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Office of Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs

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Credit Policies

  1. Undergraduate Petition for Graduate Credit
    1. University of Utah students may be allowed to select for graduate credit certain graduate-level courses (5000 level or above) taken while enrolled as an undergraduate student.
      1. Such graduate credit is limited to six semester hours or two courses.
      2. Credit used to earn the undergraduate degree may not be counted toward a graduate degree.
    2. Students are encouraged to seek advance approval of the dean of The Graduate School on an Undergraduate Petition for Graduate Credit form available in the Registrar’s Office.
      1. However, if a student seeks retroactive graduate credit for courses taken as an undergraduate, permission may be granted only if a grade of B or better was earned in the specified courses and if the courses were taken no more than three years prior to the petition.
  2. Undergraduate Students in Combined BS/MS Programs
    1. Undergraduate students in combined BS/MS programs are allowed to select up to 12 credit hours of graduate-level courses (5000 level or above) taken while still classified as an undergraduate student to be used in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the graduate degree. Questions regarding this procedure should be directed to the Registrar’s Office or your departmental advisor.
    2. Requested courses will remain on the undergraduate record but will be recorded as graduate credit to be used toward the graduate degree.
      1. Graduate credit may only be granted if a B or better was earned in the specified courses and not counted towards any undergraduate requirements.
      2. Only one request is eligible for consideration.
    3. Courses used to earn the undergraduate degree may not be used toward a graduate degree, nor may courses used to earn the graduate degree be used toward an undergraduate degree.
    4. Students who exit a combined BS/MS program cannot use requested graduate credits toward an undergraduate degree. The students are not guaranteed acceptance of all credits toward a future graduate degree.
    5. Combined BS/MS program candidates are responsible for registering for remaining undergraduate courses in their undergraduate career and graduate courses in their graduate career.
    6. Instructions:
      1. Complete this “Request for Graduate Credit in BS/MS Program” form and obtain Graduate Advisor approval.
      2. Return this request to the Registrar’s Office, Graduation Division, during your first semester as a matriculated graduate student.
      3. Allow up to 4 weeks to be reviewed and check your Degree Audit or Unofficial Transcripts to determine if graduate credit has been awarded.
  3. Transfer of Credit
    1. Graduate credit may be transferred from other regionally-accredited institutions.
      1. Credits transferred from another institution may be used for only one degree.
      2. Transfer credit for graduate courses taken at other institutions may not be used toward a University of Utah graduate certificate.
      3. Up to six semester hours of transfer credit may be applied toward fulfillment of graduate degree requirements if they are
        1. of high letter grade (B or higher; ‘credit only’ grades are unacceptable),
        2. are recommended by the student’s supervisory committee,
        3. and were taken within four years of semester of admission to the University of Utah for master’s students and within seven years of semester of admission to the University of Utah for doctoral students.
    2. Graduate Transfer Credit Authorization
  4. Maximum Hours
    1. No candidate for a graduate degree is permitted to register for more than 16 credit hours in any single semester.
    2. A schedule of nine credit hours is considered a full load for master’s and doctoral degree candidates.
  5. Limitations on Credit
    1. Credit earned by nonmatriculated students may or may not apply to graduate degree programs.
      1. Graduate programs are designed and approved by faculty committees assigned to supervise each graduate student. Decisions on accepting prior course credits are made initially by these supervisory committees.
      2. Courses must have high letter grade (B or higher; ‘credit only’ grades are unacceptable).
      3. Students who have taken graduate coursework as a non-matriculated undergraduate student, taken no more than three years prior to approval, may count up to nine credit hours towards a master’s or doctoral degree.
      4. Up to fifteen semester hours of credit earned as a non-matriculated graduate student, taken no more than three years prior to approval, can be applied toward a Master’s degree. The total sum of prior credit allowed (nonmatriculated, transfer, and graduate courses taken as an undergraduate at the U) may not exceed fifteen credit hours for a single Master’s degree. 
      5. Up to nine semester hours of nonmatriculated credit, taken no more than three years prior to approval, can be applied toward a doctoral degree. The total sum of prior credit allowed (nonmatriculated, transfer, and graduate courses taken as an undergraduate at the U) may not exceed fifteen credit hours for a single doctoral degree. Prior course credits may not be used to fulfill the doctoral residency requirement.
      6. Exceptions to these requirements must be requested by the department chair or supervisory committee chair and approved by the dean of The Graduate School.
    2. AOCE Ulearn Independent Study (formerly correspondence or home-study) courses are eligible for graduate credit with department approval.
    3. Students may not register for CR/NC courses in their major departments unless a course in the major department is offered only on a CR/NC basis. (See also Credit/No-Credit Grading.)
  6. Course Numbers
    1. Courses numbered 6000 and above are considered graduate-level.
    2. Courses numbered 5000 to 5999 can count toward graduate degrees.
    3. Courses numbered 3000 to 4999 are upper-division (junior and senior) courses and are considered undergraduate-level.
    4. Those numbered 1000 to 2999 are lower-division (freshman and sophomore) courses and are considered undergraduate-level.

1) Transfer credit means credits earned at another institution and transferred for credit towards a degree program at the University of Utah.
2) Non-matriculated credit means credit for coursework taken at the University of Utah as a non-matriculated student and allowed to be used towards a degree program at the University of Utah.

Last Updated: 6/15/22