There is an expectation that once students begin their matriculation at Rutgers SAS, they will complete the bulk of their work within academic departments on the New Brunswick campus. There are, however, several other ways that students may earn credit toward the degree requirements.

Students may be awarded credits through the combination of advanced placement examinations, the College Level Examination Program, International Baccalaureate and proficiency examinations. Credits earned through these methods are not computed in the cumulative grade-point average. Academic departments determine if such courses and/or credits are applicable to the major, minor, or liberal arts distribution requirements.

• Advanced Placement
• College Level Examination Program (CLEP)
• International Baccalaureate (IB) Examinations
• Proficiency Examinations
• Courses Completed at Other Units of Rutgers University
• Transfer Credit from Institutions Not a Part of Rutgers University
• General Transfer
  • High School Courses
• Transfer from NJ County or Community Colleges
• Transfer from Colleges or Universities Outside the USA
• Prerequisites
• Academic Amnesty

Advanced Placement

Degree credit is awarded for advanced placement examination scores of 4 and 5 on the College Board Advanced Placement Examinations. Credit is not given for grades of 3, 2, or 1. 

Even though the AP credits may have been legitimately earned, students often find that these high school level courses did not provide the same foundational knowledge that is available through an introductory-level university course. Some students may, after consultation with an advisor, decide to waive the credits from the AP course to enable them to register for the introductory course in a particular academic discipline. This waiver must be requested in writing prior to registering for the introductory course and may not be reversed.  If the student accepts the credits and subsequently enrolls in the course, no additional degree credits will be earned nor will the grade be included in the grade-point average. Advanced Placement exam scores will not be accepted for credit if the exam is completed after the student's graduation from high school.

Students will need to provide an original copy of the scores directly from ETS in order for credit to be granted. Rutgers' CEEB code is 002765.  ETS can send the scores electronically or students can mail the report to one of the following addresses:

The following is a list of advanced placement exams and scores, and the Rutgers degree credit that is awarded based on those scores:

Advanced Placement in Jewish History exam administered by Yeshiva University

Students must score a 4 or above to earn credit. Each exam is worth 1.5 credits, so students who take all three parts will earn 4.5 credits. If they take parts I and II, they will earn equivalency for Jewish Society & Culture 1 (563:201); if they take parts II and III, they will earn equivalence for Jewish Society & Culture 2 (563:202) If they take I and III, they will earn elective credit, TR:T01:EC, which means the credits cannot be applied to the Jewish Studies major or minor or to the SAS Core (without exam II, they will not have covered the medieval period in Jewish History). Students who complete all three sections will get the equivalent of either JSC 1 OR 2 as well as the other 1.5 credits as elective credits.

College Level Examination Program (CLEP)

Students who have taken subject tests of the College Level Examination Program may have the scores and essay tests forwarded to the SAS for evaluation by the appropriate academic departments. No more than 15 CLEP credits will be accepted, and credits accepted may be used only as free electives, not to satisfy major, minor, or liberal arts distribution requirements. Students already matriculated in SAS must obtain prior approval of the SAS and the appropriate academic department to take the CLEP examination. A number of SAS departments (including Mathematics, Psychology and English, and the foreign languages) do not award CLEP credit.

International Baccalaureate (IB) Examinations

Degree credit may be awarded for International Baccalaureate Higher Level scores of 7, 6, and 5. Credit is not given for grades of 4 or lower or for Subsidiary/ Standard Level exams.

Proficiency Examinations

Students may satisfy prerequisites and sometimes earn credit by the following methods: (1) individual examinations offered by the academic departments of Rutgers; (2) the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) offered by the Educational Testing Service, Princeton, NJ 08541; (3) the Thomas Edison College Examination Program (TECEP) offered by Thomas Edison State College, 101 West State Street, Trenton, NJ 08625; or (4) Prior Learning Assessment offered by Thomas Edison State College. Prior approval by the SAS and the appropriate academic department is required before seeking credit through examination; approval by the major department also is required for credit in the major field. The awarding of credits through these methods is uncommon and decisions are made on a course-by-course basis.

