Transfer of College Credit

Whether you are thinking about applying, have already been accepted, are a current Geneseo student thinking about taking summer or winter courses elsewhere, or are transferring a credit or two to graduate, this databank will make the transfer process easier for you.

The SUNY Geneseo Transfer Course Equivalency databank has been designed to show you how credit from other colleges will transfer to Geneseo. Course equivalencies are subject to review and change by the department. You will be held accountable for all academic policies in effect at the time of transfer. 

Current Students

1. Submit to the Office of Advising a Course Pre-Approval Form before taking a course elsewhere.

a) If the course is for general education or elective credit, use Course Pre Approval Form A  and submit it directly to the Advising Office (Erwin 106) or email it to advising@geneseo.edu.

b) If the course is within your major, minor or concentration, use Course Pre Approval Form B. You need to get the signature of the chair of the major, minor or concentration department. Be advised that the department determines what is transfer equivalent and how many transfer credits can be accepted towards the major, minor, and/or concentration.

2. Check the Course Equivalency Databank for basic information about course transferability.

3. Make sure that you are eligible to transfer coursework to Geneseo:

a) Verify that you have not reached the maximum limit of transferable credits. You may transfer a maximum of 90 semester hours.  No more than 60 semester hours may transfer from a 2-year college.  Students may transfer a maximum of 45 credits completed while concurrently enrolled in high school; of these, a maximum of 30 credits may be AP, IB, and CLEP credits.

b) Verify that you are not repeating a course. Only credits transfer, not grades. Be aware of how many credits transfer in (ex: A college on a tri-semester system—a 4 credit course transfers in as 2.66 credits.)

c) You must achieve a grade of C- or better to transfer coursework to Geneseo. We will not accept credit for courses graded on a Pass/Fail or Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory basis at the other school.

d) You must have an overall GPA at Geneseo of at least 2.00 in order to transfer credit.

4. Once you get confirmation of credit transfer, begin your registration process:

a) Simply register for the course as a non-matriculated student through the institution that is offering the course.

OR

b) If you are looking for financial aid to cover the cost of the course, visit Financial Aid to understand the process then visit the  SUNY Cross-Registration and Rochester Area Consortium (RAC) pages to register through those programs (scroll to bottom of RAC link).

Prospective Transfer Students

When you accept an offer of admission to Geneseo as a transfer student, the Admissions office provides you with a worksheet that outlines course equivalencies. The final articulation of your courses appears on your Degree Works audit.  Geneseo accepts courses for transfer credit if you have earned a grade of C- or higher and the individual course is parallel to courses offered at SUNY Geneseo. Since Geneseo is a liberal arts college, technical courses and courses in the trades may not all be degree applicable. Once you become a Geneseo student, view your Degree Works audit by signing on through the portal, my.geneseo.edu, with your new email credentials.

A maximum of 90 semester hours (only 60 of which can be from a 2-year institution) may be applied toward the baccalaureate degree requirements.

Degree Works updates when your transfer credit is received and applied, so you will be able to see your progress in your degree. If a course you have taken isn't showing up, make sure your final transcript, with grades, was sent to the Admissions office (or, once you are full-time at Geneseo, to the Registrar's office).  

For your first semester, the Office of Advising will work with faculty advisors to create a first-semester schedule for you. You will have several opportunities to change this schedule, but we encourage you to speak with an advisor at transfer Orientation or in the advising office before making changes that affect your major to ensure that you will have the prerequisites for the courses you want to take.

If you are still thinking about Geneseo as the college where you want to complete your bachelor's degree, take a look at the Undergraduate Bulletin for information about degree programs, majors, minors, general education, and elective courses.

Transferring Credits to Graduate

For various reasons, students leave Geneseo needing only one or two classes to graduate. Provided you have not maximized your transferred credits from other institutions, students can complete coursework elsewhere and then transfer the credits to Geneseo to graduate. A maximum of 90 semester hours (only 60 of which can be from a 2-year institution) may be applied toward the baccalaureate degree requirements. Follow the steps below to make sure your efforts have the desired end result.

1. Contact Graduation Records via email to make sure what courses are needed to complete your degree.
2. Use the Course Equivalency Databank to ensure the credits will transfer from the intended institution.
3. Enroll as a non-matriculated student at the intended institution. 
4. After completing the coursework, request a transcript be sent to SUNY Geneseo (registrar@geneseo.edu) from the individual institution(s) attended.
   1. SUNY Geneseo has authorized Parchment to send and receive electronic transcripts and respond to any inquiries regarding the transactions.  If you need assistance, contact Parchment.
5. Follow up with Graduation Records to ensure your credits are applied to your account. Also, this is a good time to make sure your graduation application is correct to receive your diploma.