half of the credit hours of their equivalent NMU course. If a course has noequivalent and no home department can be established, the course will be assignedgeneral elective credit. The course can be used to meet the free or general electivesavailable for most degrees. An attempt is made to designate courses with no NMUequivalents that can be used to meet the General Education program requirements.

Students who have taken CLEP, APP-CEEB, or International Baccalaureate examsshould submit their scores. See the“Advanced Placement Policy”in this section of thebulletin for additional information.

No transfer credit is granted for remedial courses or for courses from religiousaffiliated colleges or universities that are doctrinal in nature. Transfer credit is notgranted for departmental advance placement unless a grade is awarded and thecourse is included in semester earned hours.

If a student believes that his or her transfer credit evaluation does not accurately reflect the course work he or she has completed, a syllabus for the courses inquestion should be provided to the Registrar’s Office for review.

Transfers from Non-Regionally Accredited Colleges

A student who has credit from a college or university not accredited by a regional accrediting body may, under certain circ*mstances, receive credit for all or a portionof his or her work. Departmental advance placement credit may be a possibility.

Transfers from International Institutions

All students who have taken college/university level coursework outside of the United States, with the exception of those educated in Canada, must submit theircredentials to an acceptable external credit evaluator and have a course by courseevaluation sent to NMU. External credit evaluators will be considered acceptable ifthey are recognized members of NACES (National Association of CredentialEvaluation Services). The university follows the recommendation of these agencies.NMU may request an evaluation of credentials of Canadian students from an outsideagency on an individual basis.

Transfers from Military Service Schools

Northern Michigan University generally follows the guidelines of the AmericanCouncil of Education [http://www.militaryguides.acenet.edu/] in evaluating militarycredit. NMU does not grant HP activity credit for basic (recruit) training or for creditat the upper division level. Credits for military schools and courses from theCommunity College of the Air Force are assigned general elective credit. They canbe used as general electives, but may meet major or minor requirements upon therecommendation of a departmental adviser.

Students who have completed basic training and have a recommendation on their military transcripts for physical well being, physical fitness or other descriptions ofmaterial covered in NMU’s HP 200 - Physical Well Beingwill receive transfer credit forthat course.

Transfers Under the Michigan Transfer Agreement (MTA)

Students who transfer to Northern Michigan University from a Michigan community college who have Michigan Transfer Agreement Satisfied posted on their transcriptwill be considered to have met the requirements of NMU’s General Educationprogram. Students will still be expected to complete all other degree requirements,including graduation requirements (world cultures, mathematics competency,written competency and lab) and any courses listed as “Other Required Courses”that may also be General Education courses. Transfer students who do not completethe entire block of courses required by the MTA will receive credit for the coursesthey do complete on the basis of individual evaluation and established transferequivalencies.

Transfers Under the MACRAO Agreement

Students who transfer to Northern Michigan University from a Michigan community college who have the MACRAO stamp on their transcript have usually completed the first four divisions (or equivalent) of our liberal studies requirements which includefoundations of communication (composition I and II), foundations of humanities,foundations of natural science and math, and foundations of social sciences. NMUemploys a best fit approach to applying transfer credit which may, to the benefit ofthe student, apply credit to a requirement other than the four listed above.NMU applies courses transferred under the MACRAO Agreement in accordance withguidelines established by its faculty. Courses used to satisfy the MACRAO TransferAgreement will not apply toward NMU’s liberal studies programs if:

• The grade earned in the course was less than a C-.
• The course is not accepted for transfer credit by NMU. For example, mathematics courses below the level of college algebra are not accepted.

In the event that a student cannot transfer individual course(s) included in the MACRAO Agreement due to one of the reasons listed above, the student must complete a course at NMU that meets the specific divisional requirement.

The MACRAO Agreement is designed for freshman and sophom*ore requirements. Itdoes not cover upper division requirements or graduation requirements not a part ofthe liberal studies requirements, although with careful selection of courses studentsmay complete these requirements at the community college. NMU does notrecognize the MACRAO Agreement if a student has attended a community collegeoutside the state of Michigan, has attended a baccalaureate institution before or while attending a community college, or was originally matriculated at NMU andsubsequently took courses at a community college. An exception to this policy isgranted to transfer students from Bay De Noc Community College and Gogebic Community College who were dually enrolled at their community college and at NMUin approved consortium degree programs.

Articulation Agreements

Northern Michigan University is supportive of the establishment of articulation agreements with local and regional community and technical colleges. Anarticulation agreement is an officially approved agreement that designatescoursework between two schools to meet degree requirements. They are intendedto help provide a smooth transition for students transferring from a communitycollege to Northern Michigan University. We currently have articulation agreementswith Bay de Noc Community College, Fox Valley Technical College, GogebicCommunity College, North Central Technical College, Northeast Wisconsin TechnicalCollege, Oakton Community College, with other agreements in the process of being developed.

Transfer Student Graduation Requirements

Transfer students must earn a minimum of eight credits in each major and a minimum of four credits in each minor. They need a minimum NMU cumulative GPAof 2.00 to be eligible for a degree. Additionally they must meet the minimum degree credit requirements and GPA established by their academic departments.

Students seeking a bachelor’s degree must earn 30 credits at Northern Michigan University. Associate degree, certificate and vocational diploma candidates mustearn 16 credits at NMU.

Guest Student Applications and Transfer Credit Policies for NMU Students

NMU students who take classes at other institutions as guests must complete a guest student application, available in the Registrar’s Office. For Michigan collegesand universities, this application is the only one necessary and the student does notneed to submit a transcript to the guest college. Out-of-state colleges may haveadditional requirements. The Registrar’s Office assists students in completing theapplication and will review courses to ensure that they are transferable.

Note: Students who attend other institutions without completing a Guest StudentApplication assume the responsibility for course transfer. All students must requestan official transcript of their courses from guest colleges and universities to be sentto the Registrar’s Office at NMU.