There are some scenarios which may make you eligible to receive transfer credits and/or class waivers. If any of the following apply to you, please see your advisor.
- If you have taken graduate-level coursework outside of Bank Street.
- If you completed a class here at the College that is outside of your program.
- If you have a significant amount of life/work experience in one particular area.
Transfer Credits:
Graduate Credits
Matriculated students may file a request to transfer in up to three (3) graduate credits for the Advanced Certificate programs; or up to six (6) graduate credits for all other programs provided they meet the following requirements:
- course(s) were taken at an accredited academic institution;
- grade of B or better was awarded;
- credits were completed within eight years prior to student’s matriculation at Bank Street.
Students must initiate any request for transfer credits for graduate courses via the Transfer of Credit form on the Forms section of the Registrar’s Office webpage. Transfer credits must be approved by a student’s program director. Courses being transferred in lieu of a required course may also need to be approved by a Bank Street instructor in that discipline. Please note, 122 some partnership and cohort programs do not allow transfer credits.
Undergraduate Credits
Undergraduate credits can only be transferred in the context of a partnership agreement between Bank Street and an undergraduate institution. Undergraduate courses transferred into a Bank Street degree have been evaluated by faculty to affirm that they meet graduatelevel standards of rigor and programmatic requirements. Undergraduate transfer credits are limited in number by the specific requirements of the partnership program. Students must receive a grade of B or higher on an undergraduate class in order to transfer the credit.
Life Experience Credits
In limited circumstances, Bank Street will issue life experience credit for relevant and substantial prior professional experience. Life experience credits can only be issued for programs that have been designed to integrate credit for prior professional experiences. Such programs have a rubric that the program director or their designee uses to evaluate students’ prior professional experiences. No more than six credits will be awarded for life experiences. Students are responsible for all fees associated with processing life experience credits. Students who do not qualify for life experience credit in such programs must take additional coursework to address knowledge and skills required in the program. Prerequisites Students missing prerequisite course requirements can fulfill these through:
- Submitting an official transcript for coursework taken for credit at a regionally accredited institution for which a student received a grade of at least a C.
- Submitting College Board test score(s) such as the SAT, AP, or CLEP.
- Completing a qualifying course at Bank Street with a grade of at least a B.
Graduate credits used to satisfy prerequisites may also be eligible to be used towards elective credits in a student’s Bank Street degree program, with approval from the program director. Students cannot graduate or participate in commencement if they have outstanding prerequisites.
To transfer credits to Bank Street, you must submit the following documentation to the Registrar’s Office:
Please note that both your advisor/Program Director and your Department Chair are required signatures on the Transfer Credit Report Form. These representatives from your department may need to see additional documentation, such as course descriptions and/or course syllabi, to confirm that the credits you completed meet the requirements of our transfer credits.
If the representatives from your department decide that your transfer class is not equivalent to any of the Bank Street courses required for your degree but your credits are still eligible to be transferred in as electives, you will still need to register for and successfully complete all of the classes listed on your program page.
If you take a graduate course at another institution to meet your Undergraduate Liberal Arts and Sciences Prerequisites, you may be able to transfer in these credits as electives. Please see the “Requirements Outside of Degree for Certification-seeking Students” section below for more information.
Class Waivers
A class waiver can be used when you and your advisor believe you have already covered the content of a course required for your degree. A waiver acknowledges that you have completed a substantial amount of work and have acquired a considerable amount of knowledge that would normally be covered by one of your degree requirements. If you are eligible, you can work with your advisor and the chair of your department to fill out a Course Waiver Form and submit it to the Registrar’s Office.
An advisor may recommend that you submit a Course Waiver Form if any of the following apply:
- You took a course similar to ours at a different graduate-level institution.
- You took at least 3 undergraduate courses in the subject area of our course.
- You are changing programs at Bank Street, and took a similar course as part of your initial program plan.
The benefit of waiving a course is to allow space in your schedule for you to enroll in other classes. A waiver does not carry any credits. If your advisor waives one of your degree requirements, you will still need to take one or more courses to meet the total credit requirement of your degree. You do not need to submit an official transcript to the Registrar’s Office to waive a course.