Courses Completed at Other Units of Rutgers University

Courses completed at other units of Rutgers University appear directly on the student’s transcript and grades are included in the cumulative grade-point average. Because of differences in the structure of academic disciplines and in the details of requirements from unit to unit, there may be instances where specific courses may not be applicable to an SAS major or minor or distribution requirement.

Transfer Credit from Institutions Not a Part of Rutgers University

The following limits are set on the maximum number of degree credits transferable into SAS: No more than 60 credits from two-year institutions, no more than 90 credits from four-year institutions, and no more than 12 of the last 42 credits earned for the degree may be transfer credits.

Once a student has transferred to Rutgers University and if they received the maximum number of credits from a two-year institution, they may not take additional courses at a two-year institution for transfer credit at Rutgers. Students may also not decline previously awarded credit in exchange for additional transfer credit. This applies for students awarded the maximum amount of credits from a four-year institution as well.

General Transfer

Students who were formerly matriculated at accredited institutions outside of Rutgers University may be entitled to credit subject to the following conditions: All credits are evaluated by the appropriate academic department in consultation with the dean/SAS. No credit is accepted in transfer if the grade earned is below the equivalent of C (2.000) at Rutgers. Grades from institutions other than Rutgers are not posted to the transcript or included in the Rutgers cumulative grade-point average.

Courses that were not offered in traditional classroom format (for example, independent studies, internships, fieldwork, etc.) are typically awarded transfer credit only upon the recommendation of the appropriate academic department. Transfer credit ordinarily is not awarded for courses passed by examination at other institutions.

High School Coursework

Under New Jersey state law, approved courses in high school may be taken for college credit. Students should consult with an advisor to determine if these courses actually provide an adequate background as a prerequisite to the next level of coursework in SAS.

Please note that for courses taken at NJ community colleges while the student is in high school or courses taken at the high school and recorded on a college transcript, njtransfer.org cannot be used to determine course equivalencies. Some courses with Rutgers equivalents in njtransfer.org may transfer as elective credit, or may not transfer at all if taken while the student was in high school. It is important to send all transcripts to the Office of Academic Services for a complete evaluation.

For students who complete courses in high school that are reported on a college transcript, a maximum of 16 credits may transfer, with no more than two courses in a given semester.

Extension, professional, military and continuing education courses typically have informal or no prerequisites and are designed to provide discrete, targeted knowledge rather than being a part of a broader liberal arts curriculum. As such, many of these courses are not awarded credit in SAS unless they are clearly equivalent to courses offered by SAS.

Academic departments often have restrictions on the application of transfer courses toward specific major or minor requirements.

Transfer from NJ County or Community Colleges

In the case of students who successfully complete an associate degree transfer program with a minimum cumulative grade-point average of B (3.000) at any public New Jersey county or community college and apply directly to SAS, all academic courses taken at the community college awarding the degree and required for that degree program are accepted for transfer credit. This excludes transfer credits accepted by the community college from other institutions, credits earned by examination, credits in physical education, and courses equivalent to non-credit courses offered by SAS. Credits earned beyond the requirements for the degree program are evaluated for transfer on a course-by-course basis.

Transfer credits from NJ County or Community Colleges for students who did not earn an associate degree are considered under the General Transfer policies outlined above.

Credits earned at another college after receiving an associate degree from a New Jersey county or community college are considered under the policy for the general transfer.

Transfer from Colleges or Universities Outside the USA

Students who wish to obtain transfer credit for courses taken at institutions outside the USA may be required to furnish a course-by-course evaluation from an acceptable professional evaluation service and, in some instances, a review of course syllabi by the appropriate SAS academic department.

Prerequisites

Students are not permitted to take courses for degree credit that are prerequisites to courses in which they have already earned a passing grade (D or better). For example, students may not take or repeat Precalculus after having passed Calculus I. Furthermore, students are not permitted to receive degree credit for courses taken below their placement level.

Academic Amnesty

The awarding of academic amnesty is at the decision of the School of Arts and Sciences. Students should discuss all aspects of their application for academic amnesty with an advisor.